El Meter - Real estate listings app for Kuwait
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Post a property or a request, and find listings on a map of the area.
El Meter
iOS app and brand, 2015-2016
About the project
El Meter, Arabic for “the meter”, is a real estate app for Kuwait. People post a property for sale or rent, ask for the one they need, and find both on a map. In 2015 we created its brand and logo, designed the Arabic iPhone app and a second app for market data, and in 2016 we designed a second version of the listings app.
Project
El Meter App and Brand
Industry
Real Estate
Location
Kuwait
Date
2015-2016
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Client Request
El Meter wanted one place for every real estate deal: an Arabic app with listings on a map, photos and chat, affordable and easy to use.
El Meter
Idea scope, February 2015
Design Pillars
Core UX Principles
Every listing is a property on offer or a request for one, for sale or for rent.
Property type, sector, rooms and price are chosen from lists and sliders, with icons for each type.
Listings sit on a map with a count on each cluster, and a new listing starts with its place on the map.
What Users Need
Designed for Brokers and Home Seekers
Brokers Share Deals
A broker needs one place to post plots and flats, manage the listings and answer buyers in chat.
Seekers Search by Place
Someone moving for a new job looks for a flat near work, so search and alerts start from the map.
Listings People Can Trust
Posts cost points and expire after three months, to keep old and spam listings out of the stream.
The Challenge
Problem Statement
The Main Goal: One Arabic App for Every Property Deal
Brokers in Kuwait had no single place to share their deals, and people looking for a home found old or spam listings online. El Meter had to bring offers, requests, maps, photos and chat into one Arabic app that a broker with little tech experience could use.
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Real Estate World.
El Meter Tagline
El Meter, 2015
Our Approach
Solution
A Brand and Two Apps
The brand personality and logo, user flows, wireframes and the iPhone UI of the listings app and a market data app, then a second version in 2016. It is an example of our Mobile App Design work.
01 - Brand and Research
We started with the brand personality, two personas and user stories, then drew four logo directions.
02 - Flows and Wireframes
Each flow was mapped with its rules and error cases, from signing up with an SMS code to posting a listing.
03 - UI, Guides and Testing
We designed the screens for iPhone 4, 5 and 6 Plus, handed over style guides and icon sets, and tested the 2016 build against our wireframes.
Before & After
The Blueprint & Evolution
First Concept to Final Design
The first UI concept came in March 2015, six weeks after the first wireframes.
Before: the March 2015 map, with yellow pins in the shape of the logo and a filter bar.
After: the final map, with listing markers, counts on clusters and a bar for adding a watch area.
Design
Key Features
Watch an Area
Draw a shape on the map and save it to a watch list, and the app sends a notification when someone posts a listing inside it.
Points for Posting
Each listing costs points. People get free points every month, can buy more in the app, and a post stays live for three months.
Design System
Visual Identity
Arabic Type
GE Flow for headings and buttons, and GE SS Two in a light weight for body text.
Color Palette
The yellow and black of the logo, green for confirm buttons, blue for requests and red for errors and deleting.
Points and States
Before a post goes live, the app shows its cost and the balance left. Other states cover saving for later, the five photo limit and a lost connection.
Impact
A Logo Still in Use in 2021
Results for El Meter
We handed over screens, style guides and icon sets in 2015 and 2016 and tested the 2016 build. In 2021, lmeter.com still used our speech bubble logo.
El Meter
Result
By the Numbers
2 Versions
The first app in 2015 and a second version in 2016.
320+ Screens
In the 2016 version alone, across 13 flows.
2 Apps
The listings app and a market data app under one brand.
Flows and Rules
Mapping Every Case
Rules Before Screens
We started from personas and user stories, then drew flow charts with a rule for each case: first time users, location permission, five wrong codes, too few points to post. The wireframes carried a note on each behavior. You can see some of the results below.
Final Showcase
The El Meter App and Brand
