TreGiv | Cridford Portfolio

I co-founded a business called TreGiv.

TreGiv used elements of Game Design in its system design.

I want to explain to you what TreGiv is, so you can see how I put my Game Design skills to use.

What Is TreGiv?

TreGiv is a social giving web-based service that focuses on events and financial gifts.

It is similar to crowdfunding, but on a smaller scale and with people you know in real life.

Click to view a video about TreGiv.

The Elements Of TreGiv

Events

A User (the Host) creates an event in the system based on a milestone event that will be happening in real life...
(Eg. A wedding, a birthday, or a retirement party).

Guests

Friends and family (Guests) are invited to the Hosts' event.
Guests can send money (Gifts) to the Hosts' event.
Photos and messages can be attached and sent with the Gifts.

Trees

The event is displayed onscreen as a tree, as more Guests send Gifts the tree grows.
The tree starts as a sapling, and it can become a full grown tree.
Individual Gifts are stored on the leaves on the tree, which the Host can click and view.
Next to the tree is a running total of how much money has been collected.

Cashing Out

The total money collected is shown under the tree.
All the collected money is stored in one place.
When the event is over, the Host can cash out and collect their Gifts, in one transaction,

Game Development Principles In TreGiv

I was responsible for designing the TreGiv system and considering it all from the experience of the end user. I initially created a prototype using inVision to work out the flow of the system.

During development I gave designs and flowcharts (of the system) to programmers, they created parts of the system, which I was then able to test and pass feedback to the programmers.

My overarching ambition was to create a service that celebrates the act of giving. Yes, there would be a financial transaction, but the users (both Givers and Hosts) would feel that by using the system they were sending or receiving a loving gift.

Once a Hosts’ event was finished and they received their money, they were left with a tree, that they could keep and look back on for posterity.

In the section below I have outlined the design elements of TreGiv that I contributed to.

Creating A Tree

The Host can select from different tree designs, pictured is the standard TreGiv tree and a Christmas tree. The plan was to release additional designs over time.

The selected tree design appears on the event page for both the Host and the Guest.

Know Your Customer

TreGiv is viewed as a small-scale crowdfunding business, and we partnered with payment provider Lemonway to help us manage transactions.

Due to anti-money laundering regulations, we needed an identification system to make sure our customers were who they said they were.

This process of identifying your customers is called “Know Your Customer” (KYC).

Part of my role was to plot the user’s route through the system, with KYC information pages only appearing to a user under certain conditions. I wrote the content for these pages, explaining to end users what documents were required and why they were required.

I worked with both Lemonway and TreGiv’s programmers on the KYC portion of TreGiv, passing information between the two teams.