Loop Skill Program
Learn skills, get support, and feel accountable
OVERVIEW
The goal of this project is to improve the completion rate of Loop Skill program. Based on the research, analysis and test, we introduce the V2 Skill program with new structure, improved content, and progress bar.
ROLE
UX/UI design
user research
QA
LAUNCH
Sept 2021, new progress bar
Nov 2021, v2 Skill program
Loop: a handle on social anxiety
Loop is a clinically-based way to overcome social anxiety. It helps people with mental health issues by providing live sessions.
LOOP SKILL V1 - LAUNCHED IN JUNE
Loop Skill program: learn skills to cope with anxiety in 4 weeks.
Loop Skill is a series of multi-week programs that help people cope with their social anxiety by offering live, hosted sessions. Each program covers a particular aspect of social anxiety.
Initial Problem
No-shows: users signed up skill programs but few of them compete it.
In June, Loop launched the skill programs. It is a multi-week programs targeting on social anxiety. During this period, users will better understand anxiety and learn practical skills from a trained guide. However, the program didn't go as smoothly as we expected. There are problems of high no-show rate and low completion rate.
My Approach
I followed the double diamond model to address this problem. In the first step, I practiced divergent thinking to consider the whole user experience. Based on the research result, I was able to redefine the problem by identifying the root problem behind no-shows.
With the clear problem statement I had, I was able to open my mind to explore all potential solutions and moved forward with the most feasible and viable solutions.
High Level Goals
Improve initial participation
Create better mental health support
Motivate deeper engagement
NEW INSIGHTS FROM
No-shows Survey
In order to find out the root cause of no-shows, we conducted a survey facing users who didn't show up for one or more times during their program sessions. The survey was focused on users' intentions and expectations of their behavior. It helped us understand:
1. Why users didn't attend the Loop Skill program that they had signed up for?
2. How likely would users attend the later sessions?
3. How would users rate the communication leading up to the Loop Skill program?
4. Is there anything that could make users feel easier to attend the Loop Skill program sessions?
5. Is there anything that users want to change or improve about the Loop Skill program?
EARLY INSIGHTS FROM
Mental Model Studies
The mental model study helps us align the product with specific pattern of user behaviors. By interviewing 8 participants, we were able to depict the typical type of users we serve.
"I take care of my mental health as 'Running for exercise' "
For people who take care of their mental by running, they would do thing to make themselves on track.
Key findings
Users don't show up because...
"What should I do?"
"How can I get improved?"
"Need to work up courage."
Lack guidance
Lack proof of effectiveness
Lack motivation
Users feel anxious to attend and participate because they are not sure what they should do, and they cannot track any experience.
Users are not sure how their situation can get improved by the program.
Users need incentives to motivate them to take actions.
SUMMARIZE THE ROOT PROBLEM BY
Synthesize Findings
The next step I did was to organize the data and ideas I got to find out what users' deepest concern is. I used categories to organize information based on similarity and relatedness, and then recognized the magnitude through leveraging hierarchy and continuum.
I wrote down what users are calling for according to the research, and compared them with what we have for now. It helped me discover the gap and summarize the root problem for no-shows.
Reframe the problem as
The current Skill Programs don't provide enough accountability for users to complete sessions.
Based on the research, the root cause for no-shows is that users are not sure what they will get and how the program can actually help them. To address this problem, there are also multiple layers of needs and the lack of accountability is the most important section that has the biggest impact.
BREAKDOWN EXPERIENCE BY
User Journey
Based on the research results, the reason for no-shows is that the current Skill Programs don't provide users with enough control. This problem comes from 3 gaps, namely, lack of confidence for the overall efficacy, lack of control during the program, and lack of knowledge of each session.
I defined the 4 key use cases for the end-to-end experience and put my main focus on the Program On-going scenario.
I also spent some time on the Program Pre-start use case because the initial expectation towards the program is closely related to the on-going experience and can also affect user's intention for completing the program.
HOW I GOT MY SOLUTION
Optimize the skill program
HMW motivate users to sign up with accurate expectations?
Questions that informed my design strategy:
1. What is users' expectation before the program?
- Understand how it works.
- Understand the expected outcome.
- ......
2. How to encourage people with anxiety to make their first step to sign up?
- Set clear roadmap in advance.
- Show them the program can really help.
- .......
HMW keep users accountable for completing the program?
Questions that informed my design strategy:
1. What is the context when users are taking a multi-weeks program?
- Need flexible time
- Can feel lost easily
- ......
2. What is needed to encourage users stick on the program and go further?
- Display real-time progress
- Offer better content
- ......
design exploration
Potential Solutions
Based on the research and problem statement I had, I started to think about possible directions I can go.
I turned to other consumer-facing products to learn how they are making users feel accountable. I picked digital products in areas of fitness, education, skill training, gaming, and shopping, and did the competitive analysis with 4 apps. It helped me generate 3 high-level concepts that can address the accountability issue we need to solve.
EXPLORATION - SOLUTION A
Increase visibility of user journey
Hypothesis:
By providing users with a list of milestones in order to complete their program, we will provide visibility and transparency into process and build confidence that users will improve their social health therefore increasing user commitment (join 1st loop), overall engagement and complete rate.
Pros
1. Provide visibility/transparency to the progress with visualized user journey.
2. Address the flexibility. Users are free to start with any loop and free to repeat.
3. Add some fun.
Cons
1. Although users can see their progress on each sessions, they are not sure if and how their mental health state is improved.
2. May take extra time for users to decide where to start.
DESIGN EXPLORATION - SOLUTION B
Call to action: Loop now
Hypothesis:
By guiding users to jump into a straightforward task today, we will provide a clear path on taking immediate action every day therefore increasing user commitment (join 1st loop), overall engagement and complete rate.
Pros
1. Show actionable options in a very straightforward way to lower the barrier for making decisions.
2. Help to build up some courage to start.
Cons
1. May be too aggressive to display all available actions upfront.
2. Cannot track progress during the program very well.
DESIGN EXPLORATION - SOLUTION C
Goal-driven:
Reach your goal in real life
Hypothesis:
By selecting a relevant in-real-life challenge and providing guidance that meet their goal, we will provide an actionable, relevant, and timely social health solution therefore increasing user commitment (join 1st loop), overall engagement and conversion.
Pros
1. Increase the accountability by link the skill program with everyday life challenge.
2. Users will clearly know how their anxiety and problems can be improved.
Cons
1. Can increase scope.
2. Takes efforts to set reliable efficacy from the clinical side.
DECISION: Mix of solution A & solution B
Visible journey + Call to action
Based on the cross-functional discussion and design trade-offs we made, we decided to move on with the direction of providing users with more visible journey and actionable guide to Increase the accountability.
However, we didn't abandon the idea of Goal-driven. See how it has driven our design on Progress Bar Iteration.
Hesitating
Unsure
Motivated
On track
The program should help users build up confidence and let them know clearly where to start.
The overall experience should let users feel accountable by letting them clearly know where they at.
FROM feeling hesitating TO feeling motivated
Help users feel accountable and motivated during the program.
To help users set up accurate expectation and take easy actions during the program.
Design
My Skills tab - better way to view my programs
The new program page should allow users to track all of their signed up skill programs and see their own progress on each program.
The design explored various options across different spectrums and decided to move forward with display motivation + leading moderate actions.
Design
Today's Loop tab - motivate immediate action
This new tab displays all the available loops for toady which can save time for users to check if there is live loop under each program.
FROM feeling UNSURE TO feeling on track
Help users track their progress during the program
To enable users track their progress when they are taking the program can increase the confidence for completing the program.
Letting users know their progress can help users feel more accountable and get more control during the multi-week program. Users can learn how their mental health situation has been improved based on the progress, so that they can have stronger intention to move forward. I practiced multiple visualization options to display progress.
DESIGN WALKTHROUGH
Loop Skill program V2
The new version of Loop Skill program puts more efforts on increasing the accountability throughout the program period and offer users more control when they are doing their programs. The main improvement includes:
1. New structure to categorize different types of activity, lower the barrier of taking actions.
2. New progress tracker to enable users to track their progress all the times.
Update
New Program Page
The new design optimize the information architecture and enable users to easily track their programs and take actions.
Problem solved:
1. The new structure helps users better browse programs, view content, and take actions with lower barrier.
2. Increase accountability before and during the program by providing expectation and control.
Update
Progress bar
The new design adds a progress bar to visualize the progress user makes. For each milestone, users can get the evaluation from the clinical team.
Problem solved:
The new feature of progress bar visualizes users progress throughout the program period. It can provide better control for users to know where they at, which adds the confidence for users to continue their program.
Evaluation
User testing - progress bar test
We launched a test by adding the progress bar to the current skill program page to evaluate its effectiveness. The data showed that the new progress bar has significantly increase the participate rate.
Project impact
1. Impact for the team:
The new Progress Bar was firstly launched to test and the result showed it has positive effect on increasing participation. Particularly seeing
60% (vs. 21% before) of those who do at least 1 skill loop do 3 or more.
2. Impact for users:
We also have collected many positive user feedback:
- "It’s helped me come up with some new ways of dealing with anxiety and provided some support emotionally. Helped me see a different perspective."
- "Excited to try out the grounding skills that were shared. Loved the clarity of description for each skills mentioned."