MS
Role
UX/UI Designer
Tools
Sketch
Duration
8 months
Deliverables
Competitive Analysis
User Persona
User Stories
User Flows
Design System
Wireframes
Mockups
Mobile Prototype
The Problem
An essential element to learning is enthusiasm. Learning can be more engaging and motivating when done together. This responsive web app will do just that: allow students to connect to discuss insights, receive feedback on their assignments, and will enable them to collaborate on projects. This will especially be useful for students who have other part-time duties as well.
My goals
My goal is to create an app to help people understand their moods. It will increase their awareness and mindfulness that will encourage people to make better decisions on their mental and physical health, prevent or cope with triggers, and help them work towards improving their quality of life.
Context
Living The New Normal
People have been urged to stay indoors to contain the spread of the virus that created a great deal of uncertainty and fear. After months of lockdowns, not seeing friends and family, and stressful events, emerging adults are at high risk for depression and anxiety. How are we going to support those who are susceptible to anxiety and depression?
mindfull
Discover
Using the SWOT & UX Analysis methods, I started my research with a competitive analysis to find opportunities within the market. I focused on competitors who've designed mental wellness apps, journal apps, and productivity apps. I looked into apps such as Youper and Tangerine. One of the opportunities that stood out was to add a mood tracker/journal paired with professional mental healthcare services for more support
Survey Insights
-
60% do not use health and wellness applications
-
72% the pandemic has made people more aware of their moods
-
86% are interested in understanding their emotional patterns
-
70% Have considered getting help from a mental health professional
-
56% Have not received support from a mental health professional
Interview Insights
-
Understanding and processing emotions are more complex than expected and people may need extra guidance
-
People are aware that they need to pay more attention and care to their mental and physical health but don't know how
-
People need reminders and motivation to prioritize their mental and physical health
-
People are tech comfortable and connected to social media but don't necessarily want to go there for this kind of care/self-check in
-
People will use an app or something to help them address in the moment at the time of flare up or feelings or sensational overload
Research Learnings
These key insights made me reevaluate what solutions I had in mind at the beginning of the project. Given that I was designing an app that supports mental health, I thought it was necessary that I’d make therapy sessions one of the primary solutions. After the user interviews and learning how sensitive it is to even express having feelings of anxiety or depression, I decided to not fully develop that solution. Instead, I wanted to make therapy or coaching accessible and readily available IF and WHEN potential users were ready on their own time to take that leap. It also solves the problem of making it affordable, I can make it free. I want to focus on the mindful aspect and how they can incorporate it into their lives.
-
Daily check in feature
-
Guided Journals
-
Motivation and Meditation Videos
-
Positive affirmations
-
Educational content - articles
Conducting Research
To gain a better understanding of users needs, behaviors, and pain points, I conducted online surveys and remote user interviews to:
-
Learn about peoples opinions on mood tracking and how they incorporate mindfulness in their daily lives
-
How people have adapted or not to the pandemic
-
Understand peoples behaviors around the activity of mood tracking
-
Understanding pain points when it comes to managing their mood
Ideate
With all the data collected from the interviews and insights that I've discovered, I created user personas to build empathy and to get into the mindset of potential users. I refer back to these often making sure that I keep the user at the forefront.
Based on my research analysis, I have determined that my target audience is those ages 25-40 (millennials).
I created user journey maps to further empathize with potential users describing the process of how they would accomplish various goals in my mood tracking application.
User Story + User Flow
To determine what tasks were required to accomplish goals in my health app, I started a Task Analysis to build a user flow. This is where I created User Stories to define objectives.
"As a busy professional and aspiring influencer, I want to start my mornings with listening to motivational speeches, so that I can start my day with the right mindset and complete my todo list."
Once the basic foundations of my app have been created, I am now able to create mid-fidelity prototypes which showcase the functionality in more detail. I create my mid-fidelity wireframes using the design tool, Sketch.
I am now able to sketch out low-fidelity wireframes with my handy dandy pen and paper. It allows me to brainstorm and iterate quickly.
Prototype
Site map
Before I start sketching out the foundation of my designs, I needed to work on organizing the information of my application, so I created a sitemap. After I've created my sitemap, I perform an open card sort to see how potential users would organize and categorize the information in my application.
My wireframes are in gray scale so that users would only concentrate on the functionality rather than visual design. I continue to reiterate during this process in preparation for usability testing.
Usability Testing
This is where I put my designs to the test and pinpoint my app's weak spots.
Test Objectives
-
Determine if users can easily understand what the value of the application is and what it has to offer quickly and easily
-
Observe how users navigate through the mood tracking feature
-
Determine if they can navigate through mindful tools
-
Find out if users are able to find resources and articles
Key issue #1 - Participants can't find article
3 out of 6 participants wanted to search the "Mindfulness" page and/or clicked another element to find articles. They were lost and needed my guidance to complete the task. One also mentioned how the word "Challenges" made them feel intimidated rather than encouraged.
Iteration: Change the wording of the titles and add "Articles" to the resources page.
Before
After
Key issue #2 - Missing button on free write page
2 out of 6 participants pointed out that they would have used the freewrite feature and pointed out the missing action
Iteration: Add a button that will indicate the user has entered extra notes
Before
After
Key issue #3 - Participants click the calendar to log their mood
5 out of 6 participants' first reactions to log their mood was to click the calendar or the empty box.
Iteration: Add the '+' button to the empty box and enlarge the button.
Before
After
Visual Design
Branding
Users need guidance and positive reinforcement to make healthier decisions, so it was important Mindfull gave an inviting, caring, and safe presence. The language is motivating and comforting, and I added colors of blue and green so that users would feel calm and at peace while using pastel colors to represent specific moods. People should feel better and relieved after using Mindful.
Mindfull's branded purpose is to help users become more aware of their thoughts and emotions, observe them without judgment, and promote self-love. <3
Prototype
Reflection
Next Steps
For future iterations, I plan on developing the therapy and life coaching features. I need a way to best match users to the right therapist/life coaches to make the experience easy and pleasant. Users need better access to mental health resources and I want them to be able to find that within Mindfull. I will know this to be true once we see users schedule therapy sessions within the app. For user testing moving on, I will focus more on functionality rather than perfection, which will allow me to test and iterate more and quicker.
Learnings
Don't aim for perfection, aim for progression
As I enter the world of design, I am leaving my comfort zone. I would spend too much time on wireframes, trying to perfect each element and worrying about the visual aesthetic, that I'd leave no extra time for other tasks I had planned for the day. You can't create something perfect because you'll just end up iterating it in the end.
It's always about the user
There was a point in the design process where I let my biases in, creating solutions that weren't supported by my research. It's important to remember that you are not your user and you are not designing for yourself. Always keep a user mindset! (TIP: always refer back to your user personas).
Users are the reason behind great products
A product is useless if it doesn't serve the people who are using it. And it's up to the designers to keep the users at the forefront and to be inclusive of everyone. I've developed more empathy for people and am always trying to think of other perspectives.