My Role
Product Designer
Led Friendare's core feature redesign
Conducted user research and usability testing
Redesigned the design system and information architecture
Collaborated cross-functionally on implementation
Analysed metrics to measure impact and guide improvements
Enhancing user engagement and social interaction on Friendare
Friendare, a social gaming platform, was struggling with user engagement and social interaction. These issues were negatively impacting key metrics such as daily active users (DAU), average session length, and user retention.
Enhancing user engagement and social interaction on Friendare
Enhancing user engagement and social interaction on Friendare
Friendare, a social gaming platform, was struggling with user engagement and social interaction. These issues were negatively impacting key metrics such as daily active users (DAU), average session length, and user retention.
Friendare, a social gaming platform, was struggling with user engagement and social interaction. These issues were negatively impacting key metrics such as daily active users (DAU), average session length, and user retention.
My Role
My Role
Product Designer
Led Friendare's core feature redesign
Conducted user research and usability testing
Redesigned the design system and information architecture
Collaborated cross-functionally on implementation
Analysed metrics to measure impact and guide improvements
Product Designer
Led Friendare's core feature redesign
Conducted user research and usability testing
Redesigned the design system and information architecture
Collaborated cross-functionally on implementation
Analysed metrics to measure impact and guide improvements
Company
Company
Friendare is a social gaming platform where you can create and play games, daring your friends to beat your records. It combines social interaction and gaming, focusing on friendly competition and creativity.
Problems
Problems
1
1
The number of users inviting friends to challenges was too low.
The number of users inviting friends to challenges was too low.
2
2
User engagement with games needed improvement.
User engagement with games needed improvement.
3
3
The visual design and accessibility of the app required refinement.
The visual design and accessibility of the app required refinement.
Challenge
Challenge
How might we improve user engagement and social interaction on Friendare?
How might we improve user engagement and social interaction on Friendare?
Research and Discovery
Research and Discovery
We set KPIs, conducted usability testing and pos-test user interviews, and analysed app data to evaluate user engagement and social connectivity in Friendare.
Identifying Key User Pain Points
Identifying Key User Pain Points
Uninspiring Home page layout
Repetitive game cards led to high bounce rates and short session length. Users quickly left the app without meaningful interaction.
Difficulty in finding and connecting with friends
Hidden friend search function resulted in low social connectivity, affecting user retention and engagement.
Underutilisation of the "challenge" feature
The challenge feature, intended to boost social interaction, was often overlooked or misunderstood, weakening the social gaming experience and overall engagement.
Lack of effective onboarding for games
New users struggled with the lack of effective onboarding to understand the games' mechanics, leading to lower retention.
Defining Success
Defining Success
To address Friendare's challenges and boost user engagement, we developed a focused strategy:
Goals
Goals
Increase daily active users (DAU)
Boost average session length
Boost user retention rates, especially for new users
Enhance social connections and interactions within the app
Improve game discovery and participation rates
Guiding principles
Guiding principles
Enhance discoverability of games and social features
Amplify social interactions within the gaming experience
Simplify user flows to reduce friction and encourage exploration
Create an intuitive and engaging onboarding experience
Materialising Ideas
Materialising Ideas
To improve user engagement and social connectivity, we conducted a workshop that utilised brainstorming and sketching to generate and prioritise ideas.
User Flow
User Flow
I then redesigned the app’s information architecture to prioritise game discovery and social interactions, creating a more intuitive and engaging user experience.
Defining Our Visual Design Strategy
Defining Our Visual Design Strategy
I organised a workshop with a product owner and co-founder to develop a cohesive visual design strategy that aligned with business objectives and aimed to enhance engagement, social connectivity, and accessibility. Despite tight deadlines, we successfully updated the color palette, component library, and typography, resulting in a more intuitive interface and laying the foundation for future development.
Solutions: Bringing Ideas to Life
Solutions: Bringing Ideas to Life
Reimagined Home page
Reimagined Home page
The home page initially suffered from low user engagement due to its repetitive design and lack of compelling features.
We redesigned the home page by introducing categorised game sections that made browsing more intuitive and engaging. We also added game popularity and creation time.
These changes resulted in improved user exploration and increased overall engagement on the platform.
Before
After
Introduced game filtering feature
Introduced game filtering feature
Implemented filters allowing users to sort games by difficulty within each category.
This feature allows users to easily find games that match their skill level, helping them stay motivated and engaged.
Enhanced friend discovery
Enhanced friend discovery
The friend search function was initially hidden on the profile page, making it difficult for users to connect with others.
I relocated the friend search to the home page, streamlining the process and allowing users to easily search for both games and friends in one place.
Before
After
Before
After
Revamped challenge feature
Revamped challenge feature
Previously, the "Challenge" button was placed on the leaderboard page and users to mistakenly think it meant replaying the game themselves rather than challenging their friends.
I created a dedicated "Dare" page where users can easily select friends from a list and dare them directly.
Additionally, I moved the Skip button to the top right corner to focus attention on the action and renamed "Challenge" to "Dare Friend" for clarity and better alignment with Friedare's (Friend + Dare) brand.
Implemented comprehensive onboarding experience
Implemented comprehensive onboarding experience
I designed interactive tutorials for each game type, which appear when users try a new game for the first time, to enhance user engagement.
Validation and Iteration
Validation and Iteration
I presented designs to stakeholders, collaborated with developers, and conducted usability testing to gather feedback, validate decisions, and refine the product for an improved user experience aligned with our goals.
Impact
Impact
Increased game engagement on the home page by 18%.
Boosted daily active users (DAU) by 15%.
Extended average session length by 20%.
Reduced time to find and follow friends by 25%.
Improved 30-day user retention rate by 12%.
Enhanced accessibility for users with different abilities and tech skills.
Company
Friendare is a social gaming platform where you can create and play games, daring your friends to beat your records. It combines social interaction and gaming, focusing on friendly competition and creativity.
Company
Friendare is a social gaming platform where you can create and play games, daring your friends to beat your records. It combines social interaction and gaming, focusing on friendly competition and creativity.
Problems
1
The number of users inviting friends to challenges was too low.
2
User engagement with games needed improvement.
3
The visual design and accessibility of the app required refinement.
Challenge
How might we improve user engagement and social interaction on Friendare?
Research and Discovery
We set KPIs, conducted usability testing and pos-test user interviews, and analysed app data to evaluate user engagement and social connectivity in Friendare.
Identifying Key User Pain Points
Uninspiring Home page layout
Repetitive game cards led to high bounce rates and short session length. Users quickly left the app without meaningful interaction.
Difficulty in finding and connecting with friends
Hidden friend search function resulted in low social connectivity, affecting user retention and engagement.
Underutilisation of the "challenge" feature
The challenge feature, intended to boost social interaction, was often overlooked or misunderstood, weakening the social gaming experience and overall engagement.
Lack of effective onboarding for games
New users struggled with the lack of effective onboarding to understand the games' mechanics, leading to lower retention.
Defining Success
To address Friendare's challenges and boost user engagement, we developed a focused strategy:
Goals
Increase daily active users (DAU)
Boost average session length
Boost user retention rates, especially for new users
Enhance social connections and interactions within the app
Improve game discovery and participation rates
Guiding principles
Enhance discoverability of games and social features
Amplify social interactions within the gaming experience
Simplify user flows to reduce friction and encourage exploration
Create an intuitive and engaging onboarding experience
Materialising Ideas
To improve user engagement and social connectivity, we conducted a workshop that utilised brainstorming and sketching to generate and prioritise ideas.
User Flow
I then redesigned the app’s information architecture to prioritise game discovery and social interactions, creating a more intuitive and engaging user experience.
Defining Our Visual Design Strategy
I organised a workshop with a product owner and co-founder to develop a cohesive visual design strategy that aligned with business objectives and aimed to enhance engagement, social connectivity, and accessibility. Despite tight deadlines, we successfully updated the color palette, component library, and typography, resulting in a more intuitive interface and laying the foundation for future development.
Solutions: Bringing Ideas to Life
Reimagined Home page
The home page initially suffered from low user engagement due to its repetitive design and lack of compelling features.
We redesigned the home page by introducing categorised game sections that made browsing more intuitive and engaging. We also added game popularity and creation time.
These changes resulted in improved user exploration and increased overall engagement on the platform.
Before
After
Introduced game filtering feature
Implemented filters allowing users to sort games by difficulty within each category.
This feature allows users to easily find games that match their skill level, helping them stay motivated and engaged.
Enhanced friend discovery
The friend search function was initially hidden on the profile page, making it difficult for users to connect with others.
I relocated the friend search to the home page, streamlining the process and allowing users to easily search for both games and friends in one place.
Before
After
Implemented comprehensive onboarding experience
I designed interactive tutorials for each game type, which appear when users try a new game for the first time, to enhance user engagement.
Validation and Iteration
I presented designs to stakeholders, collaborated with developers, and conducted usability testing to gather feedback, validate decisions, and refine the product for an improved user experience aligned with our goals.
Impact
Increased game engagement on the home page by 18%.
Boosted daily active users (DAU) by 15%.
Extended average session length by 20%.
Reduced time to find and follow friends by 25%.
Improved 30-day user retention rate by 12%.
Enhanced accessibility for users with different abilities and tech skills.