Goal-Tracking UX to Motivate Light Users and Reduce Week-1 Churn
Growth
B2C
Timeline
Q2 2024
Platform:
Mobile (iOS/Android)
Role
Senior Product Designer
The Context
YAZIO is one of the world’s largest nutrition apps with 100M+ downloads.
Despite strong growth, we were losing 60–70% of new users within the first 7 days, especially light users who log occasionally (1–3 meals/week).
These users often feel:
overwhelmed by calories
unsure what to do after the first few logs
discouraged quickly if they “miss a day”
emotionally disconnected from progress
The Objective
he goal was to increase retention in the first week by making food tracking feel less like a chore and more like meaningful progress toward a personal goal. We aimed to motivate light users — those logging 1–3 times a week — to return more frequently by reducing friction and adding purposeful feedback.
How landing page used to look like before
Do users understand their progress throughout their weight-loss journey when they log food on a daily basis in the app?
After a few logs, Data indicated that many users lose interest because the app fails to provide meaningful, progressive feedback that reflects their effort.
The process
To unlock growth, I redesigned YAZIO’s early food tracking flow to help light users build lasting habits.
Worked on the data metrics:
Part 1 of the problem: Significant user drop-off in the second week
Observation: We lose 60%-70% of users in the first week, especially on weekends. After day 7, it becomes quite stable. Source
Scope: We need insights to understand user behavior and de motivations for less tracking food during the first week.
Part 2 of the problem: Weekend engagement drop-off
Scope: We aim to understand what motivates users to continue logging during weekends and identify areas for improvement to maintain their interest Source
Conduct quantitative research method to understand what demotivates users from logging
I initially proposed qualitative interviews — but due to tight timelines, stakeholders preferred a scalable option. So I ran a structured survey with over 1,000 users, then segmented them by usage frequency. About 32% were light users, logging just 1–3 times a week. From this, we identified 3 recurring blockers: No clear feedback after logging No reason to log on weekends Low trust in progress indicators This helped us cluster users into light, moderate, and super users — and tailor UX ideas to each group’s mindset.
Outcome of survey and interviews was what can help users to log food more
One key insight stood out: over 80% of users were motivated by actual progress, not gamification. Those who churned didn’t see how their tracking efforts contributed to real results. So instead of badges or streaks, we focused on visible, goal-based progress — the kind that says: “You’re moving forward.”
In workshops, we mapped solution ideas by impact vs. effort and prioritized fast wins that wouldn’t drain engineering time.
Our top bets included:
Cheat Days — to allow guilt-free logging
Weekend Bonuses — to boost end-of-week engagement.
Goal pinning — to motivate user to chase their dream weight
Auto-logging past meals — to reduce friction
3-Day Challenge — to help users build early momentum
More complex ideas — like meal scanning or AI weighing — were shelved for future phases.
Clarifying Progress at a Glance
We leaned into the psychology of mastery — showing users that even small wins count. Customizable goals and milestone-based feedback created a sense of momentum without the pressure to be perfect. Based on the research, I designed a goal-based tracking experience that surfaced real-time progress on the home screen using Goal Tracker cards. Instead of gamification or badges, users saw simple, flexible feedback tied to their own weight-loss or health objectives.
The new UX:
Allowed users to pin personal goals on the home screen
Showed milestone-based feedback (e.g. "You're on track, shortfall or alert today")
Included gentle encouragement and no-judgment copy to reduce pressure
Daily
My analysis: On track
My goal analysis
16 May
Track for 3 days to unlock weekly summery
Weekly
854
below target
100
200
300
Mo
Tu
We
Th
Fr
Sat
Sun
weight lose zone
Weekly target progress
Final Design
Final Design
We helped users track without pressure, stay engaged past day one, and feel in control.
This was especially impactful for light and new users — the segment most likely to churn.
03
Montly milestone
02
Weekly summaries
03
Montly milestone
Key Takeaways
users need progress not perfection.
This project reinforced 3 key UX principles: Users don’t need perfection — they need progress Feedback must be timely, contextual, and emotionally supportive Simplicity builds trust and boosts retention By aligning behavioral insights with product decisions, we helped more users move past early friction and actually feel good about logging.
Goal-Tracking UX to Motivate Light Users and Reduce Week-1 Churn
Growth
B2C
Timeline
Q2 2024
Platform:
Mobile (iOS/Android)
Role
Senior Product Designer
The Context
YAZIO is one of the world’s largest nutrition apps with 100M+ downloads.
Despite strong growth, we were losing 60–70% of new users within the first 7 days, especially light users who log occasionally (1–3 meals/week).
These users often feel:
overwhelmed by calories
unsure what to do after the first few logs
discouraged quickly if they “miss a day”
emotionally disconnected from progress
The Objective
Increase Week-1 retention and emotional engagement by helping light users feel early progress, not pressure
My Role & Responsibilities
I led the complete UX effort for the new Goal Tracking & Micro-Progress Layer, including:
User segmentation with Data Science
Quantitative + qualitative research
Journey mapping for light users
Product strategy & problem framing
Interaction design + UI
Prototyping + remote testing
Collaboration with engineering to ensure fast delivery
A/B test preparation
How landing page used to look like before
Do users understand their progress throughout their weight-loss journey when they log food on a daily basis in the app?
After a few logs, Data indicated that many users lose interest because the app fails to provide meaningful, progressive feedback that reflects their effort.
The process
To unlock growth, I redesigned YAZIO’s early food tracking flow to help light users build lasting habits.
I worked on the data metrics first to identify gaps:
Part 1 of the problem: Significant user drop-off in the second week
Observation: We lose 60%-70% of users in the first week, especially on weekends. After day 7, it becomes quite stable.
Scope: We need insights to understand user behavior and de motivations for less tracking food during the first week.
Part 2 of the problem: Weekend engagement drop-off
Scope: We aim to understand what motivates users to continue logging during weekends and identify areas for improvement to maintain their interest Source
I conducted quantitative research method to understand what demotivates users from logging daily
3.2 Global Survey (1,000+ Participants) — Key Findings (Short Version)
To validate patterns at scale, I ran a global survey with 1,000+ users. The results confirmed a clear need to simplify the early experience and guide users more intentionally.
Top Insights
Early progress drives engagement: 80%+ feel motivated when they can see small wins immediately.
Users feel overwhelmed: 54% find calorie numbers or too much data confusing.
Lack of direction is a core blocker: 46% don’t know “what to do next” after their first few logs.
Low interest in gamification: Only 12–15% care about badges or decorative rewards.
Strong preference for simplicity: 68% want one clear focus per day, instead of multiple goals.
Outcome of survey and interviews was what can help users to log food more
In workshops, we mapped solution ideas by impact vs. effort and prioritized fast wins that wouldn’t drain engineering time.
Our top bets included:
Cheat Days — to allow guilt-free logging
Goal pinning — to motivate user to chase their dream weight
Weekend Bonuses — to boost end-of-week engagement
Auto-logging past meals — to reduce friction
3-Day Challenge — to help users build early momentum
More complex ideas — like meal scanning or AI weighing — were shelved for future phases.
Clarifying Progress at a Glance
Key Design Decisions (and Why)
Goal Pinning (Daily / weekly Focus)
Users see their goal progress while landing
Why:
Light users need one clear progress gives them motivation to continue.
Micro-Progress Feedback (Supportive, not gamified)
Soft nudges across the week:
“Nice start 🌿”
“You logged today —you are on track for your goal.
Why:
Survey showed users reject badges but want reassurance.
Weekend Reset (“Sunday Reboot”)
A calm card that appears Fri–Sun:
App will calculate the progress on 5 days not 7
Why:
Weekend is the highest drop-off moment.
The new UX:
Allowed users to pin personal goals on the home screen
Showed milestone-based feedback (e.g. "You're on track, shortfall or alert today")
Included gentle encouragement and no-judgment copy to reduce pressure
Daily
My analysis: On track
My goal analysis
16 May
Track for 3 days to unlock weekly summery
Weekly
854
below target
100
200
300
Mo
Tu
We
Th
Fr
Sat
Sun
weight lose zone
Weekly target progress
Final Design
We helped users track without pressure, stay engaged past day one, and feel in control.
This was especially impactful for light and new users — the segment most likely to churn.
01
Daily summaries
02
Weekly summaries
03
Montly milestone
Key Takeaways
users need progress not perfection.
This project reinforced 3 key UX principles: Users don’t need perfection — they need progress Feedback must be timely, contextual, and emotionally supportive Simplicity builds trust and boosts retention By aligning behavioral insights with product decisions, we helped more users move past early friction and actually feel good about logging.
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Feel free to hit me up, I am looking forward to hearing from you
Let's Connect
Let's Grow Together
Feel free to hit me up, I am looking
forward to hearing from you
Let's Connect