Fetch
Fetch is a time management app designed for college students that makes staying organized and productive is more than just checking off tasks—it's about nurturing your own adorable digital pet. Every assignment completed, every study session conquered, and every to-do list item ticked off directly benefits the health and happiness of your cute virtual companion.
Improve time management for college students in a fun way
Goal
Role
UX Researcher & Designer
Many factors and emotions involved in time management and motivation techniques
Challenge
Research
Statement of intent
Our perception of time is heavily impacted by our usage of technology. High phone usage can potentially lead to negative impacts on your mental health, and increased procrastination. Can we provide students with incentives to reduce their screen time and be more productive in their classes and in life in general?
User interviews
Methodology
Five 1:1 in-person interviews
Current college students aged 18-21 and in college during COVID
Participant screening
What are the biggest challenges you face in staying organized and managing your time effectively?
How did the shift to online or hybrid learning during COVID-19 impact your task management habits?
How do you reward yourself for completing important tasks or achieving your goal?
What motivates you to complete your tasks and stay organized?
Sample questions
Empathy map based off responses
How might we…
POV Statement:
Technology influences us to waste our time and be less productive for especially college students
How might we make doing mundane tasks fun?
How might we help users decrease their phone usage?
How might we improve phone users’ mental health?
Garden theme/ reward-based app
Each social media app is a weed, time spent on app = size of weed, good plants grow when tasks complete (visual based reward)
Task lists (comparing tasks completed with app usage)
Social page that connects you to people with similar interest/ are near you
Partner with businesses, task completion rewards gives you discounts to local places
Positive/motivational notifications through the day, encouraging task completion
User personas
Emilia Johnson
Age: 19
Major: Psychology
Year: Sophomore
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Emily is a junior majoring in Psychology at a large state university. She experienced her freshman year primarily through online learning due to the COVID-19 pandemic. She is involved in several extracurricular activities, including the Psychology Club and a volunteer organization.
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Emily aims to stay organized and manage her time effectively between classes, extracurricular activities, and part-time work. She seeks to maintain a healthy balance between her academic responsibilities and social life. Additionally, she is looking for ways to find motivation to stay on top of her assignments and study sessions.
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Emily struggles with procrastination and often feels overwhelmed by the number of tasks she needs to complete. She finds it difficult to maintain a consistent routine, especially with the shift back to in-person classes. She needs a more engaging and motivating way to manage her tasks and deadlines.
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Emily regularly uses her smartphone and laptop for both academic and personal activities. She currently uses a basic to-do list app and the calendar app on her phone but finds them uninspiring.
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Emily is highly motivated but easily distracted. She enjoys socializing and engaging in activities that provide a sense of accomplishment. She loves animals and has a pet cat at home.
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Emily is motivated by rewards and enjoys activities that provide a sense of progress and achievement. She finds the idea of caring for a digital pet appealing and believes it could help her stay engaged with her task management.
Alex Martinez
Age: 21
Major: Computer Science
Year: Senior
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Alex is a senior studying Computer Science at a mid-sized private college. He spent the majority of his junior year attending classes virtually and adapting to remote learning environments. He is a member of the college’s coding club and works part-time as a tutor for introductory programming courses.
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Alex aims to efficiently manage his time to balance coursework, club activities, and his part-time job. He is preparing for post-graduation opportunities, including job applications and interviews. He also wants to reduce stress and maintain a healthy lifestyle while handling his academic workload.
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Alex finds it challenging to keep track of multiple deadlines and often ends up working late nights to meet them. He struggles with staying motivated during long coding sessions or when working on complex projects. He needs a structured yet flexible system to manage his tasks without feeling overwhelmed.
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Alex heavily relies on his laptop for coding, studying, and attending virtual meetings. He uses a combination of productivity apps, including a project management tool and a digital calendar, but feels they lack engagement.
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Alex is detail-oriented and analytical but tends to get absorbed in his work. He enjoys gaming and exploring new technologies in his free time. He prefers a structured approach to managing his tasks but values features that make the process enjoyable.
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Alex is motivated by progress tracking and visual indicators of his accomplishments. He finds the concept of integrating task management with a fun element like caring for a digital pet intriguing, as it aligns with his interest in gaming.
Design
Mid-fidelity frames
Initially, we brainstormed the idea of centering the app around a growing garden. However, we decided to pivot to a personalized digital pet to create a cleaner and more engaging user experience. Animals and pets tend to evoke a stronger emotional response than plants, which we believe will enhance user interaction.
During the mid-fidelity stage, I started designing in Figma. I aimed for a cartoon-like aesthetic to convey a playful, child-like game. To achieve this, I utilized thicker strokes throughout the design.
High-fidelity frames
Building off my mid-fidelity frames, I created high-fidelity wireframes. For the color palette, I chose variations of red, orange, and green to indicate the pet's health. Maintaining the cartoon aesthetic, I used pet illustrations that feel cartoon-like, but didn’t utilize strokes. This contrast allows the components to stand out individually. For the scrollable map, I opted for a style similar to those in Apple or Google Maps, ensuring it functions effectively for every campus.
Reflection
Future plans
Moving forward, I would like to do usability testing on these prototypes and to continue iterating and building more screen that include, user profile set up, messaging friends, and notification center.
Conclusion
The user research phase of this project was the most impactful for me. Through user interviews, I gained deeper insights into creating user-centered designs. User experience design is fundamentally rooted in empathy, and this process underscored that principle. Analyzing interview responses, creating an empathy map, and developing user personas provided me with valuable tools for future projects, ensuring my designs are both usable and impactful.
