Problem
People ran into campaigns through shared links or a quick browse, but finding something interesting did not mean they were ready to back it immediately. Once they closed the app, that project could easily be forgotten.
Backers needed a simple way to keep track of projects they liked. Campaigners needed to stay connected with those interested people. Our challenge was to link those needs through a mobile experience that stayed useful before and after someone contributed.
Design Constraints
Mobile visits were short, but crowdfunding decisions take thought. A campaign had to show its story, funding progress, timing, and perks without crowding a small screen.
Make discovery easy to scan: lead with imagery and show the funding status clearly.
Keep preferences light: let people pick a few favorite categories without slowing down their first visit.
Respect attention: give creator updates a clear home and keep notification settings simple.
Share product logic while respecting each platform: keep iOS patterns familiar while developing Android patterns during the early Material era.
Keep the first Android release focused: work with product and engineering to balance scope and interaction polish.
Concept
The main idea was a simple loop: follow categories, discover campaigns, save or contribute, get updates, and return. Each step gave the next visit a clear reason.
Following a category set up relevant recommendations. Saving a campaign kept an option open. An update carried the story forward. Together, these actions let people get to know an idea at their own pace.
Approach and Experiments
I led product flows, interaction and visual design, prototypes, and production support. I worked with the iOS and Android teams separately, sharing core principles while tailoring navigation and interactions to each platform.
Start With What Interests You
Category following turned a wide marketplace into a familiar starting point. Options like Film, Technology, Music, and Community became visual tiles designed for quick recognition. I also placed follow prompts within discovery so people could tune preferences beyond onboarding.
People could share what they liked without filling out an elaborate profile first. On Android, the empty state explained how following categories helped before asking people to choose.
Make a Campaign Easy to Read
I explored how much information a campaign card could show while remaining easy to scan. A prominent image drew attention, while the title and funding details helped people decide what to explore. Amount raised, percent funded, days left, category, and location showed campaign status at a glance.
On Android, the campaign page carried that structure into perk choices. I organized perks, availability, and options into scannable sections, and used quick tap-through tests on follow and perk-selection tasks to refine the flow. Saving remained an option for people who were not ready to contribute.
Evidence and Signals
The work is best reflected in the core designs: interest selection, readable campaign cards, project saving, and a dedicated activity feed. Together, they formed a straightforward path from discovering a project to keeping up with it.
The iPhone app launched in 2014, and Android followed with its first native release. My contribution spanned discovery through campaign engagement, working closely with engineers on interaction details and production polish.
The work brought these experiences together across both platforms and established reusable patterns for the team to build on.
Native on Both Platforms
Give Updates Somewhere to Land
Following a campaign should not depend on remembering to visit a page. I designed Activity as a central place for creator updates, structured to be useful when the feed was quiet and clear as it filled up.
The empty state explained that updates from funded campaigns would appear there. In an active feed, creator details, campaign title, photo, and update text worked together as a short story. Visible notification controls gave people a way to manage interruptions.
Use Motion to Explain the Space
Android brought a distinct challenge. Material Design was introduced in 2014, so we were applying a young design language to a real product while its conventions were still taking shape.
I worked with Android engineers on short transitions connecting cards, lists, and detail views. Elevation and motion helped clarify where content came from and what was interactive. I wrote small pieces of prototype code with engineering and tuned timing so interactions felt crisp on our target devices.
Across both platforms, the goal stayed simple: make the next action clear, keep campaign details easy to recognize, and help people pick up where they left off.
iOS / Activity Empty State
iOS / Campaign Updates
Android / Campaign Updates
Insights and Next Opportunities
This project clarified how I think about mobile engagement: a return visit starts with whether the first one felt worthwhile. I’d rather give someone a useful save action, a clear preference, or an update worth reading than simply ask for their attention again.
For a next iteration, I would explore three areas: richer interest signals after initial category picks, digest updates that keep campaigns visible without cluttering alerts, and clearer comparisons for perks with complicated options.
I would also document motion patterns more systematically and track the progression from following a category to saving a campaign, reading an update, and contributing. Measuring those steps would make future design choices easier to evaluate.