How can we help
users stick to a hair
treatment routine?
A case study on understanding users' needs and delivering meaningful value.
Overview
There's a feature called 'Build a Habit' which was initially conceptualised to encourage users to stay consistent with their treatment — take their meds regularly — while also allowing Traya to learn about users' behaviour.
Users could log daily if they have consumed the medicines or not, like a journal. A gamification layer was added to this journal to help with the adoption of this feature. Users log their daily medication intake and, in return, earn coins that can be redeemed for discounts on their next order. This feature has seen some adoption, with users actively logging their medications and redeeming coins. However, the feature has not been as effective in helping users maintain consistency in their treatment.
Your challenge is to refocus this feature, making it a tool that genuinely helps users stay consistent with their treatment. While the gamification element can be retained to drive adoption, the primary goal should be to add real value to users' lives — help them stay consistent — beyond just offering discounts.
Problem Discovery -
Users Dropping Hair Treatment Midway
"Build a Habit" aims to encourage users to maintain consistency in their treatment. However, it has not been effective in achieving this goal, as many users struggle to remain consistent with their treatment plans.
“How can we improve the ‘Build a Habit’ feature to effectively help users maintain consistency in their treatment plans?”
Problem 1 - Low discoverability of “Build a habit” feature
Users find it difficult to engage with the habit-tracking feature because it is hard to locate within the app, leading to missed entries. Additionally, without clear reminders or easy access, users often forget to log their progress, making it challenging to maintain consistency and build long-term habits.
The habit-tracking feature is not accessible in the first fold of the app, making it harder for users to engage with it
The diet plan is buried within the app, making it difficult for users to find and follow consistently
The app lacks prompts or notifications to remind users to log their entries, resulting in missed logs and disrupted progress
Solution 1
After generating ideas and creating multiple wireframes, I moved on to designing and addressing the identified issues.
Homepage
To improve the usability and discoverability of rewards and habit features, I identified flaws in the app’s information architecture. Without a fixed position, the habit-building feature lacked recall value, making it difficult for users to find and engage with consistently.
Timeline shows the process and gives a visual representation of the current streak
There are two routines
Hair-Treatment and Diet-Plan which now has a fixed position on the homepage allowing users to have a recall value
Hair Journal which was hidden inside the profile is now outside to allow users to quickly add their hair photos and over time they can view their progress
Widgets & Notifications
Designing beyond the app is crucial for maintaining user engagement. I created two widgets: one reminds users to log a product, and the other prompts them when they risk losing their streak, encouraging re-engagement.
Notifications are equally important and should follow principles of positive reinforcement—being supportive, non-judgmental, and creatively crafted to capture user attention.
Treatment Widget
Streak Reminder
Habit Notifications
Problem 2 - Lack of visible progress
Users tend to lose motivation when they don’t experience quick or tangible progress toward their goals. Without visible milestones or measurable achievements, they may feel their efforts are ineffective, leading to frustration and disengagement. This lack of early feedback can result in a decline in commitment, ultimately causing users to drop off before forming lasting habits or reaching meaningful outcomes.
There's a lack of a sense of completion or achievement, which could be improved.
The "Log Your Routine" feature is hard to find due to its low priority and inconsistent placement, making it difficult for users to engage with regularly.
The absence of progress statistics makes it challenging for users to stay motivated, as they cannot track or visualise their efforts.
Solution 2
Weekly reward based milestones makes the treatment process more manageable, improving user follow through. At the end of each week, users earn a badge, reinforcing a sense of achievement and encouraging consistent progress. This approach leverages gamification and positive reinforcement to sustain motivation.
Habit Tracking & Rewards
To make the rewards more exciting and engaging at the same time providing a sense of accomplishment I introduced few new features & reward logic
A small plant metaphor visually represents hair growth, giving users a sense of progress and accomplishment.
Quick stats on streaks and completion rates encourage consistency and keep users motivated.
A calendar timeline highlights upcoming rewards, motivating users to log in regularly.
Statistics & Achievements
The profile section provides users with key stats to track their progress. Features like 'Longest Streak' challenge users to beat personal records, fostering self-competition and consistency. A plant visualises growth, while the calendar allows users to reflect on their streaks. The achievements section shows unlocked and remaining badges, motivating users to stay engaged and collect them all through consistent effort. This leverages goal-setting & visual feedback to enhance motivation.
Problem 3 - Monotonous and boring reward system
The current implementation of coins and discounts requires users to learn how they work, creating friction in the experience. Over time, these rewards may lose their perceived value, and the predictability of the system can reduce motivation to collect them. If users do not find the rewards meaningful or aligned with their goals.
Solution
Weekly reward-based milestones break the process into smaller, manageable steps, increasing the likelihood of user follow-through. To boost engagement, I introduced an element of unpredictability similar to slot machines where users get a dopamine rush each time they scratch a card for potential discounts or coupons.
At the end of each week, users earn a badge, reinforcing their sense of achievement and motivating them to stay consistent.Over time, as users accumulate badges and see tangible progress, the app aims to phase out discounts and coupons, similar to Duolingo’s strategy of fostering habits and motivation without financial incentives. This approach combines gamification with positive reinforcement to maintain long-term engagement.
Additional Ideas
I have additional ideas that may initially seem unnecessary, but I believe they could provide valuable support for users in various ways.
Include a travel bag with the product kit to address one of the main reasons users skip days in their treatment: traveling.
Enable users to log their medication using voice commands or by taking photos of their pills or shampoo bottles. Additionally, integrate NFC chips in product packaging for quick logging by tapping their phone, which reduces friction in the process.
Progress snap shot make a AI video with it showing the progress
A community of Traya users showing off their badges and keeping each other accountable
How did I arrive at this solution?
Before developing a solution, I first outlined the process I would follow to address the problem.
Design Process
I developed an actionable plan to identify the reasons behind the ineffectiveness of the current "Build a Habit" feature and generate new ideas to address the issue effectively.
1
Research & Analysis
Before jumping into solutions, it's crucial to understand the problem from different angles.
2
Define Problems
Using insights from research, narrow down the core problems.
3
Ideation & Design Opportunity
Move from reward-based engagement to habit-building through intrinsic motivation, social support, and personalized nudges.
4
Wireframing & Final UI Desings
Translate the ideas into low-fidelity wireframes and then after doing exploration with layout move to UI Design
Research & Analysis
I began the research by creating a persona to better understand and empathize with the
target user group, ensuring that my design solutions remain user-focused and
aligned with their needs.
User Persona
Ajay Negi
Age & Gender : 25 Male
Relationship : Single
Occupation: Product Manager
Character Traits
Determined, Work focused, self confidence and consistent
Goals
Adapt a healthy lifestyle to prevent hair loss
Reduce stress and exercise daily
Figure out a robust routine
Success Metrics
Measure hair growth progress every month
Monitor stress levels and track improvement
Pain Points
Busy schedule prevents him to get time for self care
Feels insecure about his hair loss
Confused due to so many options available
Action Plan
Create a daily self-care routine
Consult a healthcare professional for hair loss treatment
Ajay is a career-driven individual who works tirelessly every day, which has helped him reach a significant milestone in his professional journey. However, the demands of his hectic lifestyle late night work hours, chronic stress, and poor self care have taken a toll on his health, leading to noticeable hair loss.
Now, Ajay is increasingly concerned that if these habits continue, he may experience complete hair loss. The issue is also affecting his personal life, he has faced several rejections in dating, which he suspects are linked to his appearance. Determined to address the problem, Ajay is actively seeking solutions to regain his confidence and manage his hair loss.
User Interviews
I divided users in three different groups to better categorise information
Engaged Users: Those who are motivated and consistently using the products and following treatment
Drop of Users: Those who used the products but stopped due to some reason
Non-Users: Those who are concerned about the hair loss but haven’t done any treatment so far.
Since I could not find the users who have used the Traya ‘Build a habit’ feature I talked with people who are following treatment and managing routine using other apps
Interview questions
To gain valuable insights, I prepared a structured list of questions to guide the interviews effectively. While user interviews are inherently dynamic, it's beneficial to conduct them with a partner. This way, one person can focus on steering the conversation while the other takes notes, ensuring a more organised and productive discussion.
I divided questions into 4 categories
Motivations and Goals
Challenges and Pain Points
Behavioural Patterns
Gamification & Rewards
Insights from the interviews
Based on the responses from the user interview I come up with these insights
Motivations and Goals
The core motivation for using the feature is progress tracking, but lack of immediate visible results discourages engagement.
Challenges and Pain Points
Routine fatigue and external distractions like travel & work hinder consistency.
Behavioural Patterns
Consistency is delicate and affected by users' lifestyles, motivation, and visibility of progress. Users who disengage often find the logging process tedious or insufficiently rewarding. Additionally, they may worry about potential side effects of the products, even after purchase and use.
Gamification & Rewards
Coins and discounts sparks initial engagement but doesn’t sustain long-term motivation. Users prefer more personalised rewards and feedback to maintain momentum.
Competitive Analysis
I analysed competitor’s apps to explore their features, design, and user experience, identifying trends and areas for improvement to enhance our product.
Man Matters
Man Matters is a digital health clinic and wellness platform for men that offers products and services for men's grooming needs and wellness
Pros
Good Information Architecture allows users to easily navigate to what they are looking for
Trusted reputation and lower cost of entry
Cons
Broken homepage
Not enough educational information about the products
HairCare
This app consists of homemade tutorials, special damage hair treatment plan, and baldness cure videos.
Pros
Leverages gamification to promote habit building
Clean interface
Cons
Does not provide a whole plan for hair treatment
Habitica
Habitica is a free habit and productivity app that treats your real life like a game. Habitica can help you achieve your goals to become healthy and happy.
Pros
High engagement with the gamification it provides
It provides a high level of accountability which makes it distinct from all other habit tracking apps.
Cons
The learning curve of the app is really huge
Lack of community-based interaction.
Analysing Current Traya App
I went thought the current mobile app and it’s habit tracking feature upon playing around few mins I realised the whole app is bit confusing and there’s no designated position of habit-tracking feature and other problems with the Information Architecture
The habit feature is hard to discover due to its inconsistent placement; users must scroll to access it each time, which is problematic for a feature intended for daily use over five months
Given that there's a video about the treatment plan, we should display the plan above the video for better visibility
The diet plan and treatment plan should be along with the hair treatment plan
Log and earn is not a clear indication of what it does. We should promote the habit feature rather than promoting coins
First time users might not understand what what coins does and it’s another hassle to find out the
400 Coins makes people wonder what is coins which could have been more exploration part
Tool tip design is a design component which is treated as a info delivery or temporary pop up. Which makes the users want to close it but since this is a permanent info for a day it might frustrate users
There’s no mention about what the product is and why it’s a good fit for users
Visual representation of the consistency could be better since this view doesn’t give a sense of accomplishment to the users
Current coins and rewards works on a set logic and is predictable for users. Users might lose interest once novelty or reward value drops.
Coins alone might not build intrinsic motivation.
The rewards needs to be more unpredictable like a slot machine in Cassio to keep users guess what they will get next.
Brainstorming
After identifying the problems, I brainstormed multiple solutions and filtered them to select features that directly address user needs
Finalising Feature List
From here on the competitor analysis helped to figure out what are the necessary features to promote habit forming behaviour. I began by brainstorming and listing all possible feature ideas, encouraging creative thinking without limitations. Once the ideas were gathered, I prioritised them.
Prioritisation Criteria
User Impact:
Focus on features that enhance the user experience by addressing key pain points, such as motivation and consistency, to support long-term habit formation.
Business Goals:
Build a value-driven system that encourages sustainable habit formation, avoiding reliance on excessive discounts or promotions that are not financially viable.
Adoption & Usability:
Implement improvements that add value without complicating the user journey, ensuring features are intuitive, easy to use, and seamlessly integrate into daily routines.
Feedback
Prioritise features based on user feedback and lessons from competitor solutions that have effectively fostered habit formation in similar health-related contexts.
Thank You
LinkedIn: ashutoshnavkar