Aunt Flo was a group UX design project to combat a common problem on campus. We decided to tackle the taboo dilemma that women and other people find themselves in where their out in public without menstrual products amid an 'emergency'. Rather than creating a solution that further isolated and complicated this taboo subject, we decided to create a solution that brought people together to help build community and security over a delicate situation.
After acknowledging this wasn't just a problem on campus but everywhere in the world, we created a statement dedicated to "Making menstrual products more accessible on campus." Our research, unsurprisingly, showed that 82% of students had found themselves on campus without products amidst an emergency. Unfortunately, this study was confined to college years; most women will state that they have been unprepared in public at least once. What people haven't discussed is what they did in the meantime. We decided to use surveys and interviews to ask women and other users how they have been combatting this problem so far. Oftentimes, users find it embarrassing and difficult to ask for help unless there are close friends nearby with products on them. Other methods are uncomfortable or impractical.
Our solution was an app that allowed people to connect and share products with others nearby when they found themselves in an 'emergency'. During early development, we took a lot of our design inspiration from map-based apps such as Google Maps or Uber. This allows for an easy approach to conduct the exchange. Our paper testing revealed that we were making things way too complicated. In the end, the best route was a UX design that was as straightforward as possible, this allowed for the exchange of products as fast, discreet, and comfortable as possible.
Introducing Aunt Flo, a platform that allows students on campus to meet up and exchange products in a comfortable and safe way. There are two main functions when you enter the app, GIVE and RECEIVE. If users need to RECEIVE products, they would enter in what products they preferred, how urgent the situation was, and where they wanted to meet. Once the request was sent out, other users in the area would be notified and could use the GIVE feature to send an offer to help. If the offer was accepted the app then directs the Receiver and the Giver to the designated meeting spot to exchange the products. Those who choose to GIVE and help others would then get compensation in the form of gift cards for personal care. We wanted the design choices to project an app that was friendly, welcoming, and comfortable. The name 'Aunt Flo', although suggestive to our problem, also gives the feeling that this app is here to take care of you as a family member would.
