Helping University Students Track and Understand Their Dreams

Health and Wellness - UX Design | User Research

Building new habits can be tough, and sticking to them over time is even harder. Using Nir Eyal's Hooked model, this app aims to make habit formation easier by creating an engaging, rewarding experience that encourages users to log their dreams consistently.

The Problem

Struggling to Build Lasting Habits

Difficulty in Sticking to New Routines

We’ve all tried to build new habits, only to lose motivation after a few days—dream logging is no different.

Lack of Engagement

Current apps don’t offer the kind of engaging experience that keeps users coming back, making it hard to turn actions like dream logging into a consistent habit.

KAMs wasted hours analyzing Excel sheets to identify customers below 80% compliance.

Enhance Habit Formation

Make it easier for users to consistently log their dreams

Increase User Engagement

Encourage long-term use through personalized reminders and rewards.

Improve Retention

Create a compelling experience that keeps users coming back daily.

SOLUTION

Turning Habit Formation into a Fun Routine

Building Consistency through Engagement

The app uses Nir Eyal's Hooked model to help users form the habit of logging their dreams consistently.

Creating a Rewarding Routine

With rewards and personalized reminders, the app keeps users motivated to log their dreams every day.

KAMs wasted hours analyzing Excel sheets to identify customers below 80% compliance.

97%

success rate in habit formation, solving the challenge of consistency.

85.5

usability score, addressing user disengagement.

20%

more recommendations, showing improved long-term engagement.

Uncovering Key Challenges

Understanding the User's Struggles

I began with secondary research and found that while users are curious about dream meanings, their biggest hurdle is remembering their dreams clearly.


Many fear disturbing dreams or recurring nightmares, and they long for a way to share and discuss these with loved ones or professionals.

I spend hours cross-checking compliance data between different systems. It’s frustrating and time-consuming.

– Jeff, Key Account Manager

We rely on sales call notes, but they’re either incomplete or do not have a dollar value. It’s hard to get a clear picture.

– Jane, Product Manager

KAMs wasted hours analyzing Excel sheets to identify customers below 80% compliance.

Users want to log their dreams, but recalling them clearly is difficult. This impacts their ability to build a consistent habit. The challenge was to design a system that not only makes logging dreams easy but also keeps them coming back.

Efficiency

Reduce time spent on identifying compliance issues.

Transparency

Ensure KAMs and PMs view the same information.

Actionability

Provide data-driven insights for proactive customer engagement.

Strategizing the Solution

Build a product that engages users and encourages them to log dreams regularly

I used Nir Eyal’s Hooked Model to create a habit-forming experience. The goal is to make dream logging simple and rewarding. I prioritized core features for the MVP, such as dream logging, triggers, rewards, and investment, and I iterated quickly with the Build-Measure-Learn framework.

A comparison of the existing workflow, highlighting inefficiencies, and the proposed workflow, integrating DRL's existing platforms for a seamless experience.

THINGS I LEARNED

THINGS I LEARNED

Usability testing alone isn't sufficient to measure a product's success

Usability testing alone isn't sufficient to measure a product's success

While usability testing is indeed important for understanding a product's usability and user experience, I realised that it's more important to test the product idea itself. It's vital to test it early and pivot when necessary.

While usability testing is indeed important for understanding a product's usability and user experience, I realised that it's more important to test the product idea itself. It's vital to test it early and pivot when necessary.

IF I HAD MORE TIME, I WOULD…

IF I HAD MORE TIME, I WOULD…

Have multiple test versions with a larger sample size

Have multiple test versions with a larger sample size

I would recruit more participants for the usability test and perform market research with a larger sample size. Although it's generally accepted that five users suffice for most user research I believe that the results may vary if the same research is done with a large sample size.

I would recruit more participants for the usability test and perform market research with a larger sample size. Although it's generally accepted that five users suffice for most user research I believe that the results may vary if the same research is done with a large sample size.

Perform market validation before building the MVP

Perform market validation before building the MVP

Rather than working on multiple steps of the project simultaneously during the initial stages of research, I would take a step-by-step approach. This would allow for more iterations based on research and increases the chance of ultimately delivering a product that users need.

Rather than working on multiple steps of the project simultaneously during the initial stages of research, I would take a step-by-step approach. This would allow for more iterations based on research and increases the chance of ultimately delivering a product that users need.

Helping University Students Track and Understand Their Dreams

Health and Wellness - UX Design | User Research

My Role

Product Designer
User Researcher

Project Timeline

8 weeks

Tool

Figma

About the project

The purpose of this project was to swiftly build a minimum viable product (MVP), of a habit-forming mobile application, with a ‘fail early to succeed sooner’ mindset.

What's the problem?

Students want to track and understand their dreams but struggle to recall them, leaving them feeling unsettled and curious about their meanings.

How might we help university students in regularly logging their dreams to provide them with insights into their dreams?

Project Overview

Business Goals

  • Design a habit-forming product, focusing on core features and MVPs to accelerate development.

  • Evaluate the product's desirability, feasibility, and viability in cost-effective manner.

  • Test the usability of the product features and gather user data for informed decision-making.

Impact

  • Achieved a 97% success rate in helping users to easily meet their goals, significantly enhancing user productivity.

  • Attained a system usability score of 85.5, reflecting the high usability and user-centered design of the product.

  • Increased user recommendations by 20%, showcasing the exceptional user experience and driving higher customer loyalty.

PRODUCT FEATURES

Before we explore my design process, here's the final product: a dream logging application packed with essential features to help users track their dream patterns and moods.

Scan & experience the dream logging journey yourself!

⭐️

Connect to Content

Add layers or components to make infinite auto-playing slideshows.

Problem Statement

How might we help university students in regularly logging their dreams to provide them with insights into their dreams?

DESIGN PROCESS

Making sure I was whipping up a cupcake, not a whole wedding cake

In order to build a habit froming product, I employed Nir Eyal’s hook model. To understand user’s potential experience, I visualized how the user might use the product’s features at different phases of the hook model.

Using the Kano model, I listed down potential product features. To ensure that I'm building an MVP and prioritizing core features, I performed a MoSCoW analysis.

Once it became clear what features the product would have, I created a user flow aligning with the Hook Model's trigger-action-reward-investment cycle.

DESIGN DECISIONS

Journey from sketches to screens

⭐️

Connect to Content

Add layers or components to make infinite auto-playing slideshows.

I developed a functional prototype. Before finalizing the design, I sought feedback from my fellow UX designers. After considering their valuable input, I quickly iterated my design in a week by following Jon Yablonski's Laws of UX and Nielsen Norman Group's Usability Heuristics for User Interface Design before progressing to the next phase.

Insight

Users struggle to recollect dreams daily, leading to irregular logging.

Design Iteration

  1. Made the progress bar simple and aesthetically pleasing.

  2. Added information banners to help users understand how the app’s reward system works.

  3. Got rid of the calendar.

  4. Added clear title to each section.

Insight

Simplify the dream logging process to improve user experience and encourage more frequent usage.

Design Iteration

  1. Reduced the number of steps for logging a dream and provided a progress indicator.

  2. Streamlined the input fields by adding the ‘choose a date’ field to help users log their dreams effectively.

  3. Got rid of main navigation and instead provided clear labels to help users efficiently log dreams.

⭐️

Connect to Content

Add layers or components to make infinite auto-playing slideshows.

MARKET Validation

Validating product features

I wanted to validate my idea early in the process to ensure I don’t waste time and resources creating a product that isn’t a good fit. I mapped risky assumptions about the product's desirability, feasibility, and viability onto a 2x2 matrix, measuring my knowledge of these assumptions and their business impact. Using pretotyping tools, I de-risked these assumptions by conducting experiments, transforming them into XYZ statements, and validating them.

My MVP's sweet spot: If all my assumptions are right, I can implement the product idea successfully.

Market Validation Results

DESIRABILITY

15%

students requested for their stats, when the stats were not sent for a week.

FEASIBILITY

50%

students were able to log their dreams regularly for a week and received a dream interpretation. No students could recollect their dreams everyday for 3 weeks.

VIABILITY

20%

landing page visitors showed skin in the game by providing their email address.

USABILITY Validation

I designed the usability test in three phases

EXPOSURE TEST

I asked users to explore the home screen for a minute. They should tell me what tasks they think they can do there.

TASK TESTING

I gave users tasks to test the app's intuitiveness, navigation, and user interaction.

FOLLOW-UP INTERVIEW

This helps me understand user opinions on my product. Users can provide feedback or critique.

Usability Test Results

USERS

9

Tasks

115 min

Testing Hours

Task Level Metrics

SUCCESS RATE

CONFIDENCE SCORE

EASE SCORE

Test Level Metrics

NPS

=

% OF
PROMOTERS

% OF
DETRACTORS

85.5

SUS

Finding

The information banners were meant to explain the app but caused confusion. Users tapped the banner to access Dream history, Statistics, and Dream Interpretations.

"At anytime I can just open the app and click on this tab to see my emotional health…"

Insight

Communicate the purpose of information banners to users. Ensure they understand their function to reduce confusion.

Finding

Users thought tapping on each section on the statistics screen would show more information.

"…what are the possible ways to better my mood …tell me how I can improve…"

Insight

Allow users to tap on sections of the statistics screen for detailed information, enhancing interactivity.

Finding

Users want to sort dreams by preference.

"…a filter would've been useful …to sort the list in the ascending or descending order of date"

Insight

Users must be able to organize dream history by date using a sorting filter. This makes finding specific dreams easier.

THINGS I LEARNED

Usability testing alone isn't sufficient to measure a product's success

While usability testing is indeed important for understanding a product's usability and user experience, I realised that it's more important to test the product idea itself. It's vital to test it early and pivot when necessary.

IF I HAD MORE TIME, I WOULD…

Have multiple test versions with a larger sample size

I would recruit more participants for the usability test and perform market research with a larger sample size. Although it's generally accepted that five users suffice for most user research I believe that the results may vary if the same research is done with a large sample size.

Perform market validation before building the MVP

Rather than working on multiple steps of the project simultaneously during the initial stages of research, I would take a step-by-step approach. This would allow for more iterations based on research and increases the chance of ultimately delivering a product that users need.

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