Last updated on:
December 20, 2023
Helping users read and to overcome visual stress.
Work type
Agency - Pixelfield
My contribution
Product design, Product Strategy
Sector
Medical, Healthcare
The team
1x product designer, 2x developers
About 20% of the population suffer from visual stress related to reading, which is different from problems with refractive error (long-sightedness, short-sightedness, or presbyopia). When reading, some report that words appear to move, wobble, or flicker, while others experience headaches or migraines. Sometimes changing the background colour to the text can reduce discomfort, improving reading speed and fluency.
Read Ez wanted to develop a mobile and tablet app for teachers and eye care professionals to test multiple children/patients that are suffering from visual stress and allow them to overcome the problem by using colour overlays to improve their reading.
Due to the client's budget and timeline, we had to move quickly with the project which resulted in a 2-month turnaround with the design and development. In addition to working as a product designer, I was also responsible for product management and ownership of this project.
In the workshop, we did a series of exercises, including: understanding the business strategy; brand positioning; personas; journey mapping; and goals for the mobile app. This involved the CEO, the marketing director, the lead mobile app developer and me. The workshop spanned 2 days.
The client had a good idea of how the app should work, so they presented us with the software they currently use on the Windows OS. Following the workshop, we were able to gain a good understanding of the problem and how we might identify a solution to it. The key takeaway was:
I began by first creating a sitemap, producing user flows and wireframes, and then hopped on a call with the client to go through them. I sent over the prototype link and asked them to play around with it using their phone as part of user testing. The feedback given was very positive with some minor considerations that propelled it in the right direction. At this stage, I also arranged a meeting with the mobile app developers to get their input. I then moved very swiftly to the visual design stage and began to prototype it ready for implementation.
Initially, after release, there were close to 3,000 downloads within two months. The project did not end up being a total success with low downloads and engagement. This then resulted in the termination of the app. On the bright side, this project allowed me to learn more about eye healthcare and how an app would work for eye care professionals.
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