From One to Many: A Generative Research Strategy to Create a "Lifestyle" App
- Manuel Ortiz
- Jul 31, 2025
- 4 min read
2022-2023
A holistic approach through binaural melodies and music for daily life.
User Research - Generative Design - UX Design
Summary
My Role:
Product Designer & UX Strategist, responsible for defining the strategy to expand the app's core value proposition.
The Challenge:
Harmonie was a successful, single-feature meditation app. The ambiguous brief was to "expand the usefulness" and "create the 'harmonie lifestyle'"—to invent new, validated reasons for users to engage with the app.
The Outcome:
Successfully translated a vague "lifestyle" brief into two new, user-validated product verticals: "Work & Focus" and "Sleep".
Delivered the complete product strategy and user flows for these new features, which defined the product roadmap for the next year.
My Role and Strategic Contributions
My role was to act as a strategic "first responder," using UX to diagnose the failure and chart a new course. My contributions included:
Leading the generative research strategy, including market analysis and competitive benchmarking (e.g., Buddhit).
Designing and Facilitating remote "generative sessions" with target users to uncover unmet needs and opportunities around complex topics like "sleeping rituals".
Forming the product strategy for two new verticals, synthesizing all research into concrete proposals.
Validating these new strategies with users (via polling) and aligning them with stakeholders.
Collaborators
My contributions were focused on leading the generative research and defining the new product strategy:
Product Manager: Defined key success metrics and ensured alignment with executive stakeholders throughout the project.
Business Analyst: Facilitated information gathering and maintained business alignment and clarity at every stage.
Visual Designer: Translated complex AI workflows into intuitive, human-centered interface patterns derived from wireframes and user flows.
Context
The Business Problem:
In a crowded wellness market, being a single-feature meditation app was a long-term risk. The business needed to "expand the functionalities" to increase user retention and build a "lifestyle" brand.
The User Problem:
Novice meditators have needs that extend beyond their 10-minute meditation session. They struggle with "sleep" and "relax" in their daily lives, and our app was only helping with one piece of the puzzle.
The Scale:
The brief was pure "blue sky": "create the 'harmonie lifestyle'". My task was to take this abstract vision and turn it into a concrete, data-backed product strategy.
The Design Journey
Chapter 1 — Finding Clarity
The Challenge
The brief was "lifestyle". That's too big to design. My first step was to break it down and find concrete, unserved user needs.
The Action
I led a remote generative session with target users focused on their "Rituales del sueño" (Sleeping Rituals). I also conducted market research to see how other apps were (and weren't) serving these needs.
The Key Insight
The generative session was a goldmine. It revealed that users had complex, multi-step rituals for both winding down (sleep) and gearing up (work). They saw these as distinct "modes" in their day, and our app was completely missing them.
Chapter 2 — The Messy Middle
The Challenge
The research identified many opportunities. I needed to synthesize them into focused, viable product proposals.
The Action
Based on the "sleep rituals" and work-day pain points, I synthesized all the insights and generated two new strategic proposals: "Work & Focus" and "Sleep".
The Key Insight / Pivot
The pivot was realizing we shouldn't just add more meditations. We needed to build dedicated tools. "Work & Focus" became about time management (like a pomodoro timer), and "Sleep" became about "sleep hygiene" and rituals.
Chapter 3 — Getting to the Solution
The Challenge
I had two strong proposals. I needed to validate them with users and get stakeholder buy-in before we built anything.
The Action
We "corroborated [the proposals] with users through polling and with the stakeholders". This simple, fast validation step confirmed our new strategic direction was the right one.
The Key Insight / Validation
The validation proved our hypothesis was correct. Users did want our help with sleep and focus, and stakeholders were now aligned on a concrete plan. This unlocked the path to redesigning the app's architecture to support these new verticals.
The Solution and Design Rationale
The "Work & Focus" Vertical
Our research showed users struggle with "productive hours." This feature integrated mindfulness into their work, providing a tool to help train time management skills and apply mindfulness during the day.
The "Sleep" Vertical
Our "Rituales del sueño" research showed users needed help with "sleep hygiene." This feature guides them through a healthy sleep ritual, using sound to enhance sleep quality, not just as a simple timer.
Impact and Reflections
The Impact
Defined the Product Roadmap for the next year by delivering two new, validated, and high-value product verticals.
Successfully expanded the app from a single-feature product to a multi-faceted "lifestyle" platform, creating new avenues for user engagement and retention.
Revamped the app's architecture to be "future-proof," allowing the app to continue growing without compromising usability.
Personal Reflection
This project taught me how to navigate and lead through extreme ambiguity. By trusting the generative research process, I was able to translate a vague, abstract business goal ("lifestyle") into a concrete, user-validated product strategy that defined the company's future.
Credits
Product Manager: Juan Esteban Chaparro
Business Analyst: Manuela Uribe
Design Tech Director: Alejandro Córdoba
Visual Designer: Daniela Santa Cruz
