Led UX strategy including persona definition, journey mapping, and onboarding redesign, improving user retention by 30% and engagement through simplified behavioural UX flows
The Client:
Abu Dhabi Sports Council
Duration:
2-4 Months
Location:
Abu Dhabi, UAE
Context &
my role:
Is a government-backed wellness initiative to get residents more active through one mobile platform (fitness content, challenges, tracking). I led the UX strategy for [User interviews->Cross team Collab->Documentation->User flow diagrams->Low fidelity wireframe->Brand designs system->Final UI->Recurring user interviews] — owning persona definition, journey mapping, and the onboarding redesign, partnering with the PM and engineering on scope.
The
Problem:
New users signed up but didn't come back because the onboarding took 9 steps and 20-40% dropped before completing a profile. The platform needed people to build a habit, but the first run asked for too much, too early, with no reason to return.
Constraints
& Goals:
A government stakeholder brief with fixed brand + content rules. iOS, Android, Web and Tablet compatible was needed / 2-4 months of timeline / localization, e.g. Arabic + English, accessibility was also needed and the metric I was held to: 30-day retention.
Process:
1. Research: Conducted virtual user interviews using client's network (Approx. 100+ users), Did a drop-off analytics, competitor teardown, QnA preparation. Key insight: Users needed a feel 'first win' within 60 seconds, not a long profile setup.
2. Journey mapping & personas: mapped current onboarding, found the highest-drop steps; built 50+ personas to align stakeholders.
3. Redesign & iteration: Deferred profile setup, led with one guided activity, personalised by goal, prototyped and tested with 100+ users / iterated over n sprints.
4. What I killed: Since I had access to 100+ users so I was able to identify problems easily and resolve it so that we get the best results
Decisions &
trade-offs:
The pivotal call: I cut the mandatory profile from onboarding, trading day-1 personalisation for a far lower barrier to the first activity — we accepted thinner initial data to get users to their first win faster. I made that call because we had achieve the retention goal of over 30%+
Outcome &
reflection:
+30% 30-day retention via a rebuilt onboarding and simplified behavioural flows. Source: Admin panel of client
