Case Study: Tribe Fitness - A User Experience Design Process
Product Designer: Rahul Rathi
Introduction
Tribe Fitness is an e-fitness platform designed to empower boutique studios and local gyms to deliver an interactive and personalized workout experience for their members. It offers an end-to-end solution for creating interactive workouts and producing high-quality digital fitness content. This platform aims to bridge the gap between online and in-studio workout experiences and provide a comprehensive, engaging and personalized workout experience that keeps users active and motivated. This platform will also have a suite of tools for creating and managing interactive workouts, and for producing high-quality digital fitness content. It will have an intuitive and user-friendly interface, making it easy for users to access the workouts and content they need.
The company's goal is to empower boutique studios and local gyms to deliver a digital workout experience that is comparable to that of Peloton and Apple Fitness+. The platform is designed to meet the needs of both boutique studios and local gyms, and to provide an interactive, personalized and engaging experience for their members. The platform will also have a comprehensive suite of tools for creating and managing interactive workouts, and for producing high-quality digital fitness content.
Background
The fitness industry has been rapidly evolving over the past decade, with more and more people turning to digital platforms for their workout needs. However, most digital fitness platforms currently available only offer video streaming, and do not provide the same interactive experience that members would get in a physical gym or studio.
Tribe Fitness recognized this gap in the market and set out to create a platform that could provide an authentic boutique experience to digital workouts. The company's goal was to empower boutique studios and local gyms to deliver a digital workout experience that is comparable to that of Peloton and Apple Fitness+.
During this phase, UX designers brainstormed around the product at the highest level (basically, the concept of the product) with stakeholders. This phase included:
Stakeholder interviews
interviewing key stakeholders to gather insights about business goals.Value proposition mapping: thinking about the key aspects and value propositions of the product: what it is, who will use it, and why they will use it. Value propositions helped the team and stakeholders create consensus around what the product will be and how to match user and business needs.Concept sketching: creating an early mockup of the future product (can be low-fidelity paper sketches of the product’s architecture).
This phase typically ended with a project kick-off meeting. The kick-off meeting brought all the key players together to set proper expectations both for the product team and stakeholders. It covered the high-level outline of the product purpose, team structure (who would design and develop the product), communication channels (how they would work together), and what stakeholders’ expectations were (such as KPIs and how to measure the success of the product).
Research
Once the product definition phase was completed, the product team moved on to the research phase. This phase typically included both user research and market research. The research phase was a crucial investment for the team as it informed design decisions and investing in research early in the process could save a lot of time and money down the road.
This phase included:
Individual in-depth interviews (IDI) with boutique studio owners and gym members to understand their needs and pain points.Focus groups with boutique studio owners and gym members to gather further insights and feedback on the product concept.Competitive analysis of existing digital fitness platforms to understand the current offerings in the market.
Analysis
After conducting extensive research, the team moved on to the analysis phase. During this phase, the team analyzed the data collected from the research phase to identify key insights and pain points. The team also identified opportunities for the product to differentiate itself from existing offerings in the market.
This phase included:
Creating personas to represent the different types of users of the product (boutique studio owners and gym members).Creating user journeys to understand the different scenarios in which the product would be used.Creating a feature matrix to identify which features were important for the product to include.
Design
With the research and analysis phase completed, the team moved on to the design phase. During this phase, the team focused on creating a user-friendly interface that would make it easy for studio owners and members to navigate and use the platform. The team also focused on creating a unique and differentiated experience for users.
This phase included:
Wireframes
Creating wireframes and low-fidelity prototypes of the platform.
Creating wireframes and low-fidelity prototypes of the platform was an important step in the design phase of the Tribe Fitness project. Wireframes are simplified, black-and-white versions of the product's user interface (UI) that show the layout, structure, and functionality of the platform. They are used to communicate design ideas and gather feedback from stakeholders and users before any actual design work is done.
Low-fidelity prototypes are early versions of the product that can be used for user testing and validation. They are usually simple, interactive mockups that demonstrate the basic functionality and flow of the platform. They help the team to validate design decisions and gather feedback on the user interface, navigation, and overall user experience. Both wireframes and low-fidelity prototypes were created iteratively in collaboration with stakeholders, designers and developers and were essential in the design phase to ensure that the end product met the needs of the users and met the business goals.
Creating a design system to ensure consistency across all the different apps
Developing a Design Language and Component Library
Coach Web Platform
Creating a consistent user experience across the Coach Web Platform by developing a design language and component library, ensuring easy navigation and a seamless experience for users.
Coach Mobile App
Designing a mobile app for Coach Web Platform, that provides a seamless and intuitive experience for users by using a consistent design language and component library.
Member Web Platform
Designing a Member Web Platform that ensures consistency and ease of use for users by utilizing a design system across all elements, from layout to navigation.
Member Mobile App
Designing a Member Mobile App that provides a consistent and intuitive experience for users by utilizing a design system for layout, navigation, and visual elements.
Coach TV App
Designing a Coach TV App that delivers a consistent user experience by incorporating a design system for layout, navigation and visual elements across all screens.
Member Watch App
Designing a Member Watch App that ensures consistency in user experience through the use of a design system across layout, navigation, and visual elements.
Creating high-fidelity mockups of the platform.
Creating high-fidelity mockups of the platform was an important step in the design phase of the project. High-fidelity mockups are detailed, visual representations of the final product that demonstrate the visual design, layout, and interactions of the platform. They were created based on the wireframes and low-fidelity prototypes developed earlier in the design process. These mockups were used to showcase the final design of the platform and were shared with stakeholders, developers and users for final validation and feedback before moving forward with the development. High-fidelity mockups were essential in bringing the vision of the platform to life and ensuring that it met the needs of the users as well as the business goals.
Account Setup & Management
Members can easily create and manage their accounts within the app, adjusting settings and preferences to personalize their experience. A smooth and user-friendly UX design ensures a seamless setup and management process.
Wearables
Members using wearables can seamlessly connect their devices to track heart rate & fitness stats in real-time. Supports popular brands like Apple, Samsung, Fitbit, Garmin, & Android watches. Experience a unified & personalized workout experience.
Live & On-Demand
Experience a seamless workout with live and on-demand classes, just like Peloton, in one unified app. Enjoy a personalized fitness journey with easy class access and smooth UX.
Waiting Room Before Class
Waiting Room Before Class offers seamless integration with Zoom, allowing members to connect their wearables and select friends to view during class for a personalized workout experience. A must-have for an optimal UX
Interactive Classes - Cinematic Quality
Experience immersive and interactive classes with cinematic quality. Get countdowns, personalized metrics/leaderboards, and post-class summaries in both live and on-demand classes. Elevate your fitness journey with our cutting-edge UX.
Class Casting on Any Screen
Stream classes on any screen w/ ease! Cast live & on-demand classes to computers & TVs, see timelines & participant videos. Smooth UX guaranteed.
Studio Experience During Class
Unleash the studio experience at home! In-class cinematic video streaming, chat, see participant videos/metrics, & an autocue monitor for an immersive workout.
Member Web UX
Member Web UX provides seamless access to all classes and features from laptops for members with a user-friendly interface and a focus on enhancing the overall user experience.
Programs & Challenges
Studios can create sets of classes with metric & attendance based goals for a personalized workout experience. Ux provides clear progress tracking & incentives for motivation.
Community
Engage with like-minded members through in-app feed with user-generated content & studio-customized posts. Track attendance goals.
Validation
After the design phase was completed
the team moved on to the validation phase. During this phase, the team tested the platform to ensure that it was working correctly and that it met the needs of the users. The team conducted user testing to gather feedback and make any necessary adjustments to the platform.
This phase included:
Usability testing with a small group of users to gather feedback and make any necessary adjustments to the platform.A/B testing to test different design options and gather feedback on which option performed better.
Conclusion
By following a user-centered design process, Tribe Fitness was able to create a platform that provided an interactive workout experience tailored to the needs of boutique studios and local gyms. The platform included features such as live streaming, multi-camera views, real-time feedback, and music playlists that helped create an authentic boutique experience for digital workouts. The team conducted extensive research, analysis, and testing to ensure that the platform met the needs of the users and provided a unique and differentiated experience. With this approach, Tribe Fitness was able to empower boutique studios and local gyms to deliver a digital workout experience that was comparable to that of Peloton and Apple Fitness+.
Success
After following a comprehensive user-centered design process, Tribe Fitness was successful in creating a platform that provided an interactive workout experience tailored to the needs of boutique studios and local gyms. The company's investment in research, analysis, and testing allowed it to deliver a product that met the needs of its users and provided a unique and differentiated experience compared to existing digital fitness platforms. As a result, Tribe Fitness was able to empower boutique studios and local gyms to deliver a digital workout experience that rivaled the likes of Peloton and Apple Fitness+. This success has likely led to increased user engagement and satisfaction, as well as growth for both Tribe Fitness and its partner studios and gyms.