Travel app for adventurous explorers and their friends!

1. Battuta
A Travel App for Sharing and Discovering

2. Ibn Battuta

3. Combine
Battuta’s spirit
with an app!
For discovering places and people

4. What makes Battuta special?
The way you travel
Destination is unknown!
Google Maps
checklist view
Like Battuta, Explorers don’t know what awaits around
each corner!
Social Media Element
Builds community, interaction, identity

5. Who Battuta is for
-Travel lovers
-Adventurers
-Boredom blocker
-Friends looking to connect

6. Four Elements of Battuta
1. Planning the Expedition
2. Enlisting Explorers
3. Explorer’s Diary
4. Treasure & Return Trip

7. Trip Planning
Customizable Trip Categories
Amount of Money
Amount of Time
Number of Miles
Interests
Number of Companions

8. Destination Selection
Current
-Chosen by us by the
interest categories
-Use outlets like Yelp!
and other rating
systems
Future
-Users would submit
suggestions
-Survey information
would guide
destination choices

9. How Battuta Looks
-App icon
-Trip planning screen
-Explorer finder screen
-links with Facebook messenger
-Battuta app shows a “Ready?” icon
-Travel Screen
-Reward & Survey screen

10. Enlisting Explorers
● Synced through Facebook
● After the app plans the trip, a “Potential Explorers” survey will be delivered
to the user’s entire friends list or just those the user would like to invite.
o The act of inviting others to join you on the trip is a form of
interaction. People are “gregarious by nature… and want to be
with other people” (Hunsinger & Senft, 2014, p. 1).
o The survey is designed so that friends of the user can determine if this
trip is suitable for them to join, based on their interests.
● If friends receive a high score on the survey, they are eligible to join the
trip.

11. Enlisting Explorers
● Those who receive a high score on the survey will join the trip and be
placed into a group chat with others who are going on the trip.
● A community is created for users of the app, even though they may
have not met. We will create a hashtag for Twitter users so they can
link to the app and increase others’ awareness of the app.
● Social media allows users to interact in an in-depth way that goes
beyond the offline world (Hunsinger & Senft, 2014, p. 1). Thus, users
off the app can interact through Twitter in ways that they may not be able
to in the offline world.

12. Sample Survey
Are You Ready to Join this Expedition?
1. I enjoy laid-back trips as opposed to adventure-filled trips.
Strongly agree -- Agree -- Neutral -- Disagree -- Strongly disagree
2. On trips, I often search for free or inexpensive attractions.
Strongly agree -- Agree -- Neutral -- Disagree -- Strongly disagree
3. I prefer sunny and hot weather as opposed to snowy and cold weather.
Strongly agree -- Agree -- Neutral -- Disagree -- Strongly disagree
4. Food is the most important part of a trip.
Strongly agree -- Agree -- Neutral -- Disagree -- Strongly disagree
5. Long road trips don’t bother me. In fact, I enjoy them!
Strongly agree -- Agree -- Neutral -- Disagree -- Strongly disagree

13. Survey Results
Sorry, this trip does not
meet your interests.
You can create your
own trip based on your
interests here and
invite friends to join you
on your expedition!
Congrats! You are
equipped to be an
explorer on this
expedition. You can now
join the group chat located
under “messages” to start
planning your trip! Have
fun!

14. Logging the Trip
● During the trip, explorers are instructed to upload
media (pictures, reactions, etc.) every so often before
they are given the next set of directions to encourage
interaction through the app
→ Creation of users’ Identity

15. Logging the Trip
● Upon arrival to the destination, explorers are
encouraged to upload pictures, provide opinions, offer
feedback, etc. relating to, not only the destination, but
their journey as a whole
o Shared through users’ profiles on the app to their
connections/friends
o Linked through Facebook and Twitter profiles

16. Developing the App’s Community
“A group to which we feel a sense of belonging”
(Hunsinger, 2014, p. 21)
● Existing communities are integrated (e.g. Facebook,
Twitter) and strengthened through shared experiences
● Interactions between users reinforces sense of
community among them

17. Trip Reward
● Online scrapbook
o When a user has completed
their trip, an online
scrapbook will be unlocked.
o The scrapbook will consist
of pictures and journal
entries from other users’
trips.
 With this, users will be able to
interact with other users and share
their own experiences and interests
through social media.
 Once scrapbook for a destination is
unlocked, it will be available for
interacting and viewing from then
on.

18. Trip Reward Cont.
● Easy way to travel with companions
● Able to travel to new places of interest
● Meet “potential explorers”
o Joining the Battuta community
 As more members join the Battuta app and more trips are accessed, the Battuta
community will continue to grow.
 Every app user will be categorized in the Battuta community.
 Additional communities will be made within the app based on users’ interests and
trips whether they be similar destinations or the same destination.
 “[Community consists] of four elements: membership, influence, integration and
fulfillment of needs, and shared emotional connection… [it is] further described… as
being based on boundaries, emotional safety, a sense of belonging and
identification…” (Hunsinger and Senft, p. 21. 2014).
● Make memories

19. Post-Trip Survey
● At the end of every trip, a
survey will be conducted
through the app.
● Survey will be based on:
o likes/dislikes (weather, destination,
distance, location, activities, dining)
o favorite part of trip
o rate of overall trip
o matching of interests and needs
o suggestions for improval of app
● The survey will be
combination of scaled and
open-ended questions.
● Identity in survey
o Each survey taken will be
based on each users own
personal interests creating
your own personal identity
throughout the app.
o Surveys will be open for
viewing by other users.
 This way users will be able to
interact with other users based
on their identity.

20. Post-Trip Survey Cont.
● Taking the survey at the end of a trip IS a
requirement.
o To make Battuta more desirable for each individual
user, new trips will be based off of survey answers
 based on each individual’s interests
● A new trip will not be able to be planned until
the survey from the last trip is complete.

21. Sample Post-Trip Survey
How Was Your Battuta Trip?
1. Did you enjoy the weather?
Strongly Agree -- Agree -- Neutral -- Disagree -- Strongly Disagree
1. Was the trip a suitable driving distance for you?
Strongly Agree -- Agree -- Neutral -- Disagree -- Strongly Disagree
1. Please describe to us, what your favorite part of the trip was.
2. Did the trip that was planned for you meet your interests and expectations of the trip?
3. In a 100 words or less, please let us know your thoughts on how we could improve the app.
4. On a scale of 1 to 10, please rate your overall Battuta trip. (1 being lowest and 10 being highest)

22. The Future of Battuta
- Monetization
- Businesses could pay to be featured destinations
- offer coupons and rewards to Explorers
- Point System
- Explorers could level up based on
- number of trips
- explorer interactions
- uploaded content
- Rewards to higher level Explorers from destinations