mobile-first website for remote group therapy
Wisdom Circles with Nina Be
overview
Nina Be
Nina Be is a visionary. Professionally, she is an intuitive yoga therapist and mental health professional who specializes in transforming trauma. She describes herself as a spiritual teacher who is devoted to the cultural awakening of the world; someone who facilitates conscious awareness and presence so that each one of us can hold our life processes with strength and an interest in growing together. People that know her call her “magic.”
Wisdom Circles
Nina created the Wisdom circles as an alternative to traditional group therapy, for female-identifying individuals who have experienced trauma based on a model that does not, in Nina’s words, “pathologize any of the ways a person needs to feel in order to be in their life.” Wisdom Circles are safe spaces for reflection and discovery that address the ways that trauma manifests and explores how it can be relieved. Her 10 Promises curriculum gently guides users through layers of self-realization. The power of the group sitting together offering kindness and care creates mutual trust, respect and healing. Before the Covid-19 Pandemic, these groups met once a week in person, and participants were given handouts of the curriculum and additional exercises to work on in between classes.
challenge
Since moving the circles to an online format Nina has been challenged to transition into the remote environment. Nina has had trouble keeping things organized, and difficulties in getting course materials to participants, keeping participants engaged in between classes and creating the necessary connection between the group participants that is vital in this work.
Additionally, Nina be was convinced that she needed an app...ASAP.
goals
Nina Be
The Wisdom Circles are just one of many projects she is working on, and the preparation and follow-up of conducting them remotely are more time-consuming than when they were in person, so she is looking for ways to save time and energy. She also wants to increase her reach to a broader audience.
Wisdom Circle Participants
In our user interviews, we frequently heard that users missed being in the physical space of the circle because of how much possibility was there - beyond the guided class time there was all of the surrounding space to relax and communicate. With the wisdom circles limited to zoom classes, none of that peripheral communication and coexistence can happen.
Our user interviews involved participants in Nina’s Wisdom Circles as well as other similar programs, and there was a common theme of participants getting involved and staying engaged because of the interactions with and the energy of their teacher.
solution
In order to address the needs of stakeholder and participants, we recommended a mobile-first website puts Nina Be in your pocket. It includes the text and video content for the Wisdom Circles and a bootstrapped, single sign-on dashboard interface that includes all of the applications used for the Wisdom Circles. Nina Be is sprinkled throughout through video, audio, motivational messages and micro-interactions—supplementing and supporting the relationship she has with wisdom circle participants.
methods
Competitive Audit
Stakeholder Interview
User Interviews
Expert Interviews
Secondary Research
Card Sorting Survey
Rapid Prototyping
User Journey Map
Sitemaps
Wireframes
Prototypes
Usability Testing
tools
UserBit App
TeamGantt
Google Docs/Sheets/Slides
Zoom
Otter.ai
Figma
Photoshop
Illustrator
journey
Nina Be Wants an App
As you know by now, our journey took several twists and turns. It began with Nina who wanted an app that included all the elements in her vast and ever-changing galaxy of content.
Comparative Analysis
A comparative analysis revealed that the most successful apps in this space do one thing really well. Nina wanted it to do ALL the things which would lead to app bloat. Also, none try to bottle the magic of the teacher in a way we thought was necessary in Nina’s case.
Lots of Interviews
To help us focus on the most important needs first, we interviewed past participants of Nina’s Wisdom Circles, people who have experienced similar groups and more traditional therapists currently conducting group therapy remotely. We were able to get insight into the benefits and pain points and what tools and apps work well. They all thought an app would be an ideal solution.
Interviews and Card Sorting Survey
A card sorting survey revealed that users wanted on-demand and up-to-date access to audio, video and written content presented in Nina’s unique style.
Talked with UX Experts and Developers
We still had Nina’s voice in our heads about wanting an app, but after conducting interviews with UX mobile experts and developers, we were certain that an app was too small and inflexible for Nina’s needs.
Mobile-First Site
So as you know, we landed on a mobile-first website as the first part of phase one. After Nina has had time to refine her remote Wisdom Circle program over the next year, we would like to revisit her digital solutions.
Everybody's invited everybody has kindness, everybody has purity, everybody has the capacity to share, everybody has the divine, everybody has the sacred.
—Nina Be
You come to this because you want it. So Slack is not a barrier for me. If you told me I had to go through Google that's not a barrier for me. I'll figure it out because I want the information.
—David
recommendation
Highlights of the Mobile-First Website
By helping users create a widget on their phones, the site kicks off the app-like experience.
New users are greeted with a welcome screen that includes a message from Nina. The onboarding tour takes them to a dashboard where they can review all of the information they need to before the Wisdom Circle begins.
Returning users are welcomed back and greeted with a new Nina quote each time they visit. They can now access the Resource Dashboard which includes 10 Promises content including a workbook and videos of Nina explaining each promise and the Yoga Nidra and meditations Nina uses during class. Microinteractions help motivate users to continue with their practice.
Wisdom Circle App Hub goes to the Okta dashboard. The single sign-on dashboard gives quick access to all of the apps used and fulfills the users’ needs to avoid having to log in multiple times. It also allows Nina to add or delete other apps that might prove to be useful in the future
They can easily log in to the Zoom Classroom, use Slack for connecting with other participants between classes, access Google Drive for class materials and go to Youtube to access all of Nina’s videos between classes
presentation
next steps
Next we would like to continue with Phase 1. We plan on working with Nina’s marketing person to create the mobile-first site and desktop site.
Phase 2 currently includes a digital audit of her many and ever-growing touchpoints to develop a design strategy
Phase 3 would involve starting to connect all the digital dots or help her with her latest brainchild…