Wellkit
Merging mindfulness with general wellness through virtual guidance
Utilizing professionally curated content, Wellkit combines mindfulness concepts with general health tools & tips - providing a comprehensive approach to user health journeys
Roles
- During this concept project, I assumed the following roles:
- Interaction (IxD) Designer
- User Experience (UX) Designer
- User Interface (UX) Designer
Deliverables
- Hi-fi interactive protoypes for key tasks
- Competitive Analysis
- User surveys, personas, & interviews
- Info Architecture & user journey mapping
- Wireframes & lo-fi prototypes
- Usability tests & findings
Specs
- Length: 6 weeks
- Tools used:
- Figma
- Photoshop
- Illustrator
- Notion
- Miro
Opportunity
Many of the existing health & fitness apps separate mental health from general health. Users interested in both are paying for multiple subscriptions, splitting attention between apps, and facing difficulties in monitoring & tracking their health journey progress
Solution
By combining mental health with general health, Wellkit diminishes the need for multiple expensive health app subscriptions, while providing users with essential tools for their wellness in a single app
Navigating the phases
Double Diamond Process
The Double Diamond model provided a non-linear framework that encouraged creative idea exploration through divergent thinking and focused deliverables through convergent thinking. This essential balance contributed to the continued forward momentum of the project through the distinct stages of the problem & solution space
Understanding the space
Competitive Analysis
A market research analysis was conducted to identify existing wellness apps and their key features. My goal was to understand why users utilized their services, what features were most important to users, and to uncover any opportunities that existing services weren’t addressing.
I gathered survey responses of 3 wellness app users to gain general perspective before conducting 5 user interviews for detailed data. Combining my findings and recognizing patterns led to the following insights:
Key Findings
1.
4/8 respondents reported paying for more than one wellness app subscription due to different features provided by competing services2.
Majority of respondents were interested in both mental health & general health products. Respondents only interested in one or the other concept expressed they would be open to experience a trial of a product that incorporates both concepts3.
Half of participants expressed 1 or more frustrations with the existing wellness apps they utilize
Targeting the “who”
Building user personas from findings
During the research phase, it became clear that users had diverse motivations for using health apps. While there was a general interest in maintaining wellness, the specific motivations and goals varied significantly.
Creating personas helped to bring clarity to these divergent motivations, and served as important reference points as the app's functions were developed. After analyzing the data, I identified two primary personas that would guide the design process: Sarah & Alex
What are users feeling?
Exploring user journeys
To better understand the motivations behind user actions and emotions, I mapped Sarah’s and Alex’s user journeys and flows. Mapping their decisions allowed me to uncover critical moments where users may experience frustration or confusion, leading to potential drop-offs from the app.
For instance, Sarah may feel overwhelmed by having to navigate through multiple health apps and feel financial burden from the active subscriptions needed to use them all. By following her journey, I was able to predict how Wellkit can alleviate this pain point, while also identifying Wellkit’s potential opportunities and pitfalls tied to Sarah’s decisions.
Laying down foundation
Information architecture mapping
While ideating the IA of Wellkit, I tried to maintain a straight-forward hierarchy of information that would feel intuitive for the user. The IA visualization map also served as a pivotal guide during the design stage as it was continuously referenced for design & feature decisions
User flow mapping
I mapped out the flow of a first-time user, since first impressions can determine user retention rate. In addition to the onboarding, I incorporated the user flow of an essential product feature. By leveraging research of preferred time spent in-app and the insights of which features users value most, I was able to create a user flow that addressed user needs first, while still prioritizing Wellkit’s mission to deliver comprehensive & helpful health content
Transforming findings into visuals
Ideating wireframes & interactions
I identified the most effective design patterns and features needed in Wellkit's interface, to ensure familiarity and ease of use. This allowed me to create wireframes that emphasized a user-centric approach, emphasizing intuitive navigation, clear content hierarchy, and streamlined interactions. Additionally, the wireframing process helped to identify screen types that could serve multiple functions and ensure consistency throughout the app.
Gaging usability
Prototyping & AB testing
I developed lo-fi prototypes of the wireframed screens and presented them to 2 participants. During the usability testing, I gained insights from unexpected decisions that users made - such as deviating from the intended user flow and attempting incompatible interactions. These insights led to iterations that were tested again until participants flowed smoothly through the main app functions
Key Findings
1.
Users spent more time reading & engaging with onboarding content when it was presented in increments2.
Users were more receptive to the yearly subscription option when the ‘Best value’ sticker was present3.
Users were more likely to continue engaging with content when a progress bar was present, indicating user advancement
Curating visual design & brand identity
Using a predominantly blue and green color palette helped to create a sense of harmony & health while various secondary colors provided visual interest that’s vital for an app that will need a continued stream of new content that’s engaging, without feeling repetitive. Additionally, a minimal design language was established, with a focus on clear typography and simple iconography that would allow users to easily navigate the app and find what they were looking for without mental strain
Brining it all together: Final designs
Sign up process
The onboarding process was designed to be minimalistic enough to provide a sense of serenity, while the addition of unique illustrations is intended to peak user interest to the next steps and to differentiate the Wellkit brand from existing apps. Additionally, friendly messaging and clear instructions ensure that users could easily create an account and begin their wellness journey
In-app experience
After onboarding, users are greeted with a clean and modern interface with a design that emphasizes daily wellness content curated for individual user needs. The use of a simple and consistent iconography helps users quickly identify different features, while having clear paths of return
Lessons & takeaways
- Users appreciate the convenience of an app concept having mindfulness topics & general wellness needs in one app. However, more research would be needed to understand if an app can truly cover both areas sufficiently within one app due to the high level of personalization and content creation that would be required to meet the unique needs of a wide range of users
- Wellkit could potentially benefit from AI leveraging. Learning the average time spent in-app by users, providing personalized content, and learning user patterns could reduce drop-off rates while increasing retention rate through data-driven analytics
- Feedback and recommendations from user data that were both specific and actionable lead to the most impactful iterations during the design stage