Step

First steps into the crypto world

Case study

PROJECT INFO

ROLE

Product designer (Research, Wireframing, Visual Design, Interaction Design, User Testing)

TEAM

Self directed

TOOLS

Figma, Typescript, Maze

DURATION

3 weeks

What's Step?

Step by Young Platform is an app to help introduce people to crypto. By using the app in all its features, the user earns YNG, the cryptocurrency of Young Platform. Users can then move their YNG to Young Platform Exchange to keep or sell them. Step has more than 1 million downloads on the app stores.

The problem

Currently, users primarily open the app to quickly collect rewards, resulting in an average session duration of just 2 minutes. This highlights low engagement and retention rates among users. The problem lies in the lack of a meaningful connection established with new users, hindering their engagement and discouraging further exploration of the app.

RESEARCH

How might we...

Design an onboarding experience that establishes a strong and meaningful connection with new users, increasing their engagement and fostering longer, more immersive sessions within the app?

Benchmarking

Through extensive research, we have found that the desire to level up and earn rewards serves as a strong motivator for users. By incorporating game-like elements into digital experiences, products can enhance user engagement, motivation, and overall satisfaction.

Designing a well-structured in-app journey is also really important. By providing intuitive navigation and a sense of purpose, we enhance users' understanding of the app's features, making it easier for them to not feel lost in the app.

DEFINE

Personas

To gain a deeper understanding of our app's user base, I created two distinct user personas. Prior to the development of the "Campaign Flow," I conducted thorough research on these personas to ensure their relevance and usefulness in shaping our design decisions. Over 130 Step users generously shared their insights by responding to a carefully curated form.

This data collection process allowed us to gather valuable information and perspectives directly from our target audience, enabling us to develop user personas that accurately represent their needs, preferences, and behaviors

IA and User Flow

The app's user flow has been thoughtfully designed for a seamless and intuitive experience. With clear interfaces and logical navigation, users can effortlessly access features in the upper and bottom navbar.

Through user feedback and behaviour analysis, we have streamlined the flow, eliminating unnecessary steps and friction. This optimized user flow enhances usability and ensures a positive experience with our app.

Exploration

Various versions of the app were created and tested with users. By analysing user behaviour on prototypes and asking relevant questions, we identified the designs that showed the most promising results. These chosen designs will undergo continued monitoring and testing.

VISUALS

While adhering to the main design system and branding guidelines of the product ecosystem, the app incorporates fun and gamified elements throughout its various pages. By infusing these elements, we enhance the user experience and create an engaging and enjoyable environment within the app.

Onboarding Campaign

After an engaging spotlight showcasing the app's features, users are presented with an onboarding campaign.

Through a series of thoughtfully designed challenges, users earn XP as they discover the app, ensuring an exceptional initial experience.
Each challenge is carefully crafted to provide users with a seamless introduction, setting the stage for an immersive app journey.

New Homepage

Upon successfully completing the onboarding campaign, users unlock a new homepage that unveils two additional methods for earning XP and consequently levelling up: monthly challenges and quests.

These quests actively contribute to the completion of the monthly challenge, which offers users the ultimate reward of the application – the YNG token.

Upper Navigation

The inclusion of XP and an onboarding campaign required adjustments throughout the app.

The upper navigation bar was revamped to align with the gamified experience, displaying levels, YNG balance, and lives.
This enables easy access to all app features, ensuring users have a clear overview of their progress and available resources

Profile and avatars

To promote a sense of community and embrace the "Ikea effect" the profile feature now incorporates personalised avatars and background colours. This customisation not only adds a personal touch but also lays the foundation for potential multiplayer games integration in the future.

The introduction of avatars aims to enhance user engagement and create a more immersive and enjoyable experience.

PROTOTYPE

Click for full screen

CONCLUSIONS

We have recently rolled out the new feature in an A/B test, and we are actively monitoring the data to assess the need for any changes and improvements.
We have observed an encouraging increase in the average session duration. At day 7 the retention increased by 7.3% and the average engagement time by 63%. However, it is crucial to continue monitoring the results over an extended period.

Many additional features are planned and under development to keep improving the product.

The app can be downloaded from the Apple Store and Google Play if you're curious.

Thank you for reading this case study :) !