Developing new features for Calm, a meditation and wellness app, based on user research. And redesigning its UI for a more soothing and atmospheric experience.
Communication Arts 2024 Interactive Annual Competition, Shortlist
The content of Calm is isolating since all the content is pre-recorded, especially in a world where mental health is not often prioritized.
Make meditation more personal and inviting by appreciating the individuality of each users's wellness journeys.
We researched alternative apps in the same field of wellness. Compared to the findings, Calm lacked group settings and customizable experiences, which then became our solution goal.
We conducted interviews with a wide range of people, from college students to single mothers; free spirits to office workers.
Based on interviewee answers about their struggles and goals, we found repeating themes among this diverse range of people and organized them with an affinity map.
We created journey maps to live in the users’ shoes and gain insight on what problems they may face in their daily lives, and find opportunities for solutions.
To focus our aim, we created problem statements for each user to create a clear problem for us to solve.
We refined our ideas and proposed four new features based on our users' needs.
We observed users complete our developed taskflows to test whether they can navigate through the app easily without any guidance.
Users were confused about how to add a live session to their schedule. When they did, there was no confirmation that alerted them they added a live session so they felt unsure if the action worked or not.
There was confusion on where to create a new affirmation. Users often pressed Beginner’s Guide. The term “Library” did not sound like the place to create a new recording.
Users wanted an easily accessible button to view the library that has all their created soundscapes. They also felt the amount of sounds were limited.
Fostering a sense of togetherness with an open community to fall back to, whereas beforehand Calm felt detached. Wellness is now more personalized, able to adjust to the user's specific wants and preferences.
Add a featured “Happening Now” section for live meditation sessions active at the very moment. Expand on the community aspect of sharing positive affirmations. How does one find and make friends in the app?
We added the sense of togetherness in an app that beforehand, felt very detached and isolating. Users have an open and approachable community to fall back to. Wellness is now more personalized, adjusted to the user's specific wants and preferences.
Add a featured “Happening Now” section for live meditation sessions active at the very moment. Expand on the community aspect of sharing positive affirmations. How does one find and make friends in the app?
