OurCo

OurCo is redefining community engagement — but a top-to-bottom transformation of their app simplified flows, increased participation, and enabled them to scale seamlessly while staying true to their social mission.

The New York-based platform replaces traditional polls with interactive news feeds, giving communities tailored insights and actionable data. As OurCo prepared for growth, they needed a cohesive product and brand experience that could handle higher engagement and technical scale.

Key goals included simplifying user journeys, optimizing performance, supporting diverse communities, and enabling secure, compliant interactions — all while ensuring the platform remained intuitive, fast, and adaptable for future growth.

Complex interactions were slowing user participation. We streamlined every step, turning cumbersome workflows into intuitive experiences that encourage users to act, respond, and stay connected.

Working closely with OurCo and Company Policy, we aligned brand identity with interface design, ensuring every interaction reflected their values. We analyzed initial user journeys and reimagined final states to maximize simplicity and clarity. Screens were reused where possible to accelerate development and testing.

Each design decision focused on reducing friction while maintaining functionality — making it easy for users to join communities, share content, and make decisions. The result: smoother, faster, and more enjoyable engagement for every user.

OurCo needed a robust, efficient frontend that could support rapid growth, complex features, and a seamless experience across diverse communities and devices.

In partnership with OurCo’s internal team, responsible for the core API, Made by ON engineered a scalable frontend solution. Key initiatives included:

EPICs covering registration, profile discovery, notifications, community creation, role management, localization, and content translation.

Comprehensive feature lists and user stories to guide development and testing.

Code refactoring to remove redundancy, optimise app size, and improve rendering speed.

The app underwent extensive user testing, validating intuitive flows and confirming that features supported the platform’s ambitious engagement goals.

A cohesive system and rigorous engineering ensured OurCo could evolve rapidly without sacrificing performance, usability, or security.

We implemented reusable components, consistent design patterns, and modular code to allow rapid iteration. Automation and optimizations improved performance while supporting high engagement rates. Security and compliance were integral: the platform is SSO and SSAE-16 SOC II compliant, safeguarding sensitive user data.

The infrastructure and engineering practices now allow OurCo to scale efficiently, adapt to new requirements, and introduce advanced personalization features as communities grow.

The reimagined OurCo platform delivers scalable infrastructure for collective action, achieving engagement rates exceeding 65 per cent through intuitive design. This robust system ensures strict data compliance whilst supporting the diverse requirements of schools, local governments, and civic organisations.

Adoption across the US highlights this versatility, from educational institutions in Colorado, Louisiana, and Texas aligning on policy to Californian communities coordinating economic development. This strategic shift in communication facilitates clear decision-making and establishes a rigorous benchmark for community engagement.