Reducing friction for rock climbers to connect
KAYA is a rock climbing app for discovering routes, sharing videos, and logging progress. I worked as the contract project manager and product design lead, and led a team of 4 contract designers on an in-app session planning and scheduling feature.
The Challenge
Making it possible for climbers to climb together, and for an invite to have a clear purpose.
Climbers already climb together. KAYA had wanted an invite and referral mechanism for a while, something that helps climbers bring their crew onto the app. They came to us to figure out how that could fit into how climbers already plan.
When users follow 3+ people, they interact ~75% more with push notifications and friends.
Solution
Plan future climbs, send spontaneous sessions, invite friends
I focused on the logistics that get in the way of climbing with other people. If a session is easy to start, people can send the invite with it.
Feature 01
Schedule ahead, coordinate times, and see who’s going
Collaborative scheduling lets users compare availability and pick a time block, even when the date is not set yet.
Feature 02
Spontaneous sessions with time-sensitive notifications
The user can send a notification when a climb is happening soon. This is for last-minute sessions, when the time is already set and people just need to show up.
Feature 03
Invite friends
Pick friends who are already on the app, or send a link to someone who is not. The invite is attached to a session they can actually join.
Research
I needed to understand how climbers plan a session, and whether they would use a referral at all.
I put together a research plan for my team: a survey of 150+ climbers and five focus groups. I wanted to see how people get to the gym with friends before we committed to an invite system.
65% of respondents
climb with others a few times a week or more
60% of the time,
climbers initiate and plan sessions for friends
72% of respondents
find it hard to schedule climbs with friends
Climbing Motivations
While climbers are first motivated by personal interest, they enjoy it a lot more when other people are there.
Invites
They said they would use an invite if it made the climb better for both people.
How do sessions come together for different climbers?
We also looked at two user types, Finn and Alex, and mapped a climbing session for each. Finn climbs for the love of the sport. Alex will change his schedule to climb with friends. Logistics and missing information were a problem for both.
Design Process
The original plan was a referral with something in it for the inviter.
Through research, we found that users were opposed to that idea. I considered a more indirect invite system, focusing less on individual rewards and more on the social side of climbing, plus the logistics that get in the way. We still kept an invite option. It just had to be part of a session.
My solution? Make the session what people send. Plan it ahead, send one for right now, and invite people to that session.
Feedback & Metrics
We handed this work off to KAYA at the end of the engagement.
I do not have launch or usage numbers from after that. During the project, this is what we knew:
The brief changed
Climbers already try to plan sessions, but most of them find scheduling difficult.
Users did not want reward-style referrals
The session flow was something people could see themselves using.
Takeaways
What I learned
Check the brief with users early
The first idea was an invite system with incentives for the inviter. Talking to climbers changed the direction. We designed around what they would actually use, and still had a way for people to join KAYA by being invited to a session.
Learning to lead
This project gave me the chance to manage a design project from start to finish. I learned how to handle the logistics, and how to guide newer designers through feedback, critiques, and one-on-one workshops.
Special thanks to KAYA and my team for this opportunity!