Swell Wellness
Case Study
Swell is a self-guided wellness experience that aims to create a positive digital relationship between the user, their mental health and the world around them
Scope: UI Design, Ideation, UX Research, Wireframes, Low-fi/High-fi Prototype, UX Testing
Tools: Figma, Adobe CC
Starting Point
Build a geolocated narrative mobile phone application that guides users through 10 locations.
The sunset , clear clean air, good smells and nature
Relaxation, quiet, inner peace, sound frequency (Hz)
What does wellness mean to you?
(This research also included compiling a variety of peer-reviewed articles on positive psychology, mental health tools and affecting factors.)
My research began by benchmarking pre-existing products that were active in the wellness space as well as apps that incorporated the urban environment to create a user experience.
The user’s input was gathered via a focus group which involved 6 participants within the target demographic exploring key questions that pertained to their mental health ‘hygiene’. The group discussed their existing habits and attitudes around mental health as well as what improvement tactics they found most useful and engaging.
Why
All members of the focus group agreed that Mental health was important, if not the most important thing in life. The group also agreed that accessibility to mental health services can be difficult so the ability to easily have access to a wellbeing tool was appealing.
Of the reasons why a user would engage with the app, stress, lack of sleep and financial issues were all cited as triggers. Overall the ‘why’ that drove users was to ‘improve quality of life’.
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How
All users stated that screen time via a mobile device was the most common and actively used. When asked if the users would prefer to engage in the application with a companion or solo, it was discussed how different triggers would affect the user's need for companionship. Ultimately agreeing that for private/personal issues they prefer to be alone, such as taking a solo walk or a drive to clear their heads.
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When
Members of the focus group cited two divergent purposes for when the app would be used:
A) Ongoing Mental health care - Daily stressors
B) Situational Mental Heath Care - Event-specific mental health stressors
such as toxic relationships
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Who
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Example of a compiled persona created:
It's all about the journey...
Given the needs expressed by the focus group, the Royal Botanical Gardens was chosen as a base location for the app. This was due to factors such as the central public access, the variety of environments within the gardens as well as the compatibility for wellness activities.
Early concept exploration included creating a storyboard, user flow and preliminary keyframes. To understand what the app might look like a high-fidelity prototype was designed using Figma.
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The first prototype was then used during both field and simulated ‘lab’ tests set at each location. Testing was used to refine user interactions, the interface, and the content of the application.
Results from testing found that all users showed interest in the app due to its overall concept. All users agreed that the colourful aesthetic approach to the app's UI was appropriate and aided in positive user interaction.
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UI Issues
All users found some level of difficulty when using the transitory search bar, the options available could be expanded and given clarity to give the user a stronger understanding of their meaning and impact.
Solutions
Whilst keeping the same look and feel, continue to develop a professional UI, and reduce the use of grey throughout the app as suggested by users. Change the layout of the transitory search bar to avoid visually overwhelming the viewer. As suggested by all participants rethink the way the search is communicated and consider the best method of creating and presenting location options.
Narrative Issues
Some users voiced a desire for a more personalised way to track their narrative. There was also some confusion about the context of each location within the entire narrative.
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Solution
Create more clarity within the narrative as a whole, give users multiple options after the transitory search and suggest complimentary activities. Create a way for users to keep track of locations and alter their narrative if they wish. Create more of a personal relationship with the user and the app, something this version of the design metaphor used doesn’t offer - this might look like push notifications or metals for completing each task.
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Interaction Issues
All users had a decent level of difficulty navigating the interactions in each activity. This was due to a lack of signally what the user was meant to do and how they were meant to do it. This was far from intuitive.
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Solutions
Add recommendations/ warnings such as ‘This activity needs headphones’ and create more clarity around what the user needs to do for a successful interaction. This would mean adding motion prompts for, ‘swiping’, ‘tapping’ and any other motions during activities. Users demonstrated a need for the language to be clear and have little to no possibility for misinterpretation.
Final design
Final thoughts
Throughout the testing and development stage, the users still required clear visual directions when engaging with each location's activity. Going forward I would continue to hone these interactive elements and the way they are represented to the user. Additionally, I believe including more information explaining the science-based context of each activity would be encouraging to the user.
Key design features
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Narrative
The journey will use a ‘Domino’ metaphor with 10 locations all unrelated in the story but linked by a common theme. The user has an equal opportunity for a rewarding experience whether they choose to visit just 1 or all 10 locations. This freedom of choice also touches upon the ‘catching butterfly’ narrative metaphor.
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Interactions (AR)
This journey is achieved by building upon urban ambience with audio, visual and sensory experience that heightens the users' experience within the city of Melbourne to create relief from mental disease.
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Transitory search
Each location is linked with an aspect of self-improvement or a proven method of boosting mental well-being. The user is encouraged to check in with their current mood in order to get the best recommendation to start their journey with the most relevant exercise.