The full case study
InkHunter, step by step
On this page · 5 sections
About the business
InkHunter is a virtual fitting room for tattoos. The app uses AR to show how a tattoo would look on a body in real-time. The InkHunter team developed a complex AR algorithm and engaged Artkai to help build the final product optimized for a simple yet effective User Experience and onboarding for new users.
Project tasks
- Create a new Visual Identity for the brand and marketing website to support the product
- Build a mobile application for iOS and Android
- Make an unfamiliar technology easy to use by creating a simple and engaging onboarding process for new users
Project team
Team: Art Director, UI/UX designer, 2 Mobile engineers, QA engineer, Project manager, Business analyst.
2 months for discovery and design
8 months for development and QA
Design and development are done in parallel after the research and discovery phase.
Product development and functionality
Research phase & Product discovery
Our team was designing intuitive but still nothing like anything at that time app. To ensure a comprehensive, meaningful onboarding, we took a user’s hand and put it through every application step. We created a photo tutorial demonstrating the value users were going to unlock.
We created several user flows from scratch and tested them on real users. Ultimately, we chose the one that could make the alien technology easier to understand and use.
We also tested dozens of interactions for activating 3d mode and selected a native toggle-alike switcher.
Intuitive onboarding process
At the start the app asks users to draw a flat-lined emoji-style face, called Square Smile, in the place they are considering getting a tattoo. Then the AR tech uses a phone’s camera to position and overlay the chosen sketch.
Tattoo Gallery
The app provides a selection of designs by various tattoo artists, including world-famous ones. Users can choose from the gallery as well as upload custom sketches to try them on in real-time.
Editing and sharing
InkHunter makes it possible to snap a photo of the favorite result for future reference or for sharing with friends. This feature includes filters and editing the image.
Visual Identity
Since the square smile is the magic element activating the AR technology, it was only logical to use it in the logo.
We made the logo bold, bright yet minimalistic to make it catchy and memorable. Intense black, white and red colors laid the foundation for the visual style of the entire application.
Black is ink, white is paper, and red is a drop of blood.
The website and application also use minimalistic, almost black and white interface with a strong emphasis on content and design.
Outcome
Since its launch, 2016 InkHunter became popular in 40 countries, got the highest retention rate and received massive media coverage in top media, such as TechCrunch, Mashable, Vogue, Cosmopolitan to name a few. The app got Apple’s Best of the App Store in 2017 and the InkHunter team was invited to Y Combinator.
4.8 stars as an average user rating
12M+ downloads since launch
1M+ active users
100+ honorable mentions in the media
