Increased participation
Cultural and national events caught the interest of younger generations.
Moldavi a Milano
A Website That Unified a Community
Time Line: July 5th-August 9th, 2024
Role:Product Designer
Team: Mariana(developer), Maria(admin.)
It began in Milan.
The growing Moldovan community lacked a reliable information source.
While active on WhatsApp and social media, members still felt disconnected—important events were hard to find, and engagement was low.
The Results? More Than Numbers:
Higher engagement
People started to show active interest in upcoming meetups.
A trustworthy source
Members and followers are using the website to check featured events.
Problem
Disconnected members struggled with chaotic information, passive participation, and lack of visibility of events.
Solution
A website that’s clear and informative, easy to navigate, engaging across cultures, and true to its community roots.
Decisions that shaped the solution:
Cultural Identity Through Design
Choosing an engaging color palette that reflects Moldovan heritage, energy, and growth.
Defining a user-friendly and scannable layout that ensures accessibility and ease of navigation.
The green hues,are inspired by vine leaves.
The Layout showcases a design metaphor of "growing vines" that culminate in a grape-shaped form pointing to Milan.
Moldova and Italy both have a rich wine-making culture. This confirmed the choice of the current layout and colors.
Highlighted upcoming events and regular meetups.
I have decided on a suitable representation for future events, meetups, and contact methods.
The Facebook page and WhatsApp group of the community are like disorganized forums, so I decided to create dedicated sections.
Future Events & Meetups—to sections enhanced the clarity and engagement of users.
I have designed a newsletter subscription scenario.
A newsletter provides the opportunity to stay informed about upcoming events and meetups.
I have created a comfortable way for all user age categories to join the community.
Most of the Users prefer the WhatsApp calls and messaging over phone calls.
Multilingual Content Strategy
Included a simple language switcher.
After interviewing community members we decided that content in Moldovan and Italian will positively impact user experience and accessibility.
Included a simple language switcher.
I have aimed to reflect the metaphorical concept behind the design in both languages. (growing vines plant).
Learnings
Helping a group to create or to integrate into a community requires an understanding of their cultural identity and values.
Creating a strong community means using features that help people talk and take part.
Small cultural details, like symbols, can make people more interested and help them feel more connected.
What’s next?
Create a about page with members and community contacts.
Include a blog posts section or page.
Highlights of previous events can demonstrate the community's accomplishments and establish credibility.