Connected888
UX RESEARCH & UX/UI DESIGN
As part of my UX internship, I collaborated with a team of designers to develop a brand-consistent website for Connected888, a US-based startup. The project focused on establishing a clear and user-centered digital presence for an early-stage platform with limited existing brand assets and user data. This case study highlights my design process, key decisions, and contributions throughout the internship.
Project duration: 6 months
Tools used: Figma, Lovable, Dribble
Project Goal
The goal of this internship was to help design a professional, user-centered website and scalable brand system that clearly communicates Connected888’s value and supports its growth as an early-stage startup.
Target audience: sound healers, wellness pracititioners, people interested in sound healing aged 25-60 years old
Challenges
1) Remote collaboration with teammates across timezones
2) Balancing creativity with business requirements
3) Time constraints
4) Limited user data and no preexisting brand system
Project Background
Connected888 is a wellness platform that connects sound healers and holistic practitioners—such as those specializing in Reiki and meditation—with individuals seeking sound healing experiences. In addition to enabling practitioners to promote their services and connect with users, Connected888 hosts global online sound healing events once or twice a year, allowing participants from around the world to experience sound frequencies at 888Hz. Within the sound healing community, 888Hz is often associated with balance, harmony, and positive energy, making it a meaningful focal point for the platform’s events.
My role & responsibilities
Contributed to the brand guide (typography, icons, visual style)
Designed 4 core website pages: home, about, media and profile preview
Designed a PDF flyer based on the profile preview
Collaborated closely with the CEO, team lead, and my partner through feedback and iteration
Early Ideation
Given Connected888’s early-stage status and limited existing user data, research focused on alternative sources and assumption-driven methods to guide early design decisions. I started off with reviewing Connected888’s Instagram and TikTok following to identify patterns in audience interests, behaviors, and engagement. Based on this, my teammates and I identified three primary user groups for the Connected888 platform.
Group 1: Volunteers (sound/energy healers)
Name: Michael
Age: 45
Occupation: Yoga teacher
Hometown: Los Angeles, CA
Goals: To be part of the Connected888 team so he can offer his services and join the spiritual journey
Pain points: Frustrated when volunteer roles or responsibilities aren’t explained well. Feels disconnected if there’s little follow-up or appreciation after events.
As a sound healer, Michael can offer his services to Connected888 and help his clients (and Connected888's users) become more in tune with their spirituality.
“I want to volunteer with a group that’s organized, supportive, and aligned with spiritual growth.”
What we can do: a) Provide a fast and seamless registration process, b) Maintain consistent communication, c) Offer well-defined volunteer roles to avoid confusion
Motivations: Michael wants to be able to easily register for an event and receive communications regarding it.
Group 2: Participants
Name: Kim
Age: 27
Occupation: Marketing manager
Hometown: Frankfurt, Germany
Kim has never tried sound meditation before, but has come across videos and posts about it. She's curious to explore these practices to reduce stress, improve focus and sleep better.
Goals: Kim wants to try sound healing for the first time to improve her overall well-being, focus and sleep quality.
Pain points: Unsure which events are trustworthy and beginner-friendly. Overwhelmed by too many options.
“I want to try meditation and sound healing- but with so many options, I just need a simple, trusted place to start.”
Motivations: To find a trustworthy platform that will allow her to practice sound healing for the first time.
How we can help: a) Provide users with an easy way to find and contact verified wellness practitioners, b) Update users on upcoming sound healing events
Group 3: Donors, sponsors, promoters
Name: Anna
Age: 39
Occupation: Program officer at an NGO
Hometown: Sydney, Australia
Anna funds social impact projects around the world. She is interested in Connected888's cause and believes it aligns with her organization's values.
Goals: To identify meaningful partnership or sponsorship opportunities. Anna also wants to support initiatives that align with her organization’s mission and values.
Pain points: Difficulty evaluating the legitimacy and impact of early-stage startups. Limited transparency into how contributions are used or what impact they create
Motivations: Supporting global, inclusive, and community-driven projects.
How we can help: a) Clearly communicate its mission, values and social impact, b) Provide transparent information about events, reach and comunity engagement
“I’m looking to invest in projects that promote wellness, balance, and positive global impact.”
After defining the core user groups, I developed empathy maps to better understand user needs, motivations, and pain points, as well as user journey sketches for each user group to visualize how potential users might discover Connected888, explore practitioners or events, and ultimately take action. These exercises helped identify key touchpoints and moments of friction throughout the user experience.
Laying the Foundation
To establish a strong foundation for the website, I created multiple user flows to map how the different user groups would move through the platform. These flows helped clarify key entry points, user goals, and actions, while ensuring the overall navigation remained intuitive and cohesive. The resulting flows informed the site structure and guided early design decisions for the core pages.
Wireframing
Building on the defined user flows, I created low-fidelity wireframes to explore layout, hierarchy, and content structure across the website. These wireframes focused on establishing a clear information architecture and ensuring key actions were easy to find and understand. Designing the wireframes page by page allowed me to address the unique goals of each screen while maintaining a consistent experience across the platform.
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Click on the wireframes to see them up close.
Brand Guide
To ensure consistency across the website and supporting materials, I contributed to the development of a style guide that defined key visual and UI elements used throughout the platform. Since Connected888 had no pre-existing brand guide or brand materials, the system was built from the ground up, incorporating the provided brand colors as a foundation.
Color Palette
Primary
#F7C040
Secondary
#9999CC
Tertiary
#91B895
Accent
#635147
Connected888’s color palette is anchored by a warm yellow, supported by a soft lavendar, a calming green and a grounded brown. These colors combine warmth, calm, and stability, helping to evoke feelings of harmony and trust while remaining approachable and easy to engage with across the platform. The soft green and purple convey balance, growth and ---- while the warmer primary tone adds energy and focus. This ultimately allows for key elements stand out without overwhelming the experience.