Unlocking Gen Z Engagement: A User-Centric Approach to Market Research
Hatch, a mobile market research app owned by C Space, aims to boost survey response rates. Recognizing that engagement levels vary among demographic groups, I focused my internship project on Gen Z, the least active segment. By narrowing the scope, I conducted in-depth UX research to understand their unique needs and preferences.
Through this research, I developed actionable strategies tailored to enhance their engagement with surveys and activities, resulting in considerable increase in engagement rates among Gen Z users.
My Role
Project owner
UX research
Data analyst
Interview facilitator
Goal
Identify a problem to solve
Explore the cause
Pitch actionable advice to C-suite
Duration
Jul - Aug 2022
Tool
Excel, Teams Meeting
According to the user profile, Hatch has had a low percentage of active Gen Z users since launch. Given that brands are increasingly interested in hearing from Gen Z consumers, limited Gen Z presence would impair Hatch team's ability to deliver desired results to the clients.
To better attract and retain Gen Z users, I utilized a mix of different research methods to understand Gen Z users' needs and wants, including in-depth interviews and user surveys. To create change, I presented my findings and actionable insights to the C-suite leaders at C Space.
COMPETITIVE ANALYSIS
SWOT Analysis Based on App Store Review
Hatch Competitive Landscape
Strength
Good reviews on the app store
Higher-than-average incentives
High-quality questions and activities
Large percentage of loyal users
Steadily growing monthly active users (MAUs)
Weakness
Bland app design
Limited engagement features
Lack of younger, BIPOC consumers/users
Infrequent paid opportunities
Little media presence
Opportunity
Growing needs for mobile market research, especially after the pandemic
Expertise in qualitative research
Internal technological infrastructure revamp
Threat
Lack of internal engineering support
Lack of customer support
Limited compatibility with innovative tools
Overeliance on the client team's input
SURVEY
Exploring areas of improvement through survey with 170 users
I surveyed all 50 reachable Gen Z users on Hatch and 120 non-Gen Z users. Based on the preliminary competitor research, I put the focus of the questions on three dimensions: the app design, the incentive delivery, and the with-in app research activities.
Rewards Processing Time
Members find that it usually takes 3~4+ weeks to receive their rewards. Moreover, they don’t know for sure if they are ever going to get the rewards for one activity.
Opportunity Availability
Members find that they complete screeners all the time but get way less paid opportunities
Reward Value
Members sometimes find the incentive of the activities not worth the time they put in, especially for interviews and more time-consuming activities.
IN-DEPTH INTERVIEW
Gaining deeper insights on Gen-Z needs and preferences through 4 interviews
After reading the survey responses, I recruited and interviewed 4 Gen Z members remotely. Interviews allow me to go from "what" to "so what," and "how." I gained a deeper understanding of how users are experiencing and dealing with problems with the Hatch app.
RESULT ANALYSIS
So, what do we know about Gen Z users on Hatch?
User Persona
PROBLEM 1: SCREENER FATIGUE
Repetitive screeners caused fatigue among returning users
In the current setup, Hatch users are overwhelmed by excessive screeners. Each time a client identifies a new target audience, a new screener is sent out, often irrelevant to users' profiles. This mismatch frustrates users, compounded by the fact that they are not compensated for completing screeners, despite investing time and effort.
“I really like how the qualifier that Hatch gives you stuff that you're actually interested in or stuff that you normally do on a day-to-day basis. But they are repetitive and irrelevant sometimes.”
- Christy, 24-year-old med student
SOLUTION 1: PERSONALIZATION
Develop personalization features to minimize user effort
Step 1: Comprehensive On-boarding Screening
Include common screening questions at signup to prevent repetition
Group users based on initial responses
Step 2: User Tagging
Create activity tags for various topics
Let users select relevant tags
Notify the most relevant user groups first.
Step 3: Customizable Reminders
Reduce FOMO with customizable notifications
Offer SMS/Email notification options
Allow users to filter notifications (e.g., "Only notify me for incentives over $5")
PROBLEM 2: DELAYED INCENTIVES
Inefficient processes delay incentives and increase manual work
Hatch delays in incentives due to manual response reviews and order placement. The cash-out process is cumbersome, requiring external vendor links. The team also wastes time on repetitive tasks, like filtering responses and scheduling notifications, that could be automated.
“It’s frustrating how long it’s gonna take to receive the rewards. I don’t see why they couldn’t be instant.”
- Sam, 25-year-old grad student
SOLUTION 2: AUTOMATION
Automate rewards and notifications to reduce user waiting time
Step 1: Rewards Automation
Standardize qualification and completion criteria to minimize manual checks
Establish a dedicated rewards fund, allowing teams to access funds without ordering per client contract
Develop backend systems to auto-distribute rewards
Partner with vendors to integrate in-app reward redemption, eliminating external links
Step 2: Notification Automation
Automatically send push notifications to the most relevant user group when an activity goes live
Increase notification frequency for activities with low participation
Automatically remind users who started but haven’t completed the activity
PROBLEM 3: LACK OF ENGAGEMENT FEATURE
Inefficient processes delay incentives and increase manual work
Since 2015, the Hatch app's design has remained unchanged. The basic interface resembles a Qualtrics-like format for activities, offering minimal interactive or engaging features for users. With minimal interactive capabilities, users are less likely to engage deeply with the content.
“I wish there’s a daily reward for me if I log in everyday, so I’m motivated.”
- A survey respondent
SOLUTION 3: GAMIFICATION
Leverage low-hanging-fruit enhancements to enrich user Interaction
Step 1: Progress Visualization
Display users' accumulated rewards through clear statistics
Use encouraging language to motivate continuous contributions and engagement
Step 2: Daily Tasks
Introduce small daily tasks, like a "question of the day," to encourage regular logins
Implement daily streak challenges to promote consistent participation
Step 3: Fun Polls
Leverage Hatch's expertise in quantitative research to spark user interest with engaging polls
Include fun questions to create a lively community atmosphere
Share poll results to foster interaction and keep users engaged
NEXT STEPS
With more time, I'd like to focus on…
Move from research to design
Start ideating what the proposed feature could look like
Build low-fi prototypes to visualize the features and conduct UX testing
Assess the feasibility of the solutions
Work with the engineering team to assess the feasibility of the automation plan
Work with the finance team to establish an automation SOP
Include more underrepresented groups
Expand the research scope, aiming to reach more underrepresented user groups on Hatch (e.g. BIPOC, male users)
