carisurau

Carisurau project is to assist Muslims in locating the nearest surau (small prayer halls) or masjid (mosque), particularly when they are unfamiliar with the area.

About the project

This project was driven by a desire to support the Muslim community—making it easier to find nearby surau or masjid, especially when on the move. It was both a meaningful contribution to society and an opportunity for me to sharpen my visual design skills, particularly in applying card-based layouts to enhance usability and clarity.

Date:

Apr 5, 2024

Client:

CariSurau by Farhan Helmy

Services:

Responsive Design

Project Details

Muslim users, such as traveling technicians and salespeople, often face difficulties locating nearby prayer spaces (surau or masjid) in unfamiliar areas. For example, a technician working in Putrajaya nearly missed his prayer due to inaccessible locations, while a salesperson on assignment in rural areas struggled to find a masjid for Friday prayers. Traditional methods like asking locals or relying on Google Maps were unreliable and inefficient.

This new enhancement really helpful for me to cater the needs of my family and me.

Farhan Helmy

User

Things I Did

The objective was to redesign the prayer locator app to:

Improve the discoverability and usability of surau and masjid locations.
Provide more transparent information about available services (e.g., kid-friendliness, Friday prayers).
Enable easier navigation and encourage community contributions to maintain an up-to-date listing.

Actions

User Research & Journey Mapping
Identified key user pain points such as limited access, inaccurate data, and inefficient navigation. Mapped user stories (e.g., Azlan and Farhan) to understand real-life struggles in context.
Proposed Solution & UX Design
- Designed an intuitive search journey with pre-filters (All, Surau only, Masjid only).
- Implemented real-time suggestions during input (location/building names).
- Improved result filtering options and refined listing interactions.
Details Page Redesign
- Integrated Google Maps directly into the app for seamless navigation.
- Added key building info such as child-friendly features, Solat Jumaat availability, and visitor reviews to aid decision-making.
Community Contribution Feature
Enabled users to submit new surau/masjid listings via a community-driven update mechanism, recognizing local users as ideal contributors for accurate entries.
Prototype Development & Testing
Developed wireframes and interactive prototypes. Conducted usability testing with real users to validate design decisions and gather feedback for iteration.

Results

Improved search usability significantly; users reported finding relevant results more quickly and intuitively.
Users appreciated the transparency of building features and reviews, making decision-making easier.
Early testers expressed excitement over the enhancements and shared the product via word of mouth, indicating positive organic growth potential.
Community engagement increased with user-submitted locations, helping to scale the database sustainably.