BUZZBELL: MESSAGES THAT MATTER
DESIGNING A MOBILE APP FOR URGENT COMMUNICATION
MOBILE PROTOTYPES
This product aims to create peace of mind by providing users with effective and reliable ways to connect with loved ones or contacts during critical situations, harnessing patented 'silent'-overriding technology.
GOALS
Identify challenges faced by individuals seeking reliable ways to reach desired recipients during critical moments.
Design a solution addressing their needs.
TIMELINE
The project was an ongoing iterative design process, primarily spanning a 6-month period from August 28, 2020, to April 15, 2021.
TEAM SIZE
During BuzzBell’s development, our team of 22 employees collectively contributed at different stages. As the original in-house designer, I led competitive research, scenario development, UI prototyping, and played a pivotal role in training the five-member design team on Figma fundamentals.
PAIN POINTS & PURPOSE
Our predecessor app ‘NeedUNow’ worked well for emergencies, but lacked day-to-day usability.
Users wanted reliable, non-intrusive ways to bypass Silent mode without disturbing people at the wrong moment.
TOOLS USED
MY ROLE
Founding in-house designer
led research, user scenarios, prototyping, UX writing, and onboarding our growing team to Figma.
Core design team of 5; total contributors were 22.
RESEARCH & INSIGHTS
Competitive Analysis: Compared Messenger, Signal, Telegram, Viber & WhatsApp.
Discovered no app balanced everyday messaging and urgent override features.
User Survey: Revealed people felt the loud override was too disruptive in quiet situations.
Inspired the Buzz (vibration) + Bell (audible) concept.
User Scenarios: Defined 5 target groups.
Mapped scenarios for both Buzz and Bell features.
Our “Iterative Design” process was guided by initial competitor research and use case ideation, but primarily focused on the continuous refinement of prototypes based on user feedback.
BuzzBell was conceived in August 2020, when an internal review of its predecessor NeedUNow, revealed opportunities to revitalize the concept. Designed in October 2019, NeedUNow (NUN) was an app enabling a user to alert a desired recipient effectively by bypassing 'Silent' and 'Do Not Disturb' settings. Sending an alert entailed tapping the ‘Alert’ button, typing a message, and confirming the send. The recipient received it with a ring that could only be silenced by opening the alert in the app.
A survey of 9 users revealed a belief that NUN had limited usability outside of emergencies, and a desire to see the ‘Silent’-override feature integrate with instant messaging or social media platforms.
DESIGN & ITERATION
Embraced an iterative design process.
7 UX artifacts informing design outputs.
2 prototypes and style guides.
mid-fi to hi-fi.
Shifted tools from Photoshop & Illustrator to Figma.
better collaboration & faster iteration.
Early “Day One” prototypes used a bright palette for positivity
feedback led us to a calmer monochrome look conveying ‘Peace of Mind’.
TESTING & VALIDATION
During a weekly creative brainstorm, we identified another NUN pain point: Alerts were exclusively ‘Silent’-overriding, so if a recipient happened to be in a situation demanding silence (such as an important meeting), the audible alert would be disruptive. To address this, we proposed exploring the technical feasibility of vibrating ‘Silent’-override messages.
When our developers proved it possible, “BuzzBell” came to be – with its vibrating ‘Buzz’ and audible ‘Bell’ notifications.
Based on our brainstorm, we defined five target user groups. I developed a user scenario exhibiting our patented features for each group - 3 ‘Bell’ scenarios, 2 ‘Buzz’. These insights informed our value proposition, emphasizing the dualized 'Silent'-override and paving the way for us to begin our iterative prototyping.
INTERACTIVE PROTOTYPE
We designed digital wireframes and interactive prototypes, transitioning from Photoshop and Illustrator to Figma for more collaborative design. Though all designers worked on wireframes, each also took ownership of producing specific deliverables, such as brand guidelines, icons, illustrations, and dummy data. I focused on UX writing, exporting UI components, and creating style guides. The mid-fi prototype, "Day One", featured a vibrant color scheme conveying positivity and inclusivity. “Day Two”, the hi-fi prototype, incorporated a more monochromatic palette based on user feedback, symbolizing “Peace of Mind”. Both prototypes underwent weekly iterative refinement and successfully launched on the App Store and Play Store.
USABILITY TESTING & FINDINGS
Developers followed Figma designs to update functional app builds used for testing on iOS’ TestFlight and Android’s Firebase. Builds were tested weekly by 10 iOS and 7 Android testers, who also reported bugs, while the product team compiled iterations to be made on our Figma designs. Apple initially rejected "Day One" for bypassing the ‘Do Not Disturb’ system setting, which made BuzzBell exclusively ‘Silent’-overriding. “Day Two” included new premium features, removed "Peace of Mind mode", added an "A to Z" scale, and omitted emoji reactions. Testing with functional builds improved productivity and confirmed app functionality.
INSIGHTS & OUTCOME
Our iterative design approach allowed us to refine the interface based on user feedback, while addressing pain points users experience during critical moments. In November, BuzzBell's recognition in TIME's 100 Best Inventions of 2021 for "Messaging that Makes Sense" showcased our success in meeting user needs. In hindsight, conducting a survey for earlier “Day One” feedback may have informed more effective design decisions and saved time on subsequent revisions. Packaging our patented features into SaaS APIs for sale to established messaging platforms presents opportunities for expansion and wider user reach, equipping users with reliable ways to reach desired people, evoking peace of mind.
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