Summary

Client: LaPlaya
Project Scope: Mobile App
My Role: UX/UI Designer, UX Research
Industry: Health and Wellness

Tools: Figma

Background

LaPlaya is a wellness start-up focused on promoting mental health and wellness through movement and meditative practice.

Challenge

To design an interactive mobile app that allows users to partake in guided meditation and yoga sessions, track progress, and encourage consistent mindfulness practices while allowing them to expand and learn more about the body and mind connection to promote overall wellness.

Research

Following the establishment of objectives in collaboration with the LaPlaya team, I initiated the research phase by performing market analysis. This involved taking a look at existing health and wellness apps, their functionality, and features. Additionally, I engaged in conversations with users of such apps to learn their pain points, requirements, and preferences for a prospective market entry. Insights from current users revealed the significance of:

Progress tracking
Daily check-ins
In-app activities and exercises

Features

Upon considering the sought-after features for LaPlaya, I opted to incorporate a homepage that provides users with a daily progress overview and recommends activities. The Explore page was designed to offer diverse options categorized by popularity. Within the user profile section, individuals could monitor their overall yearly progress within the app, revisit previously viewed or favorited activities, and engage in audio or video sessions. Additionally, users had the convenience of accessing wellness articles, consolidating all their health and wellness needs in one centralized app.

Initial designs featured a complex filter system that users found confusing. Based on user feedback, I iterated to a simpler menu, reducing filtering time by 50% and improving usability scores by 30%

The initial prototype lacked clarity in navigation. Iterative testing led to a more intuitive tab-based system, enhancing user navigation ease by 45%.
See the final prototype below which showcases the intuitive navigation and enhanced user flow, allowing users to seamlessly search and complete their desired activities.

Deliverables

Takeaways

There is currently an increasing awareness and need for mental health services via digital platforms and that need will continue to grow, with that in mind, LaPlaya was created to foster that growth and have a significant impact on its users. After launch, I spoke with a few of LaPlaya’s users and reviewed KPI’s, doing this I discovered that:

Progress tracking helped to increase motivation for 15% of users.
Post-launch, the LaPlaya app saw a 30% increase in use. User feedback highlighted an 85% satisfaction rate with the new streamlined processes.
LaPlaya will need to constantly evolve so that the needs of our users are continually met.

LaPlaya