Availo

A freelance talent marketplace


Role:
Co-founder + Designer

Project:
SaaS, iOS App, Desktop

Outcomes:
UX Design, UI Design, Product Strategy

Overview

We wanted to create a better way for freelancers to get work. Availo was the first user-controlled talent network that connected organizations with world-class design talent. Cients could meet creative professionals, see their profiles, experiences, and rates, communicate with them instantly and book. For the freelancer we aimed to be a facilitator, removing barriers and large middlemen cuts and to work with them as their career grew. Using AI to take care of chat, bookings and payments, with the team and community advising and offering mentorship. We had plans in the future to add further business related services such as freelancer specific insurance, financial planning and pensions.

As a co-founder I was responsible for designing and testing the platform, pitching to angels and incubators, building the community and selling the system to agencies, studios and tech companies.

Everything went to plan, we closed an initial pre-seed round with angel investors in 2016 alongside Seedcamp, we built and launched our Beta to 100 top-tier companies such as Google, UsTwo, IDEO and Facebook successfully placing freelancers from our community of 300+ creatives and designers.

The business model relied on investment from VC’s and angel investors, this meant we wouldn’t generate a profit for a few years while building the platform and building a strong team. We attracted a lot of investor interest, sadly Brexit reared it’s ugly head and we failed to raise further finance from EU investors to take the company to the next stage.

iOS App

A freelance army in your pocket.

Search

A quick and easy way to find a freelancer based on seniority, discipline, availability, location and price.

The Feed

The gateway to finding a freelancer, constantly bubbling up new content from the members.

Messaging

The core of the service.

Brand

Putting the freelancers at the centre of everything.

Identity

A fun and playful expression of the brand, where parts of the identity came together to hint at collaboration and movement.

Typography

A clean and fresh pairing of GT Walsheim and Work Sans.

MVP Validation

Sketching, product strategy, an early design sprint and prototype build which allowed us to raise some early capital and get us into Seedcamp.

Seedcamp

Building out the beta app, community building & user testing with seasoned freelancers at our incubator Seedcamp London.

Community

We built a supportive community around the business in a short space of time who were invaluable for testing, feedback and finding market fit.