CONTEXT
Much like many others looking to secure a product manager role, I came across the advice to create a side project to demonstrate practical product management skills. This sparked me to create Binge and Burn. This app addresses two common challenges: maintaining an active lifestyle and finding time for entertainment.
Because Why Just Watch When You Can Sweat?
With Binge & Burn, your favorite shows become your new workout routine. Pick a show, start an episode, and get ready to squat, jump, and crunch your way through every plot twist. Suddenly, “Netflix and chill” just got a whole lot more active.
GOALS
My primary objective was to create a successful low-fidelity fitness-entertainment hybrid app that enhances users' lives by combining workout routines with their favorite shows. Potential initial key performance indicators (KPIs) to determine success of the first iteration of the app could be the following:
1. User Engagement:
- Achieve an average watch time of 30 minutes per session within the first three months of launch.
- Reach a content completion rate of 75% for workout-show combinations.
2. User Acquisition and Retention:
- Acquire 5 active users within the first month and get them to leave feedback.
3. User Satisfaction:
- Attain an average user rating of 4.5 stars on app stores.
4. Health and Fitness Impact:
- 50% of users use the app again within the first month.
5. Content Effectiveness:
- Identify the top 3 most popular show-workout combinations based on user engagement metrics.
6. Technical Performance:
- Achieve an average app load time of under 2 seconds.
These goals align with my objective of creating an app with the least requirements possible. By focusing on these metrics, we can ensure that Binge and Burn retains users while also positively influences their fitness habits. There is plenty of room for growth and opportunities for me to iterate based on feedback.
MoSCoW REQUIREMENTS
MoSCoW prioritization is a popular prioritization technique for managing requirements. The acronym MoSCoW represents four categories of initiatives: must-have, should-have, could-have, and won’t-have, or will not have right now.
USER PERSONAS
WIREFRAMES
MVP
MVP
Minimum Viable Product
USER INSIGHTS
After the MVP was complete, I shared with friends and did one round of user testing to identify any problems and requirements.
My responsibilities included:
Recruiting for participants
Organizing and booking interview locations
Facilitating the user testing
Scribing
Synthesizing the data
Method
Face-to-face and Zoom qualitative interviews
Usability tasks
5 Interviews
“When the activity I choose is tapped, can there be an additional timer option of 1-5 minute intervals?”
“Can the app be linked to a smart watch or Apple Health app?”
RETROSPECTIVE
To recap, building Binge and Burn reinforced:
The importance of strategic thinking and using a user-centric approach. Embracing agile methodologies and data-driven decision-making highlighted the value of flexibility and refinement while understanding UX/UI principles underscored the significance of design. I successfully integrated working out with watching TV, achieving my main goal. However, I encountered challenges in implementing certain features, like a pause button, which had to be postponed. The project taught me valuable lessons about database integration in Adalo and the high cost of gathering user feedback. For future projects, I plan to map out screens and connections on paper first to visualize the app's flow and functionality better.