ScreenCoach is a platform with the aim of helping parents manage and monitor their children’s electronic device usage. The founders, Peter, Gary, and Steph, saw a significant opportunity to create a product that assists children and families in regaining balance and leading healthier and happier lives. They partnered, recruited investors, and each week their idea moved closer to commercial success. The primary goal is to establish a better balance between screen activities and other activities, minimize the negative effects of excessive screen time, and provide incentives and rewards to children for positive behavior.

My journey with ScreenCoach began with an initial concept that needed improvement. Despite having successfully obtained significant funding, they realized that the initial concept needed a makeover to achieve the desired success. Some of their key primary goals in revamping the initial ScreenCoach MVP (Minimum Viable Product) include:

1. Enhancing User Experience:
   Ensuring that the app provides a better, more intuitive, and easier-to-use experience for both parents and children.
2. Concept Optimization:
   Transforming and refining the initial concept to better align with market needs and be more effective in achieving the goal of managing device usage.
3. Strengthening Core Functions:
   Focusing on core functions that help parents better manage children’s screen time, such as setting time limits and rewarding positive behavior.
4. Improving Monitoring Tools:
   Ensuring that monitoring tools provided to parents can offer more accurate and detailed information about children’s device usage.
5. Supporting Family Growth:
   Adapting their solution to support the growth of children from toddlers to teenagers, thus remaining relevant as children develop.
6. Emphasizing Balance and Health:
   Realigning the focus to emphasize the balance between screen time and other activities, as well as promoting the physical and mental health of children.
7. Expanding Functionality Scope:
   Exploring possibilities to expand functionality, including considering advanced features that can enhance the user experience.

In summary, ScreenCoach aims to address the concerning issue of screen addiction in children by providing a user-friendly platform that empowers parents and helps children achieve a healthier balance between screen time and other activities.

In an effort to achieve the improvement and development goals of the ScreenCoach application, Peter Kakris, one of the ScreenCoach founders, decided to collaborate with Jackson Beale to work together in enhancing the existing Minimum Viable Product (MVP). I became involved in this project through Jackson Beale, who is a friend of mine.

In assisting them in achieving these goals, we applied a User-Centered Design approach, which focuses on the needs and preferences of end users. We conducted a series of design sprints, which are structured and intensive design processes, to design, test, and iterate solutions that would provide maximum usability and benefits to end users. This approach allowed us to achieve better results that are more aligned with the needs and expectations of ScreenCoach app users.

I conducted a workshop with the JB/UXD team and the ScreenCoach team to accurately understand their issues and determine their goals. We discussed what success metrics they were hoping for and talked about the timeline.

The ScreenCoach team decided to revamp their Minimum Viable Product (MVP) due to several crucial factors, such as:

1. Initial Concept Failure:
   The original MVP concept did not meet expectations or was ineffective in achieving their desired goals. There may have been a gap between the initial concept and the actual user experience.
2. User Feedback:
   Feedback from early users indicated confusion or dissatisfaction with the existing application or tools. This feedback served as a vital indicator for guiding improvements and enhancements.
3. Market and Technology Developments:
   They realized that the market and technology were constantly evolving. They wanted to ensure their application remained relevant and met user expectations by updating their solution to align with these advancements.
4. Additional Financial Support:
   Securing significant funding provided the ScreenCoach team with sufficient additional resources to make significant changes to their product. This presented an opportunity to enhance the quality and performance of the product.
5. Increased Competition:
   The team was aware of intensifying competition in the market. Through the revamp, they aimed to ensure their product remained competitive and delivered added value to both parents and children.
6. Clarified Objectives:
   The ScreenCoach team reevaluated their objectives and recognized that the revamp was necessary to more effectively achieve their vision and goals of helping parents manage their children’s screen time more effectively.

In addition, the ScreenCoach team had highly ambitious long-term goals. They planned to achieve several targets within 12 months of the launch:

1. 1,000 Family Sales:
   The ScreenCoach team hoped to sell their product to at least 1,000 families within a 12-month period. This demonstrated their commitment to expanding the product’s reach and assisting more parents in managing their children’s device usage.
2. NPS (Net Promoter Score) of 60:
   They were also committed to achieving an NPS of 60. NPS is a customer satisfaction measure that reflects the extent to which customers are willing to recommend a product or service to others. A score of 60 indicated a high level of customer satisfaction among their clients.

During the workshop, we also discussed the project timeline, and we agreed on a 2-month timeframe for project completion.

To understand the problem and identify the most significant challenges, Jackson, Clara, and I, along with the Screen Coach team, dissected their previous research data. From there, I grasped the issue of screen addiction and its causes.

Frustrations experienced by parents include:

• Lack of Activity Balance
  Parents feel frustrated seeing their children struggle to balance their screen time with other activities such as studying, sports, or social interactions. This can affect a child’s holistic development.
• Disruption of Sleep Patterns
  Screen addiction can disrupt children’s sleep patterns, subsequently affecting their physical and mental health. Parents worry about their children experiencing sleep disturbances due to excessive device usage.
• Negative Impact on Eye Health
  Excessive screen device use can lead to eye strain and vision problems in children. Parents are concerned about the long-term effects on their children’s eye health.
• Inappropriate Content Exposure
  Parents are worried that their children may be exposed to age-inappropriate content that could influence their moral and ethical development. Managing and restricting access to suitable content is a primary concern.
• Reduction in Physical Activity
  Screen-addicted children tend to spend less time on physical activities, which can have a negative impact on their physical health and weight. Parents are concerned about their children adopting unhealthy lifestyles.
• Lack of Focus on Schoolwork
  Children addicted to screens may struggle to concentrate on their schoolwork, which can affect their academic performance.
• Difficulty in Controlling Screen Time
  Parents often find it challenging to control and limit their children’s screen time, which can be a source of frustration as children insist on more screen time.

In addition to understanding the frustrations parents experience, I also explored why children become addicted to screens:

• Attraction and Engagement
  Modern technology is designed to attract and engage children. Games, apps, and online content offer captivating and entertaining experiences, making it difficult for children to detach from their devices.
• Social Importance and Peer Pressure
  Children want to stay connected with their friends and engage in activities that are popular among their peers. As most social interactions now occur online, children feel pressure to remain engaged in the digital world.
• Lack of Supervision and Boundaries
  Insufficient parental supervision or unclear boundaries can enable children to use devices for longer and more frequently than they should.
• Comfort and Habit
  Children feel comfortable and have formed habits with technology, using it as a coping mechanism for boredom or stress. This creates addiction and reluctance to change behavior patterns.
• Lack of Engaging Alternatives
  If appealing and beneficial alternative activities are unavailable, children are more likely to return to their devices as their primary source of entertainment and activity.
• Digital Behavioral Disorders
  Some children may develop digital behavioral disorders, making it difficult for them to limit or control device usage.

Regarding the shortcomings of the current MVP design of Screen Coach:

• Not Intuitive and User-Unfriendly
  A complex user interface hampers effectiveness and reduces the product’s appeal.
• Initial Concept Failure but Needed
  While the initial concept attempted to address real issues, its failure indicates the need for a better solution.
• Not Ready for Launch
  The MVP still requires improvements to meet the expected level of quality before launch.

The negative impacts on the Screen Coach business include:

• Lack of Solutions and Investor Confidence
  If the MVP does not offer an adequate solution, investors may hesitate to invest significantly, hindering Screen Coach’s business growth.
• High Post-Launch Improvement Costs
  Rectifying an inadequate concept after launch incurs high costs, including redevelopment, additional testing, and adjustments based on user feedback.
• Lack of End User Interest
  A challenging-to-use and unappealing interface can lead to a lack of interest among end users, including both parents and children, potentially impeding market growth and product adoption.

Using behavioral data from Screen Coach, I created a User Journey Map that allowed me to provide a better explanation to the team about each step users take. From this journey map, I also identified issues to be addressed at each usage stage. Furthermore, we assessed areas with high risks and gave special attention to high-priority challenges.

To stimulate creative and solution-oriented ideas, I set sprint questions for us to answer with solutions, which were:

• Can we deliver to the level of quality that’s required to reach our goal?
• Can we reach our goal with the funding we know we have available?
• Can we ensure that our cost of acquisition isn’t too high to reach 1000 Carlys and Patricias?
• Can we validate the device install process is as simple as the onboarding process and not a blocker?
• Can we validate that Carly will make the system a part of her daily routine for the time it takes to make it stick?
• Can we validate that customers want to set up advanced features up front, bypassing the simple onboarding process?

I began by establishing core values such as health, education, positive parenting, and empowering technology. A strong and consistent message was then crafted, supported by branding elements like the logo, colors, and compelling narrative. I continuously evaluated audience and stakeholder responses to ensure the success of the Screen Coach branding campaign. With this approach, I aimed to build a strong identity for ScreenCoach as the “True Superhero Improving Australia’s Future.”

I generated numerous solution concepts and aligned on the best approach to test. During this sprint, I comprehensively understood the problem from various angles, strengthening my fundamental understanding of this project. I created primary scenarios performed by personas representing both parents and children, which I detailed using clearer user flows based on the previous journey map.

I defined starting points or goals for each persona, ideas to assist the persona in achieving their goals, graphics, text to be displayed, and even sketched solutions for each of these flows.

In the mission to improve the overall experience of the previous MVP and transform it into a sustainably scalable MVP with a significantly better user experience, some solutions I’d like to highlight include:

• Onboarding Video
  This video offers detailed guidance to users about the app’s features, providing a clear picture of what to expect from ScreenCoach.
• Landing Page & Welcome Screen
  This page conveys a message to parents about how to address their child’s screen addiction, encouraging them to sign up, log in, and start using the app.
• Configure Account
  This step is essential for setting up the account and preferences, ensuring a personalized experience for each family.
• First Activity
  Parents can designate the first activity for their children, such as homework or chores. This gives parents control over screen time management.
• Complete/Not Complete Activity
  Parents can approve or disapprove of activities completed by their children, allowing them to monitor and provide positive feedback.
• Help Us Learn More About Simon
  This helps parents provide essential information about their child, aiding the app in giving better recommendations.
• Convert Tokens to Screen Time
  Screen time rewards can be given to children for completing tasks, offering positive incentives for good behavior.
• Convert Tokens to Screen Pocket Money
  This system enables parents to give pocket money to children as a reward for completed tasks.
• Dashboard
  The dashboard grants full control to parents for managing their children’s activities, providing rewards, and tracking progress.
• Set Activity & Reward
  Parents can determine activities and rewards for their children as a form of recognition, helping create positive routines.
• Simon Dashboard
  A dedicated dashboard for children offers them insights into tasks they need to complete to earn screen time or pocket money and allows them to monitor tasks approved by parents.
• Creating a Pin for Simon
  Creating a PIN is a crucial step to secure a child’s access to the app and prevent unsupervised usage.
• Bonus
  This page informs children that they receive bonuses for completed tasks that have been approved by parents.

The rationale behind these solutions is to create a transparent and engaging system to guide parents in managing their children’s screen time by providing incentives aligned with positive behavior. Additionally, it ensures that children can clearly see and understand their progress, encouraging active participation in the program.

I incorporated all these solutions, including the ones mentioned above, into a high-fidelity interactive prototype.

I tested the prototype with 11 target users to validate the solution ideas with the following user demographics:

• Aged approximately 30-45 years
• Have at least one child aged 8-12 who spends too much time on screens
• Available for a 45-60 minute online interview on Tuesday, April 13th, or Wednesday, April 14th (day and evening time slots available)
• Reside in Australia
• Parent to a child who regularly uses at least 3 of the following devices: smartphone, iPad/tablet, PC/Mac, laptop, gaming console (e.g., Playstation, Xbox), or TV.

Following testing, I gathered diverse feedback from our audience, which revealed both positive and constructive aspects of the Screen Coach App:

• Onboarding Page:
  Success: Users appreciated the detailed information provided by the onboarding video.
  Positive Feedback: Users liked the colors, icons, graphics, and overall information presented, which gave them a clear overview of Screen Coach features.
  Areas for Improvement: Some users found that certain frames in the video moved too quickly, hindering their ability to absorb all the information. More information before installation was also desired.

• Landing Page & Welcome Screen:
  Achievements: Users were pleased with the visual design, characters, graphics, and color schemes on the landing page.
  Favorites: Jerry the little monster and Supermom characters were favored, making the app more relevant and neutral.
  Positive Impressions: Users expressed a positive emotional connection with these elements.

• Configure Account:
  Positive Engagement: Users generally had no issues entering their names and their children’s names into the system.
  Additional Child Information: Many users inquired about adding more than one child, suggesting this information could be made more prominent.
  Challenges with Screen Time Data: Some users found it challenging to enter weekday and weekend screen time data, indicating room for improvement.

• First Activity:
  Success: Default activities were well-received, with “do the chore” being a popular choice among parents.
  Interest in Custom Activities: Users expressed a strong interest in trying out the “custom activities” feature, highlighting its potential.
  Confidence in App: Users felt confident using the app and were eager to explore its features further.

• Complete/Not Complete Activity:
  User Control and Clarity: Users raised questions about how their kids could create and approve their own activities and sought clarity on the conversion between tokens and screen time.

• Help Us Learn More about Simon:
  Positive Intentions: Users expressed a desire to introduce the app to their kids, emphasizing a positive intention.
  Concerns with Character: One user expressed concern that older kids might find one of the characters too childish, suggesting a need for broader appeal.

• Convert Tokens to Screen Time:
  Positive Response: Users enthusiastically embraced the option to convert tokens into screen time, indicating a high level of trust in the app.
  Conversion Clarity: Some users requested clearer information regarding the token-to-screen-time conversion.

• Convert Tokens to Screen Pocket Money:
  Interest in Pocket Money: Users liked the pocket money reward, showing enthusiasm for its inclusion.
  Clarification Needed: Some users sought more information on how the pocket money feature functioned.

• Dashboard:
  Understanding and Functionality: Users understood the dashboard’s functions but had questions about the symbols/icons, suggesting the need for clearer visual cues.
  Desire for Continuation: Most users expressed a desire to proceed to the next steps, indicating their engagement with the app.

• Set Activity & Reward:
  Positive User Experience: Users generally loved the interface and experience but were unaware that the tooltip was clickable.
  Simplification Request: One user suggested simplifying the token-to-screen-time conversion for easier understanding.

• Simon Dashboard:
  User-Friendly: Users found the app easy to use and engaging, but there were concerns about the size of icons under the profile picture.
  Visual Improvement: A user recommended making the interface more visually appealing for kids.

• Creating a Pin for Simon:
  Privacy Assurance: Most users appreciated the privacy aspect of creating a PIN for their kids.
  Concerns Addressed: Some users expressed concerns about PIN management, while one user mentioned needing to assist her young child with this process.

• Bonus:
  Positive Reception: All users who tried the bonus screen enjoyed it, indicating a successful feature.

In summary, the testing process provided valuable insights, including positive feedback and areas for improvement. The Screen Coach App received positive engagement and user interest, and feedback will be used to enhance user experience and clarity in the upcoming version.

From the results obtained, I made revisions by comparing value vs effort and provided Recommendation version 2 to be launched on the market by making improvements that were considered based on value and effort considering that this is an MVP design that must be launched immediately.

Results for Users and Business After successfully revamping the Screen Coach MVP, here are the outcomes and impacts from various perspectives, both for the Screen Coach business and its users:

1. Media Attention
   Screen Coach garnered media attention at both national and international levels, contributing to increased popularity and visibility of the application.
2. User Registrations
   More than 2,500 people enthusiastically registered for the beta version after the revamp. Before the launch, 733 users were already registered.
3. Investor and User Trust
   Investors and users had increased confidence in the application following the revamp.
4. Improved User Satisfaction
   Users, including parents and children, expressed greater satisfaction with the application’s user experience. They felt more assisted in addressing screen addiction issues.
5. Achievement of Project Goals
   The project successfully achieved most of its initial objectives.
6. Better Family Relationships
   The updated application strengthened the relationships between parents and children. The use of the application became more positive and collaborative, enhancing family communication.
7. Improved Child Discipline
   Children became more disciplined in completing tasks and activities assigned by their parents. They understood the value of good behavior through rewards and incentives.
8. Increased Awareness
   Children became more aware of the time they spent on screens and the positive impact of real-world activities.

In summary, the Screen Coach revamp successfully garnered media attention, increased the user base, improved user satisfaction, and had a positive impact on family relationships, child discipline, and screen usage awareness.

I’m delighted to have been involved in working on this Screen Coach project, where I could contribute to the well-being of children and parents in Australia in addressing the screen addiction crisis.