Lead UX Designer
This is an ongoing project
The Life Skills mobile app is an app designed to empower young people aged 13-21 years old and equip them with the essential skills needed for independent living. The app aims to teach and bridge the gap between adolescence and adulthood through engaging and interactive lessons covering a range of skills from financial literacy to time management, career preparation and more.
Skills development - Provide young people with practical knowledge and tools to acquire essential life skills for independent living.
Engaging - Create an engaging, interactive learning experience tailored to the preferences and needs of young users.
Accessible and user-friendly - Ensure the app is accessible and user-friendly for a diverse group of young people, including those who may have learning challenges.
Scalability: Design the app to be scalable, with the potential to add new modules, features, and content over time.
Primary target audience:
Adolescents and young adults preparing for independence, generally. This group may include care leavers, students, or young people from various backgrounds who may or may not have had access to life skills education.
Secondary target audience:
Parents and guardians interested in supporting the young person’s development. These individuals may see the app as a valuable resource to supplement the young person’s education and prepare them for adult responsibilities.
Based on existing research and a defined user person, I developed a user journey map highlighting the key aspects at different stages of the journey.
User Goals:
Improve budgeting skills to manage rent and bills more effectively
Learn to eat healthier and cook meals at home
Enhance time management skills to balance work and personal life
User Needs:
Access educational content on topics like money management, healthy eating, and time management
Practical, actionable methods they can apply in daily life
User Mindset:
Focused on personal growth and skill development
Eager to adopt effective strategies for improvement
User Journey Map
Frictionless Sign-Up/Log-In: Offer multiple sign-in options to streamline the process and reduce barriers to entry.
Clear & Relevant Interaction: Ensure each stage of the journey is clear, relevant, and directly supports the user’s goals.
Engaging Tutorials: Provide short, interactive, and visually engaging tutorials to guide users effectively.
Progress Tracking: Use simple, engaging visuals to help users feel empowered and easily track their progress.
Personalized Notifications: Keep notifications tailored to individual user needs, offering helpful suggestions without overwhelming them.
Gamification: Incorporate gamification elements to boost motivation, including clear goals and meaningful rewards.
Positive Reinforcement & Ongoing Value: Use positive feedback and introduce new features or rewards to maintain user engagement and loyalty.
Social Sharing: Enable users to share their progress and achievements on social media, celebrating their journey and inspiring others.
From the Key Opportunities, I worked with the Project Manager to define the Key Features for the MVP
Interactive Lessons & Quizzes
Engaging Content: Basic lessons on key life skills like budgeting, cooking, and time management.
Quizzes: Simple quizzes to reinforce learning and assess understanding.
Progress Tracking
Gamification Elements: Basic points system to motivate users and track progress.
Progress Overview: Simple visual tracking (e.g., progress bars) to show completion status.
Resource Library
Curated Content: A small but essential collection of articles and guides on core topics.
Search Functionality: Basic search feature for users to find content easily.
Notifications & Reminders
Learning Reminders: Simple reminders to keep users engaged with their learning goals.
The selected features will enable us to deliver quick value while supporting future growth. These features offer immediate learning benefits, boost user engagement, and create a scalable foundation for future enhancements, such as advanced gamification and community support.
I started by designing a user flow focused on the initial setup and onboarding process, ensuring it included all essential steps and information based on product requirements. This flow served as the foundation for creating initial wireframes, followed by screens for success and error states, along with any optional steps.
App Onboarding User Flow
Once the onboarding journey was approved, I began developing wireframes for the key MVP features, focusing on four main areas of the app: Dashboard, Explore, Learn, and Profile. During this phase, I conducted additional research to inform my design decisions.
After designing the other areas of the app, the Dashboard felt redundant.
Many features seemed better suited to other parts of the app.
Some features overlapped or were duplicated in other sections, reducing the Dashboard’s value.
Each section needs a clear purpose and should meet user's needs.
Initial Dashboard Purpose: Serve as the home screen for users
Track learning progress
Start lessons
View notifications, reminders, and module suggestions
Guide new users through the remaining setup process and prompt them to select a learning module
I also considered other issues such as:
User Expectations: The Dashboard should meet user expectations without being too cluttered or unnecessary.
- Feature Overload: Risk of overwhelming users with too many features on a single screen.
- Navigation Issues: Struggles with intuitive navigation if too many functions are centralised in one area.
- Adaptability: How the Dashboard might evolve with future feature additions.
To determine the next steps, I consulted with the Project Manager to reassess the purpose and necessity of the Dashboard. I explored alternative ways to organize and present features for a more streamlined user experience. Additionally, I proposed conducting a card sorting test to gather valuable user input, which would help in designing a clear and intuitive app structure.
The card sorting test would address the issue of redundancy and ensure the app’s structure aligns with user expectations. It would also validate key elements such as navigation and feature organization.
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