Rethink · Case Study

Open Door is a mobile app designed to help remote workers connect with nearby professionals through shared interests and activities. My role included leading user research, defining user needs, ideating features, wireframing screens, and building a prototype.

The goal was to reduce isolation and encourage in-person/local community building among remote workers.

Background

Remote work has reshaped how people interact with work — but not how they connect socially. While flexibility has increased, many remote workers lack the casual interactions that naturally happen in offices or shared spaces. Existing social and networking apps fail to address this gap, focusing instead on dating, professional networking, or large-scale events.

This raised a core question:

How might we help remote workers connect locally in a way that feels natural, relevant, and worth leaving the house for?

Target Users

We focused on remote workers aged 24–38, who:

Work remotely
Want social or professional local connection
Live in urban or suburban areas

This aligns with broader trends showing loneliness and lack of local interaction rising among remote professionals.

Survey and Interviews

We launched a screener survey across 3 platforms and conducted 18 responses, followed by 6 qualitative interviews.

Key quantitative findings

72% felt socially disconnected in their local area
61% reported meeting new people less than once or twice per month
67% said coordinating schedules was a major barrier to meeting others

People didn’t want another app to scroll. They wanted a reason to meet, something contextual, lightweight, and easy to commit to.

Problem Definition

Remote workers want to meet people locally, but current solutions either:

Feel too high-pressure (dating)
Feel too transactional (networking)
Require too much effort (events)

Remote workers need a low-pressure way to discover nearby people with shared interests and align on time without committing to large or awkward social situations.

Ideation & Direction

I explored two primary directions:

Activity-driven social connection
local community feed

User feedback and feasibility pointed toward a hybrid launch focusing on interest-driven activities with with local community feed. This approach balanced discovery with clear incentives to take action.

Style Guide

To reflect the vibe we wanted Open Door to embody approachable, local, and human, the visual system focused on:

Softer color palette for comfort
Rounded UI elements to reduce cognitive pressure
Clear typography for easy scanning

This visual direction helped users quickly interpret actionable items essential in early prototypes.

How Open Doors work

Outcome

Although Open Door is a concept MVP, early validation was promising:

83% said they would try the app locally
67% preferred it over generic social apps
Scheduling clarity consistently increased confidence to meet

Key Learnings

Strong social products are built by removing friction, not adding options. The most effective designs pushed users from intent to real-world action, not passive engagement. Here are some of the learnings:

Local relevance beats global scale
local community feed
Reducing friction matters more than adding features

Social App to connect with remote workers locally