Feature Engineering for Retention & Engagement.
At Sahha.ai, our primary objective is to improve the health & wellbeing of humans. We do this through integrated technologies which enable companies to create new UX mechanics and differentiating features in digital health applications. In this article, we delve into the lesser-known techniques that can significantly enhance product metrics to improve health outcomes.
While there are no magic formulas to simple ‘plug-in’, rigorous scientific research, testing and integrating new methods to influence a user’s interaction with health applications do exist.
We've chosen to explore such scientific research and other methodologies, to help companies apply the findings within them to applications they are building. We will explore various retention techniques that are currently applicable to increasing user retention within digital health applications.
The Laws of UX is a website focused on presenting (in short format) the most important best practises of implementing behavioral science and psychology into user experience design. We highly recommend utilizing their platform when designing.
Before we start, it is important to factor in how user-expectations around UX/UI are rapidly changing due to design and technological advancements available today. We have written an article on this topic.
Applying Behavioral Psychology in UI/UX design
Behavioral psychology delves into understanding our actions, preferences, and thought processes. If we extrapolate this concept to design, aptly referred to as behavioral design, what implications does it have?
In the context of product development, behavioral design aids in comprehending why users behave the way they do, thereby enabling us to craft experiences that are enjoyable for them.
The primary aim of behavioral design is to influence human behaviors to attain distinct business objectives. Whether the goal is to motivate users towards an effective onboarding process, enhance the user journey, or foster the adoption of a new feature, behavioral design techniques are employed to catalyze these desired actions.
This approach is rooted in a systematic framework that leverages research, experimentation, and data analysis, as opposed to relying exclusively on psychological principles.
Subsequently, we will delve deeper into these components. Concurrently, we aspire to illustrate how digital health companies can apply behavioral design and build engaging features in their applications.
The Behavioral Design to UI/UX employs subtle environmental modifications, known as nudges, to influence user behavior without impinging on their freedom of choice. These nudges may manifest as visual cues, microinteractions, or personalized messaging that gently steer users towards desired actions.
In a series of articles we will be exploring:
- The CAR + RI (Cue, Action, Reward + Reflection and investment) model created by by Charles Duhigg for his book “Power of a habit” to delineate a user’s interactions with a product.
- Reducing data entry burden and increasing value using the Fogg Behavior Model and Reducing Perceived Effort in applications
- Applying The Transtheoretical model, or the model for the stages of change for understanding user behaviour
- Why building community and social influence to significantly enhance user engagement and retention
In conclusion, applying behavioral design principles in UI/UX design can significantly enhance user engagement and retention in digital health applications. By understanding the psychological triggers and habits of users, we can create more intuitive and compelling experiences. This approach, coupled with the application of models like the CAR + RI model, the Fogg Behavior Model, and the Transtheoretical model, can lead to the creation of applications that not only meet user expectations but also promote healthier behaviors.
This intersection of technology and behavioral psychology is the future of UX design in digital health, and we at Sahha.ai are excited to be at the forefront of this change, enabling the digital health applications to build brilliant user experiences with data.