In the name of the rainbow — here is the new Youth Phone
The Youth Phone is a service under the auspices of Skeiv Ungdom. The service is a conversation offering for young people who want to anonymously talk about sexuality, gender, identity or emotional life.
The Challenge
When they needed a new communications platform, it wasn't the technical that was the biggest challenge. Yes, among other things, we had to arrange integration towards a new chat service and make the SMS service work seamlessly with our design. But we fix that sort of thing. Here it was the design that was the nut we had to crack.
Of course, it helps to have a solid insights. Through an in-depth workshop, we learned more about who users are — and what their needs are. We interviewed the volunteer hosts and received information on common topics and frequently asked questions, among other things. What are the kids wondering — and how do they express themselves? Based on this, we went to work.
The Balancing Aisle
Firstly, Ungdomtelefonen got a completely new outfit — with a new visual profile, logo and colour palette. The rainbow palette naturally plays on pride, and the purple color in the rainbow is Skeiv Ungdom's own profile color. The other choices for the profile were made through exercises where the customer helped to associate certain colors with their own values.
Moreover, we really had to strike the balance in the expression — from tono de voz and right down to what fonts we chose. For example, we avoided serifs because we didn't want to be too distancing or formal. The language had to be relatively close to that used by young people, but without that Youth Phone appears as a buddy.
The expression should be downbeat, but not silly. Just an adult confidant, listening and understanding. We think we got that.
The Small, Important Grips
Defined goals were to clarify what the service was about and lower the threshold for making contact. It meant, for example, making it crystal clear that the service is completely anonymous — and that it's people you're talking to. In addition, we highlighted typical questions that mirrored the language of young people.
At the top or bottom of the page - depending on the device - there is a static menu that always gives you the three options ring, chat and SMS. To further emphasize Skeiv Ungdom's expertise, the hamburger menu quickly takes you to the thematic pages, which contain lots of information.
If we say so ourselves, the result turned out quite so nice. Sometimes the smallest projects are the most rewarding — and we are proud to help Skeiv Youth in their always important work.
