Hero Journey Concept
Vocal Image
A communication skills training app, 2M users
Когда
May 2025
Роль
Principal Product Designer (from idea to concept)
Цель
Boost user retention by addressing fundamental issues.
I designed a Hero's Journey that transforms a chaotic "sandbox" experience into a gamified, clear path. Users always know what to do and why, and their progress is visually evident.
My Contribution:
Research into behavioral barriers
User experience architecture
Idea development, linking with behavioral mechanics, reward systems, and storytelling
problem.
I conducted an analysis of the app, reviews in app stores and support, and a dozen user interviews. I identified problems directly impacting user motivation and retention:
Problem | Why |
|---|---|
Users don't understand "what to do" and "why". They're given a sandbox and left to figure things out themselves. | There's no clear call to action; a sense of progression and purpose is missing, which reduces engagement. |
The Daily Plan is poorly personalized; the number of practices is limited. | Lack of personalization reduces the perceived utility. While this might not be noticeable in the first week, it becomes evident over time. |
No sense of progress from the Daily Plan | Users complete practices but don't receive indications of progress. Without this, an internal feeling of growth and achievement doesn't form, and motivation quickly wanes. |
Useful courses are hidden in a separate section. | Important content is concealed and not integrated into the user journey. Many users are unaware of it. |
Experienced users desire flexibility (to choose the practices they need) | There's no sense of control and autonomy, which are fundamental factors of internal motivation. |
The current UX doesn't support a sense of purpose, control, or progress. As a result, motivation quickly drops, and retention suffers after the very first sessions.
action.
The Hero Journey is the most powerful gamification framework for products that require long-term user engagement and transformation.
While the Habit Loop (Trigger → Action → Reward) operates at the level of a single habit, the Hero Journey is a macrostructure that:
Explains the "why" and shifts motivation from external to internal;
Establishes emotional context through added storytelling;
Strengthens motivation by fostering a sense of meaning and progress.
Requirements
Before developing the Hero's Journey concept, I outlined the following requirements:
Micro-learning
Personalization
Adaptability
Non-linear progress
Scalable content
Gamification
Storytelling
I then categorized all current practices by the skill they develop. After researching journey-building approaches from Duolingo, Fabulous, and several games, my concept was born.
result.
The content structure is designed around a hierarchical progression:
Practice → Group of practice with a clear, small goal → Sub-skill → Core skill
Practice
A Practice is a simple 2–4 minute task that develops a specific skill.
Each Practice has a level (1, 2, 3, etc.), which allows for scaling content without generating new mechanics and provides flexibility (a practice can have one level or dozens).
The level increases as the user completes it, ensuring deeper skill development and maintaining interest for long-term users. Conversely, the level decreases if the user finds it too challenging.
Practice Group with clear and small goal
This replaces the concept of a "Daily Plan," which acted as a daily task framework for the user. However, a Daily Plan was limiting. Practice Groups are meant to be completed sequentially but aren't restrictive.
4-7 practices are combined into a small, clear, and personalized goal. The goal's name is generated by AI for hyper-personalization, ensuring each user has their own unique skill development plan.
The number of practices within a goal increases for active users and decreases for newcomers or returning users.
Users see a forward-looking plan consisting of personal goals (Practice Groups), focusing on their least developed Sub-skills. This is what drives the dynamic personalization.
Sub-skills
A Sub-skill is a measurable skill that, when combined, forms a Core Skill. Each Sub-skill has its own progress bar, which fills as practices focused on developing that sub-skill are completed. There's also skill regression based on Ebbinghaus's forgetting curve if there's a long period of inactivity.
By drilling down into a Sub-skill, users can perform only the practices that develop that specific sub-skill. This offers flexibility for experienced users.
Sub-skills are grouped by the speed at which they show visible results, allowing users to immediately feel the app's value.
For example, in voice development with "Voice Master":
Level 1: Support (Core Pressure), Breathing, Posture.
Level 2: Relaxation, Resonance & Tone, Articulation & Diction, Filler Control.
Level 3: Stress Management, Speaking Pace & Rhythm, etc.
Level 4: Agility, Range, Care & Recovery.
Storytelling
I plan to use a totem animal for each Sub-skill to foster an emotional connection with the user. These totem animals can grow and be happy as skills develop, and conversely, become sick or sad if skills regress.
Core-Skill
This is the highest-level skill. The Core Skill also has a progress bar, which is a sum of the progress of all its sub-skills. This progress is dynamic and also subject to regression.
For scaling, special skills or seasonal skills can be added to maintain user engagement long-term and facilitate collaborations.
Storytelling
Here, we'll use the metaphor of an island as the habitat for the totem animals.
What We Achieved
Reduced cognitive load by clarifying "why" users engage in a particular practice, adding meaning at a logical level.
Visible progress, the ability to choose which skill to influence, and an emotional connection maintain motivation.
Adaptive difficulty at both the practice and Sub-skill levels.
Hyper-personalization of goals reduces the barrier to entry and prevents burnout.
Extensive opportunities to weave storytelling into the app's interaction process.
Simple way to increase content volume.
reflections.
I've successfully developed a flexible concept that addresses all fundamental issues. Next, it needs to be transformed into a plan, broken down into segments, and implemented step-by-step.