SB2: Module Evaluation

Overall, I though that this module fast, especially with the first brief being done in about 2 weeks I felt that it was really short and therefore feel like the amount of work I did for that brief was a bit rushed in a way. Although, I was quite invested in it as it was something that I'm personally participating in therefore I knew the most about the subject, it led me to do quite a bit of research. Though it did seem a bit rushed I am happy with my outcome, however the only thing I was disappointed about was how it was presented in the exhibition. As I stated in my blogs before, it was intended to be stuck on the wall along with the feet stickers on the floor, it may be because there weren't room or it's initially showcasing the first year's work but I thought that the point of the map kind of became redundant and didn't work as effectively as I wanted it to be.

For SB2, I was initially very confused with which part of social media I wanted to focus on. I thought I was focused when I wanted to do it on 'multiple identities' however after the initial crit, I realised that it was too vague and wasn't really answering a problem, and this was the main thing that I struggled with. Throughout the brief I went back and forth with my ideas that I felt like I was in this rabbit hole of vague ideas. However, through peer crits and more focused researched I did manage to pull through and I think that my outcome is quite effective. I am satisfied with it but if I was to develop it further it could be more polished than it already is. All in all though it was a really short module, I think I did alright in the amount of time that we had for each module and was a good module to end the year with.

SB2: Final Outcome

This is the final outcome of the application after the amendments that I made after the audience testings. I think from the testings I've gathered the the app is quite useful and successful in giving awareness to the problem of social media to the audience as well as successful design wise with the layout and navigation that I created for it.

I named the app 'The Attention Economy' as I thought it was a great description of the concept that I'm dealing with. It can mean attention as in the prolonged attention to social media and the attention that users get from it e.g. likes, comments. However, I also thought some users may not get the phrase initially as it is quite vague in itself, so I added a sub heading 'are you trapped in social media' to highlight the concept.

I think that my usage of the design elements are quite effective as they highlight the content very well and do not distract the audiences. As well as that it's simplicity makes it look visually appealing to look at especially when viewed from a phone. I made sure the text weren't too small or too big in order for it to not look too awkward, but also for it to be legible enough.

Content wise, I did struggle on how I would communicate the problem therefore I also struggled with the structure of the features I wanted to include. I thought starting with a very universal and simple element like colour would be effective in order to introduce the content to the audience, but also it gives them the opportunity from the beginning to interact with the app itself. From then on I focused on two apps which were the most used by my target audience (Instagram and Youtube) *with Youtube having a different theme and purpose, though still very socially connected. I decided that it'd be best to use the instagram layout and navigation in order to showcase the features as it not only visualises it for the audience first hand, but it also gives me the chance to have a clear structure of design features to follow. Furthermore, I highlighted the features to the audience alongside the narrative content, making it seem like a conversation where the audiences are being talked to and made realise the effects of the features as they are using it. I thought this was successful, as it from my test, the audience actually felt emotions like feeling guilt or surprised.

Overall, I think I'm quite satisfied with how the app turned out. I did had a result in which it worked just like how I wanted it to be communicated and understood and design wise I'm satisfied with how I have structured and laid out the elements. Although, I did struggle to find the overarching theme in the beginning which slowed me down a bit and made me panic I think I managed to do it in the end. The only thing I'm disappointed about it the fact that I couldn't manage to put audio on the prototype as Adobe XD is limited when it comes to it's features, I thought sound would've elevated the app and made it seem more realistic however I struggled in this area, if I was to develop this app further I would incorporated external softwares that will allow me to do this feature such as After Effects.

SB2: Testing App on Target Audience

From my app development I realised that I linked some of the artboards wrong thus missing some features e.g. the 'Like' (Hyper positivity) feature on the development, I have now changed it so all the features are shown and decided to test in on my target audiences.

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1PjhYcuUMgPdd8c4q2aMxo14D15IUZhuu?usp=sharing

Feedback from audience:

• Kind of easy to navigate 
• Some bits are a bit tricky to move like the filters on Instagram
• Some writing are too fast and can't be read properly - feels like I'm in a hurry to read them
• Makes me feel kind of guilty - like 'i knew all those colours to their apps'
• The loading screen was really effective, made me realise how impatient I've become.
• It looks really nice, especially when viewed from a phone screen 

Overall, I think the app is quite effective as it has evoked some emotions and realisations from the audience which I think successfully gave them awareness of the problem in some way. I did go through the app again and did feel like some were too fast and may be hard to read therefore I will change the time speed on those. I will also change the navigation on the filters as when I was observing the people that were trying the app they did particularly struggle to navigation that section. All in all, I think it was gave me good results and an outcome that I wanted.

SB2: Where It'll be Advertised and Acquired by Audiences

I thought as initial advertisements for the app, I need to advertise it on platforms that are frequently used by my target audience. According to my survey Instagram and Snapchat are most frequently used by them, therefore I decided it be best if I create snippets of the app catered to those apps. As ironic it may sound, as my app is design to bring awareness on social media procrastination, they are the most suitable advertising platforms as it does not only get to the audience directly, can also be shared through those apps making more people aware of it and hopefully try the app. It also widens it's audience reach targeting audiences that may not be not be necessarily the target audience of the app. 

SB2: App Development

(artboards)

(how it works)

After deciding to change the direction of my app, this is the current development process that I am in right now. 

Design

Design wise the aesthetic of the app completely changed from the coloured gradient. I realised that maybe have a simple monochromatic background would make the content stand out more and does not distract the audience, especially when the prototype transitions to the apps functions. 

The type that I used is also quit simplistic and modern at the same time. It's quite sleek but not too sharp which makes it look quite playful and approachable which I think is appropriate for an informative but funny/ironic app. I think it's also a typeface which my target audience would like to read and would be entice for them to keep reading on. I also constricted my use of the type family to two styles: Transat Text Medium and Transat Text Light Oblique and with type sizes constricted to three sizes: Title (49 pt.), Body Text (24 pt and 20 pt). I think that by using a limited set of type and styles within the type family has made the app very consistent and easy to follow along as there's a strict and recognisable pattern to the hierarchy of information. In addition, I have particularly, used the italic style in order to put emphasis on certain words to project a different tone of voice to the audience especially as the phrases were written as if they were spoken; and i wanted to portray this using stylised type. I also added some images to evoke more emotions for some phrases making them more effective and engaging, especially with images that the target audience can relate with better and evoke the same expression that i'm trying to get from the audience making it more relatable as well. 

Features

• Splash Screen - From my research most apps have a splash screen which evokes a similar tone to the 'slot machine' feature that app designers imply in there designs. It's effective in making audience expect something when they open the app. I added this feature in the design as I wanted to create a similar tone with making the audience anticipate what they're going to read. I thought it'd be more effective as well when accompanied with a question along with the title (The Attention Economy) which is (are you trapped in social media?) to already make them anticipate something about social media but they don't exactly know what specifics). 
• Drag Motion - For most of the 'informative' part of the design where the audience have to read I used the drag motion as I thought it mimics how reading a book would feel like and flowed better with human touches on touch screens. 
• Tap Motion - I thought of giving the drag and tap motion distinct difference by only using the tap motion for the app prototype simulations. Doing this not only mimics the motions used for the actual apps but also indicates to the audience the different ways of taking in information as they are absorbing information by reading with the drag motion but they become more active and physical when in comes to using the tap motion
• Narrative style - The writing content has been written in a quite narrative and casual style to appeal and to be in the same level to the target demographic. It also sounds more approachable which I thought would be effective in making the audience properly invested in the app and absorb the content better. 
• Some Interactive features - Through the narrative I also added some interactive features such as the 'social media colour feature' (*Spending lots of time online, you can probably tell which blue is for which app) where the audience can 'confirm' or 'correct' themselves whether or not they actually which colour is for which social media. Having this interactivity well give the information a more impactful outcome as it either question or confirm the audiences' initial thought and answer, making it more personal to them. I've used this multiple times in the design making it really consistent and continually addressing the audience to make it more personal and affect them in some type of way. 
• Addictive features - From my research I've found that there are certain app design features which makes apps more addictive and increases tine displacement on them. I've aded features such as:
• Infinite scrolling - Feature which allows users to endlessly go through content making them spend hours on the app without realising.
• The 'slot machine' technique or 'loading bar' - This mimics the slot machine logic of having the anticipation of getting rewarded with something unexpected every time making it exciting and intriguing every time a users drag this bars new content arose each time. 
• Notification - Notification sounds, images, alerts which automatically make users check their phone and eventually make them stay using it for a prolonged period of time. 
• 'Like' button - Gives users confirmation that they're doing something right, acceptance in society, dopamine, which may make them want to post more in order to constantly get the same reaction.
• Multiple accounts - Allows users to tailor their content, activity etc. on each account. Allows them to have multiple identities which they can use in various ways.
• Filters - Allows users to edit photos or content making it look more aesthetically pleasing when posted. Makes them feel more creative and feel like their content has become more pleasing to look.
• Automatic video play - Less navigation for users, makes them feel lazy but also makes them continue absorbing content on end as it's automatically done for them. 

*I presented these features in very engaging and interactive ways by prototyping how they are used in certain apps, particularly Instagram and Youtube (as I've found through my survey that these apps where the ones used by my target demographic). I've not only prototype how they are being used but I've integrated them into the written content in a more suggestive way that it makes the audience their purpose and how they are affected by it, through asking a question revolving the feature or using phrases which makes them aware of the action that they are doing.

Thoughts & Reflection:

I think that the design should be effective in spreading awareness towards the features that make young adults addictive and procrastinate on social media app, as it literally shows them the features, as they might not be ware that they actually are part of a design strategy to keep them wanting to use these apps. In addition, I also think that as I because I used a more direct and narrative approach that it kind of become quite comical and ironic, as it's an app which makes you not want to use apps, which I think may be effective as the satiric aspect makes it more impactful and worth reading more. 

Although, I did have some struggles as to how I should end the app, Jocel suggested it should be a bit 'self destructing' as the point is to make audiences stop using social media it should suggest at the end to delete the app or stop using you phone altogether. I thought this would be effective therefore I implemented it on the design.

In order to see if the design is effective, I'm planning on testing in on some peers to see what they think about it and how it affects them, content wise and navigation wise to see if I should make further changes for my final outcome.

SB2: Initial App Sketches

Initially, I wanted a simple structure to the quiz which I thought would be effective and successful in drawing people in.

• Easy to Hard questions
• Limit to 2 maximum answer choices
• Maximum 10 questions

I also started sketch out how the app will be navigated and rough ideas of what info is going to be on each frame and layout. From the Adobe quiz I thought the circle indicators was really effective as it lets audience know how long they have left for the rest of the questions I also thought of maybe transitioning the questions like an infinite scrolling feature; kind of like juxtaposing the indicators but at the same time give a similar feeling as to when audiences use apps like Instagram or Twitter

(insert notebook sketch)

So I started to create the app on XD, and I decided to choose a blue and yellow gradient colour which I thought was a good balanced colour palette as it's quite neutral as well as has a very informative and fun tones to it, which reflects my intentions into what I'd like the app to showcase. 

However, as I was continuing with it, I got really stuck with the rest of the questions. I also struggled with how I could make it really fun and worth to do for the audience. And I felt it was really hard to pinpoint questions that audiences would not know about already. (Although, the point of the quiz was to get them to realise their own 'addictiveness', I questioned myself whether a quiz was really he best way communicate this, as audiences may actually get bored of it because they already know answer). 

Also, I think as I was trying to develop my app, naturally it started to change as instead of questions, I started to write in sentences and phrases instead which made it sound more of a narrative or story, and it was then that I started to make better progress with the app and actually flushed out more ideas on how I could execute the ideas that I formed before in order to communicate them successfully to the audience. So naturally, I decided to change my design from a quiz app, to a more narrative 'story' like app.