Mischa | Tasteradar

Introduction

A mobile application designed to streamline the discovery of local culinary experiences. As the driving force behind this venture, I led efforts in user research, usability testing, and prototype design, ensuring a user-friendly approach to dining exploration.

Problem Statement

Group dining often leads to decision paralysis, overshadowed by abundant franchises and mixed reviews, making it challenging to uncover local culinary treasures.

Value Proposition

Simplify group dining with three curated local options tailored to collective preferences, prioritizing user feedback and supporting unique local venues

UX Insights

Shared Dining: Introduced group prompts based on user demand for communal dining, enhancing community engagement.
Efficient Onboarding: Integrated Google single sign-on after feedback for swift entry, streamlining user access.
Flexible Dining: Designed for both spontaneous and planned outings in response to diverse user lifestyle feedback.
Personalization: Added feature to save dietary preferences, tailoring recommendations and boosting user relevance.

Tailored for You

We refined our food finder algorithm to prioritize user exploration, adjusting filters based on user feedback between "must-haves" and "preferences". This ensures recommendations are aligned with individual tastes. Feedback on our restaurant suggestions is actively tracked using the Net Promoter Score, ensuring continuous improvement in our offerings.

I approached the brand identity with a focus on creating a high-end, healthy, organic, fun, and approachable look. The deliverables included a carefully crafted logo, a clean and modern font, and a design system that embodied freshness and culinary exploration. The vibrant and natural color palette further enhanced the app's energetic and organic feel, reflecting its core values of delicious and wholesome local food experiences.

Through extensive user research, market analysis, and iterative design, we have successfully developed a working prototype that simplifies the process of finding and choosing local food experiences. Our goal is to create a vibrant community of food enthusiasts who are passionate about exploring the rich flavors available in the Netherlands. To drive market adoption, we have devised a comprehensive strategy that focuses on building awareness and fostering user engagement.

Through strategic partnerships with renowned food brands and venues, such as Willicroft, Soosee, Plant Based Fashion, ON!ST, and The Karma Company, Tasteradar aims to offer a diverse range of local culinary experiences and promote sustainable, vegan, and healthy food options. These collaborations bring together the expertise and passion of these brands, creating a vibrant community of food enthusiasts and providing users with a wide selection of high-quality, eco-friendly, and delicious choices.

Social Media Presence: We briefly worked with a contractor (Aria, Marketing) to grow our social platforms by engaging with users, share compelling content, and foster a sense of community around Tasteradar. Our plan was to collaborate with popular food-focused Instagrammers, such as @fooddeco, @mykitchenskills, and @dutchfoodie, to promote Tasteradar and share their experiences using the app.

The weak point: business and marketing:

For this project, Diederick took the mantle of business strategy, ensuring collaboration between social media and marketing experts worked smoothly, while keeping the entire team aware of our deadlines. I personally focused on shaping the user experience, conducting research, and developing marketing strategies to attract and engage our target audience. Cas, with his expertise in development, brought our vision to life through his technical prowess.
One area where we identified a gap in our team was the absence of a dedicated financial and business advisor. Moving forward, we recognized the importance of having an advisor to provide guidance on financial planning, investment strategies, and overall business development. With the inclusion of such an advisor, we would have been better equipped to navigate the financial aspects of the startup and make informed decisions for future growth.
Despite the decision to put the project on hold after reaching the finals of a local startup competition, we remain optimistic about the future of Tasteradar. We eagerly await renewed opportunities and motivation to reignite our passion for simplifying the search for local food experiences in the Netherlands.

In 2022, Tasteradar gained recognition by reaching the finals of a local startup competition (Tailors Den) for investment funds in Tilburg. Although we did not win the prize, this experience provided valuable validation of our concept and highlighted areas where we could strengthen our business proposition. Feedback from the competition organizers indicated that our competitive advantage, our "moat," needed further development to stand out in the market.
As a result, we made the decision to put the project on hold. After two years of intense development, we realized that our motivation had waned. However, we remain open to revisiting the project in the future, especially considering the advancements in language-based AI models and their potential impact on review curation and personalized restaurant data.
This journey has been a tremendous learning opportunity in entrepreneurship, allowing me to grow and mature as a designer. Although the team has disbanded, I am excited to continue working on side projects and providing value as a designer and creator. I am grateful for the insights gained throughout this process and look forward to applying them in future endeavors, always striving to create meaningful and user-centered solutions.