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Social Media Hub — a credible PWA marketplace connecting businesses with verified specialists

Building a social media services marketplace ready for real-world validation

Industry
Social Media / Marketplace
Engagement model
Time & Materials
Services
MVP scoping, UX/UI standards, web app development, analytics implementation
Technology
React, Next.js, PostHog

Social Media Hub

Social Media Hub is a specialized marketplace for social media services. It connects businesses looking for expert support with verified freelancers, agencies, and creative studios. Instead of forcing clients to search across scattered portfolios, social networks, and recommendations, the platform brings specialist discovery, offer evaluation, and direct conversation into one coherent journey.

Project overview

The client approached us with a clear first-stage objective: build an MVP that could validate demand for a dedicated social media services marketplace. The product needed to answer two fundamental questions: would businesses be interested in using such a platform, and could they easily find the right specialist, understand their offer, and start a conversation?

At the same time, the supply side of the marketplace had to grow in a controlled way. Rather than opening the platform to every creator from day one, the client wanted an onboarding and moderation process that would protect the quality and credibility of the listings.

Our tasks

MVP scoping and product specification

We helped define the essential user journeys, agree on the first-release scope, and identify features that should be deliberately postponed. Together with the client, we prepared a detailed functional specification as well as a document defining UX/UI standards and quality criteria.

Building the core marketplace journey

Our responsibility was to create a responsive web application covering the complete path from service discovery to direct contact. The platform had to support three distinct roles — client, specialist, and administrator — while keeping every experience simple and consistent.

Creating a controlled and credible supply side

We designed the creator onboarding flow, an application queue, and administrative moderation tools. These mechanisms allowed the client to build the specialist database gradually and maintain the expected quality of profiles and offers.

Preparing the product for learning and growth

The MVP was built as a PWA-ready foundation with technical SEO, analytics, and safeguards included from the start. This made it possible to launch a credible product, observe real user behavior, and prepare for future product and monetization decisions.

01

Goals

Validate marketplace demand

The primary goal was to verify whether companies were interested in a specialized place for finding social media professionals and whether the value proposition was clear enough to move them from browsing to contact.

Make specialist discovery effortless

Users needed to be able to search, filter, and compare services, review public specialist profiles and offer cards, and quickly understand which expert matched their needs.

Build trust from the first interaction

The product needed to look and behave like a credible marketplace rather than an early prototype or administrative panel. Curated onboarding, public profiles, portfolios, reviews, and clear communication flows were all essential to that perception.

Create a measurable foundation

The client needed visibility into the most important steps of the user journey so future development could be driven by evidence rather than assumptions.

02

Challenges

Keeping the MVP focused without weakening the core experience

A marketplace naturally creates pressure to add more features. The challenge was to protect the first release from unnecessary complexity while still supporting a complete, meaningful journey for clients, specialists, and administrators.

Designing trust into a new marketplace

At launch, the platform could not rely on scale or an established brand. Trust therefore had to come from the quality of profiles and offers, controlled creator onboarding, transparent specialist information, conversation-based reviews, and a polished interface.

Coordinating three different user roles

Clients needed fast discovery and contact, specialists needed tools for presenting and managing their work, and administrators needed effective moderation. Each role required its own capabilities without fragmenting the overall product.

Incorporating feedback without slowing delivery

The client needed frequent opportunities to validate the product, while the delivery process still had to maintain momentum and avoid expensive changes late in development.

03

Our approach

Defining the product before accelerating development

We began by clarifying the MVP boundaries, mapping the key user journeys, and documenting functional and quality requirements. This created a shared product definition and made it easier to decide which ideas belonged in the first release and which should move to later stages.

Working iteratively in a Time & Materials model

The project was delivered in short iterations. We held weekly demos and gave the client access to a testing environment, enabling independent verification of completed functionality throughout the project.

Using feedback as an early input

Feedback was collected after each stage and incorporated as early as possible. This reduced the risk of discovering major usability or scope issues near the end of the build.

Building around the complete validation journey

We prioritized the sequence that mattered most for market validation: discovering a service, assessing the offer and specialist profile, establishing trust, and starting a direct conversation.

04

Key MVP capabilities

Discovery and communication

  • Search, filtering, and service browsing
  • Public specialist profiles and offer pages
  • Passwordless sign-in using a one-time code sent by email
  • One-to-one chat between clients and specialists
  • Transactional notifications
  • Reviews linked to an actual conversation

Creator and administrator workflows

  • Creator onboarding and an application queue
  • Profile, portfolio, and service management
  • An administration panel for content moderation and user management
  • Support for images and short video materials

Growth, measurement, and reliability

  • Responsive, PWA-ready web application
  • Technical SEO, public offer URLs, and OpenGraph previews
  • Analytics for key journey stages implemented in PostHog
  • Basic anti-spam protection and rate limiting

Technology we used

React

Next.js

PostHog

05

Results

A functional MVP for real market validation

The finished product supports the complete marketplace journey: users can discover a service, evaluate the offer and specialist profile, establish contact, and begin a conversation. This allows the client to test not just isolated features, but the full value proposition in real conditions.

A credible marketplace experience from day one

The platform was designed to feel like a trustworthy, customer-facing product rather than an internal tool or rough prototype. Public profiles, offer presentation, curated onboarding, media support, and moderated content reinforce that credibility.

Faster entry to the market

By limiting the first release to the capabilities required for meaningful validation, the client could launch sooner and avoid investing prematurely in features that had not yet been proven necessary.

Data for the next product decisions

PostHog analytics provides insight into the critical stages of the user journey. The client can observe behavior, identify friction, and prioritize further development using real product data.

A stable foundation for expansion and monetization

The architecture and product scope create a clear path for adding new functionality, scaling the specialist base, and introducing monetization once the marketplace model has been validated.

Conclusion

Social Media Hub demonstrates how a carefully scoped MVP can validate an entire marketplace journey without compromising product credibility. By combining controlled specialist onboarding, intuitive service discovery, direct communication, technical SEO, and behavioral analytics, the platform gives the client a practical tool for learning from the market and a stable base for the next stage of growth.

At the same time, the supply side of the marketplace had to grow in a controlled way. Rather than opening the platform to every creator from day one, the client wanted an onboarding and moderation process that would protect the quality and credibility of the listings.

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