The Solution
I designed an app called 'thoughtmate' which provides men with a hub of useful features to manage their mental health. It features mood tracking, stories of lived experiences from respected men in the community (ambassadors), forums, and an instant support toolkit. It also aims to reduce the stigma surrounding the subject, encouraging men to open up rather than keep their feelings bottled up inside.
For my research, I looked into mental health campaigns, other apps, user reviews, hegemonic masculinity, research papers, as well as conducted a survey and focus group. This enabled me to identify my audience and their wants/needs, as well as direct the content and features of the app. All the features included within the app were carefully thought out and based upon my research into what men would utilise, and find most useful.
I chose 'reaching out is strong' as my tagline as I feel that it embodies the overall ethos and message of the brand. During my research, many users stated that the app must be branded in such a way that they feel comfortable having it on their devices. From the name, through to the logo and app design itself, this was considered and designed with the user's preferences in mind. I created an interactive prototype and video, which can be viewed below.