Redesigning a Startup Community Platform to Drive Growth and Engagement
Redesigning a Startup Community Platform to Drive Growth and Engagement
Redesigning a Startup Community Platform to Drive Growth and Engagement
Founding UX Designer (Sole Designer)
Founding UX Designer (Sole Designer)
https://www.coffeespace.com/
https://www.coffeespace.com/
Web + Mobile App
Web + Mobile App
2 Co-founders, 2 Developers, 4 Growth Team Members
2 Co-founders, 2 Developers, 4 Growth Team Members
LAUNCHED
LAUNCHED
10%
10%
Increase in daily user engagement
Increase in daily user engagement
70%
70%
users completed their profiles (up from 40%)
users completed their profiles (up from 40%)
160%
160%
Community growth (250 → 650 members in 6 months)
Community growth (250 → 650 members in 6 months)
CoffeeSpace hosted successful in-person startup events in San Francisco but struggled to maintain community engagement between events. As the founding designer, I led a complete platform redesign and rebrand that increased daily engagement by 10%, profile completion by 70%, and grew the community from 250 to 650 members in 6 months.
CoffeeSpace hosted successful in-person startup events in San Francisco but struggled to maintain community engagement between events. As the founding designer, I led a complete platform redesign and rebrand that increased daily engagement by 10%, profile completion by 70%, and grew the community from 250 to 650 members in 6 months.
The Challenge
The Challenge
The Business Problem
CoffeeSpace hosted successful in-person startup events in San Francisco but struggled to maintain community engagement between events. The platform, inherited from another project, didn't reflect CoffeeSpace's identity and had low user engagement. Co-founders needed to raise funding and required a redesigned platform that could demonstrate growth metrics to investors.
User Problems
60% of users had incomplete profiles, limiting discoverability
Confusing mentorship booking system with timezone issues
Users couldn't connect daily only during physical events
Search functionality was limited, preventing users from finding relevant connections
My Goals
Rebrand the platform to reflect CoffeeSpace's community-focused identity
Increase profile completion to improve user connections
Simplify mentorship booking to boost engagement
Grow active community from 250 to 1,000 members in 6 months
The Business Problem
CoffeeSpace hosted successful in-person startup events in San Francisco but struggled to maintain community engagement between events. The platform, inherited from another project, didn't reflect CoffeeSpace's identity and had low user engagement. Co-founders needed to raise funding and required a redesigned platform that could demonstrate growth metrics to investors.
User Problems
60% of users had incomplete profiles, limiting discoverability
Confusing mentorship booking system with timezone issues
Users couldn't connect daily only during physical events
Search functionality was limited, preventing users from finding relevant connections
My Goals
Rebrand the platform to reflect CoffeeSpace's community-focused identity
Increase profile completion to improve user connections
Simplify mentorship booking to boost engagement
Grow active community from 250 to 1,000 members in 6 months
My Approach
My Approach
Working Under Constraints
As the founding and sole designer on a fast-moving startup, I had to balance thorough UX process with speed-to-market. User research wasn't initially approved due to investor timelines, so I leveraged competitive analysis and collaborated closely with our CTO (former Meta engineer with social platform expertise) to inform design decisions. I later secured approval for targeted user interviews once initial designs launched.
My Process
Brand Discovery → Workshops with founders to define identity, values, tone
Competitive Analysis → Studied LinkedIn, AngelList, and niche founder platforms
Strategic Roadmap → Prioritized features for phased rollout
Iterative Design → Designed and launched one feature at a time to preserve brand values
User Validation → Conducted interviews post-launch to refine booking experience
Working Under Constraints
As the founding and sole designer on a fast-moving startup, I had to balance thorough UX process with speed-to-market. User research wasn't initially approved due to investor timelines, so I leveraged competitive analysis and collaborated closely with our CTO (former Meta engineer with social platform expertise) to inform design decisions. I later secured approval for targeted user interviews once initial designs launched.
My Process
Brand Discovery → Workshops with founders to define identity, values, tone
Competitive Analysis → Studied LinkedIn, AngelList, and niche founder platforms
Strategic Roadmap → Prioritized features for phased rollout
Iterative Design → Designed and launched one feature at a time to preserve brand values
User Validation → Conducted interviews post-launch to refine booking experience
COMPLETE REBRAND & DESIGN SYSTEM
COMPLETE REBRAND & DESIGN SYSTEM
The Problem
Inherited design didn't reflect CoffeeSpace's community-first mission. Brand felt generic and didn't resonate with startup founders.
My Solution
Led brand workshops with founders to uncover core identity: authentic community, founder-to-founder support, inclusive hustle culture. Created comprehensive brand identity including:
Logo that represented connection and coffee culture
Warm, approachable color palette (earthy browns, energetic oranges)
Typography that balanced professional with approachable
Tone of voice guidelines emphasizing authenticity and support
Approach
Rolled out rebrand gradually one feature at a time to avoid jarring existing users while improving experience.
Impact
New brand resonated with founder audience, contributing to 160% community growth and successful fundraising round.
The Problem
Inherited design didn't reflect CoffeeSpace's community-first mission. Brand felt generic and didn't resonate with startup founders.
My Solution
Led brand workshops with founders to uncover core identity: authentic community, founder-to-founder support, inclusive hustle culture. Created comprehensive brand identity including:
Logo that represented connection and coffee culture
Warm, approachable color palette (earthy browns, energetic oranges)
Typography that balanced professional with approachable
Tone of voice guidelines emphasizing authenticity and support
Approach
Rolled out rebrand gradually one feature at a time to avoid jarring existing users while improving experience.
Impact
New brand resonated with founder audience, contributing to 160% community growth and successful fundraising round.
Personalized Profile System with Smart Completion
Personalized Profile System with Smart Completion
The Problem
60% of users had incomplete profiles. Generic one-size-fits-all profile structure didn't account for different user needs (pre-founders vs. established founders vs. investors)……
My Solution
Designed three customized profile types tailored to user journey:
Pre-Founder Profile
Tab 1: Basic info (pulled from LinkedIn)
Tab 2: Project ideas, co-founder preferences, portfolio, project progress
Founder Profile
Tab 1: Basic info (LinkedIn integration)
Tab 2: Company details, traction metrics, funds raised, co-founder matching
Tab 3: Mentorship session reviews
Investor Profile
Tab 1: Basic info
Tab 2: Investment thesis, fund details, investment range, portfolio companies
Smart Features
LinkedIn integration auto-filled profiles (reduced manual entry)
Customized fields per user type (only asked relevant questions)
Progress indicators encouraged completion
Impact
70% profile completion rate (up from 40%), directly increasing discoverability and meaningful connections.
The Problem
60% of users had incomplete profiles. Generic one-size-fits-all profile structure didn't account for different user needs (pre-founders vs. established founders vs. investors)……
My Solution
Designed three customized profile types tailored to user journey:
Pre-Founder Profile
Tab 1: Basic info (pulled from LinkedIn)
Tab 2: Project ideas, co-founder preferences, portfolio, project progress
Founder Profile
Tab 1: Basic info (LinkedIn integration)
Tab 2: Company details, traction metrics, funds raised, co-founder matching
Tab 3: Mentorship session reviews
Investor Profile
Tab 1: Basic info
Tab 2: Investment thesis, fund details, investment range, portfolio companies
Smart Features
LinkedIn integration auto-filled profiles (reduced manual entry)
Customized fields per user type (only asked relevant questions)
Progress indicators encouraged completion
Impact
70% profile completion rate (up from 40%), directly increasing discoverability and meaningful connections.
Cross-App Search & Filter System
Cross-App Search & Filter System
The Problem
Users couldn't easily discover other founders, investors, or relevant content. Search was limited to specific sections of the app.
My Solution
Implemented comprehensive tag-based search system that worked across entire platform:
Users could search from anywhere in the app
Smart filters: by role (founder/investor), industry, stage, location
Tag system categorized users and content for better discoverability
Search remembered recent queries and suggested connections
Impact
Increased user-to-user connections and content engagement, contributing to overall 10% engagement lift.
The Problem
Users couldn't easily discover other founders, investors, or relevant content. Search was limited to specific sections of the app.
My Solution
Implemented comprehensive tag-based search system that worked across entire platform:
Users could search from anywhere in the app
Smart filters: by role (founder/investor), industry, stage, location
Tag system categorized users and content for better discoverability
Search remembered recent queries and suggested connections
Impact
Increased user-to-user connections and content engagement, contributing to overall 10% engagement lift.
Results
Results
Business Outcomes
160% community growth (250 → 650 members in 6 months)
Successfully raised funding round (redesigned platform demonstrated growth)
Exceeded growth trajectory (target was 1,000 members; achieved 650 mid-project)
User Outcomes
10% increase in daily active users
70% profile completion (up from 40%)
Positive user feedback: "Finally feels like a community built for founders"
Design System Legacy
Created comprehensive component library used by dev team
Established design patterns that scaled as platform grew
Brand guidelines adopted across all marketing materials
Business Outcomes
160% community growth (250 → 650 members in 6 months)
Successfully raised funding round (redesigned platform demonstrated growth)
Exceeded growth trajectory (target was 1,000 members; achieved 650 mid-project)
User Outcomes
10% increase in daily active users
70% profile completion (up from 40%)
Positive user feedback: "Finally feels like a community built for founders"
Design System Legacy
Created comprehensive component library used by dev team
Established design patterns that scaled as platform grew
Brand guidelines adopted across all marketing materials
What I Learned
What I Learned
1. Advocate relentlessly for users, even without initial buy-in
I initially couldn't get approval for user research due to investor timelines. Instead of giving up, I built trust through competitive analysis and early wins, then secured approval for targeted interviews later. This taught me to find creative ways to advocate for users within business constraints.
2. A sole designer is never truly alone
Collaborating with our CTO's social platform expertise and growth team's direct user contact gave me insights that pure research couldn't. I learned to leverage cross-functional teammates as research partners.
3. Phased rollouts reduce risk while maintaining momentum
Redesigning one feature at a time (rather than a big-bang launch) let us validate assumptions, preserve brand continuity, and keep shipping. Users appreciated gradual improvements over disruptive overhauls.
4. Personalization drives engagement
Creating three distinct profile types rather than one generic structure increased completion by 30 percentage points. Users appreciated that we understood their specific needs.
1. Advocate relentlessly for users, even without initial buy-in
I initially couldn't get approval for user research due to investor timelines. Instead of giving up, I built trust through competitive analysis and early wins, then secured approval for targeted interviews later. This taught me to find creative ways to advocate for users within business constraints.
2. A sole designer is never truly alone
Collaborating with our CTO's social platform expertise and growth team's direct user contact gave me insights that pure research couldn't. I learned to leverage cross-functional teammates as research partners.
3. Phased rollouts reduce risk while maintaining momentum
Redesigning one feature at a time (rather than a big-bang launch) let us validate assumptions, preserve brand continuity, and keep shipping. Users appreciated gradual improvements over disruptive overhauls.
4. Personalization drives engagement
Creating three distinct profile types rather than one generic structure increased completion by 30 percentage points. Users appreciated that we understood their specific needs.
Product Design, UX Research, Design Systems, Branding, Social Networking, Startup, Community Building
Product Design, UX Research, Design Systems, Branding, Social Networking, Startup, Community Building
Based in Abuja Nigeria, working remote worldwide
Local time Gmt +1
PRODUCT DESIGN *
USER RESEARCH *
DESIGN SYSTEMS *
CULTURAL DESIGN *
AI WORKFLOWS *
All rights reserved
Designed and developed by Helen Ihediwa © 2025
Based in Abuja Nigeria, working remote worldwide
Local time Gmt +1
PRODUCT DESIGN *
USER RESEARCH *
DESIGN SYSTEMS *
CULTURAL DESIGN *
AI WORKFLOWS *
All rights reserved
Designed and developed by Helen Ihediwa © 2025
Based in Abuja Nigeria, working remote worldwide
Local time Gmt +1
PRODUCT DESIGN *
USER RESEARCH *
DESIGN SYSTEMS *
CULTURAL DESIGN *
AI WORKFLOWS *
All rights reserved
Designed and developed by Helen Ihediwa © 2025