Matukio

Matukio is a mobile-first regional news platform exploring how county-level journalism in Kenya can be more accessible, relevant, and easy to monetize through short-term access.

Role

UX/UI Designer

Industry

News

Duration

4weeks

Overview

Matukio is a regional news platform designed for readers who want fast access to news from their counties.
The project focused on validating region-first discovery, a low-friction reading experience, and a simple paywall flow for short-term access.

Problem

Most news platforms prioritize national headlines, making regional stories harder to discover and less engaging for local readers. As a result, users struggle to find news that feels relevant to where they live, while publishers face challenges monetizing short-term or casual readership.

For Matukio, the challenge was to surface regional news clearly and introduce monetization without disrupting the reading experience, especially on mobile devices with limited screen space and low tolerance for friction.

Goals

Make regional news immediately discoverable
Reduce friction in reading and payment flows
Support short-term access without requiring account creation
Create a premium yet lightweight editorial experience

Key decisions

Region selection was placed before content to anchor the experience in location from the first interaction.
The paywall appears only after content intent is established to avoid early drop-offs.
Sign-in was removed from the MVP to support fast access and short-term subscriptions.
A non-interactive map intro was used to communicate scope without slowing onboarding.
STK push payment failures were treated as core scenarios, with retries and manual payment fallbacks.

Solution

The final solution includes a lean set of core screens: region selection, story list, story detail, paywall, and payment flows.
Edge cases such as payment failures, expired sessions, and network issues were designed to maintain trust and transparency. Each screen prioritizes clarity, hierarchy, and ease of reading on mobile.

Impact

This MVP validates a region-first approach to news discovery and a low-friction monetization model.
Next steps include testing regional engagement, refining payment success rates, and exploring personalization once sign-in is introduced.

Reflection

This project reinforced the value of designing for constraints and focusing on decisions over deliverables.
If extended, I would test regional prioritization patterns and experiment with lighter personalization without increasing friction.