IRIS: Your new Wellness Booking App

In today’s world, technology is causing massive disruption in the health and wellness industry. The presence of smartphones in our daily lives is indispensable, making the market for apps that simplify daily errands we do as humans skyrocket.

A survey by Gallup reveals that nearly half (45%) of Americans have at least tried digital health products such as fitness trackers or mobile health apps.

Health apps (also known as mHealth apps) are mobile applications that offer health-related services on smartphones, tablets, and other communication devices.

There are numerous mHealth apps available, each focusing on a different aspect of wellness. Among the most popular categories are:

• Exercise and fitness apps
• Reminders and Habits Tracker apps
• Sleep quality apps
• Pregnancy apps
• Women’s health apps
• Healthy lifestyle apps
• Diet and nutrition apps
• Weight loss apps
• Mental health apps
• Medical care apps
• Chronic conditions monitoring apps
• Stress reduction apps
• Meditation apps

The global Health apps market was valued at USD 40.05 billion in 2020 and is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 17.7% from 2021 to 2028.

The Client

To understand our goal better, part of research designing is empathizing with our users, and to do so, we created fictitious characters that embark on an average user profile based on all the people that participated in an initial survey to get to know what users might like to see in an app. This is how Karla was created — a 28-year-old female from San Juan, Puerto Rico.

Karla is passionate about personal care and beauty. She stays updated on the latest trends in fashion and beauty and loves exploring new looks and places to keep herself fresh and current. For Karla, service quality is essential, but she also values convenience and speed. She seeks a beauty salon that offers high-quality treatments performed by skilled professionals, yet also provides quick availability to accommodate her busy lifestyle.

With this description, it was easy to understand and establish a user goal, as well as create our problem statement.

“I would like to find beauty services that provide quick availability at the salon, as my demanding career as a marketing specialist often requires beauty treatments to be done swiftly and efficiently to fit my schedule.”

Hi-Fi Wireframes

After setting the direction for IRIS, my wellness app for beauty, I began the design and interface process. To refine and solidify the vision for IRIS, I created low-fidelity (lo-fi) and mid-fidelity (mid-fi) prototypes. These prototypes aimed to provide a clearer representation of the user interface and overall design elements of IRIS.

The low-fidelity prototypes served as initial sketches or wireframes, focusing on the basic layout and structure without intricate details. These helped to outline the fundamental features and flow of IRIS’s interface.

As the project progressed, I developed mid-fidelity prototypes to add more detail and realism to the design. These prototypes incorporated visual elements such as color schemes, typography, and basic functionality, offering a more comprehensive visualization of IRIS’s interface. This iterative process ensured that the final design would be both user-friendly and visually appealing, aligning with the app’s wellness and beauty focus.

Figma

We designed a total of 11 screens for the process. The full prototype is available in Figma.

Target Device

For this project, we only focused on mobile devices. The idea could be adapted into a webpage and onto larger devices in the future. As of today, you can find IRIS as:

1. A native iOS App
2. A native Android App

Learning outcome

Working on IRIS, our wellness app project, was such a fulfilling experience for me. It was like diving into a world of creativity and problem-solving! With the help of my friend Ashley, we took on the challenge of considering heuristics and studying competitors like Booksy, Beauty 911, and others — and I learned a lot. Throughout the process, I found genuine enjoyment in exploring different design approaches and finding solutions to complex problems. My partner in this project played a pivotal role in guiding me through the intricacies of UX design, offering invaluable insights and support every step of the way. Her skills truly helped me grow, from understanding component designs and creating awesome features to transforming our app. I am forever grateful I got to work with such an excellent partner to create such a beautiful project.

This journey reignited my passion for UX design and reaffirmed my commitment to creating meaningful experiences for users. I’m excited to continue this journey of learning and exploration, armed with newfound knowledge and enthusiasm.