Reinventing News Consumption
Mobile App Design
Feb. 2023 to Oct. 2023
My Role
Product Owner, Founding Designer
Tools
Deductive Method, Inductive Method, Competitor Analysis, Figma, After Effect, Jira, Photoshop, Illustrator, React Native
Team
Chris Hadley(CSO) 、Roger Hu(CEO)、Wei Kao(CTO)、Keren Chang(Developer)、Nicole Weatherburne(Developer)、Gao Jheng(Developer)、Jack Chang (Developer)
Goal
1. Launch in October 2023
2. Under 5% negative feedback from users
IMPACT
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Reached a ranking of #45 in the App store charts for HK, and #50 in TW.
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Developed an AI-driven app product while prioritizing a user-centered design approach.
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Redirect to specific news via Share for increased download rates with 0 marketing budgets.
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Led both part-time and full-time developers to achieve the timely launch of the app.
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Designed a user-friendly experience requiring no tutorials or onboarding, saving education efforts.
Onboarding Experience
The app is now available on the market. Please visit the App Store to download and experience it.
WHAT CHALLENGES WE FACE
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How to synchronize stakeholder ideas in product design?
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How to make the product appear more AI-driven?
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How to boost the users download with 0 marketing budget?
Design Method
Stakeholders Management + Secondary Research
Design Issue
The stakeholders possess a strong subjective but clear vision. Regular communication is essential to ensure alignment.
Cooperated with Stakeholders
8 hrs / week
Research
Competitors Analyze
3 days
Product Strategy
Inductive & Deductive Method
3 days
Challenge 1
How to Synchronize Stakeholder Ideas in Product Design?
1
Product Guideline
Establishing Value Proposition
Understanding Wysk's goals, I established and validated value propositions with stakeholders to maintain design integrity.
Value Proposition
Content First
Easy Digest
Simplify Everything
2
Hand-on Skill
Working Prototype
The stakeholders have many ideas to try out, but developing them all is not feasible. I will prioritize by creating prototypes and engaging in intensive discussions with the stakeholders to confirm the direction.
3
Upward Management
Focus! Focus! Focus!
When stakeholders suggest ideas, I assess them against value proposition to gauge their alignment and feasibility. Feasible ideas are prototyped for validation, while others prompt discussions for alternative solutions.
Solution 1
Design Based on Logic and Value Proposition
01 Combine Popular News App Experience with Value Proposition
02 Made the Working Prototypes for Proofing Concept
We were arguing which interaction is best for Key Events, I developed two prototypes for stakeholder and developer discussions.
3. Managing Stakeholders Ideas
Stakeholders want to highlight our comments aggregator feature. But I think this idea is not good for our current status, they cancel the idea after seen the mock-up.
Challenge 2
How to Make the Product Appear AI-driven
1
Image
Use AI-made Image
We use AI-generated images as illustrations for each news article. Because images occupy a significant portion of the screen, users perceive the product as highly AI-related.
2
Content
AI Summarize Headline and Summary
We utilize AI tools to condense selected news into 5-word headlines and 44-word summaries, enhancing user digestibility and reinforcing Wysk as an AI-related product.
3
Comments Aggregator
AI Pick the Related Comments
We utilize AI to curate the most valuable and relevant online comments, presenting them to users in a single consolidated view, saving them time.
Solution 2
Apply AI Image and Limited Words Content
Challenge 3
How to Boost the Users Growth with 0 Marketing Budget
1
Oauth
Reduce Sign-up Cost
Asking users to download an app already incurs a high cost. If we further require them to fill out email to signup, most people will likely delete the app outright. Hence, I've designed only Oauth login, and have limited it to just Google and Apple services. Additionally, using Oauth mitigates any Personally Identifiable Information (PII) concerns.
2
Share
Attract People Download from Share
Strong relationships are helpful in exploring the business at the initial stage. Therefore, I designed a web page where users can click to view basic news in a third-party app (if users are interested in more, they need to download the app to read) along with a redirect button to the App Store rather than linking directly to the store like a typical app.
Solution 3
Minimize User Cost while Implementing an Enticing Hook
One More Challenge
How to Manage Part-Time Developers?
In the initial stages, managing part-time employees is inevitable. Here's how I ensured the project could launch on schedule:
1. Tell Them Purpose
Inform developers of the reasons behind tasks. A soldier who knows why is invincible, and things will develop according to your goals, even while you're asleep.
2. Online Collaboration Tools
Utilize online collaborative editing tools, such as, Jira, Notion, Figma for real-time cooperation.
3. Detailed Product Specification
Created detailed product specs for clear developer understanding, specifying pages for actions like canceling, modifying, or deleting, minimizing ambiguity and development delays.
Result
#45 Dowload in HK, #50 in TW, and 0 Compliant
Achieve 100% of the Goal
1. Go to Market on Time
Wysk.ai App was launched on October 18, 2023.
2. 0 Compliant of App so far
We conducted surveys in Taiwan, Hong Kong, and the US, and received no complaints about the app's usability. Users in all regions praised it as a great product.
3. Beyond the Expect with 0 Marketing Budget
We reached #45 in the App Store download rank in Hong Kong and #50 in Taiwan.
