巨子 ICON

"巨子 ICON" is a media service that offers news and information focused on the finance market. The ultimate goal of the product is to serve as an information platform that assists users in making investment decisions and potentially generating profits.

1. Pioneering UI development, product structure, flow, design options, and other related aspects.
2. Conducting research and proposing suggestions on product direction.
3. Providing mentorship to team members.

Since this is a new product line with limited resources and a tight timeline, the research in phase 1 primarily focuses on analyzing competitors. The goal is to gain inspiration regarding product positioning, product value, and features that can guide the development of the new product.

Components and UI elements were developed with the purpose of serving basic functions in phase 1 (MVP). These functions include features such as stock quote charts, news articles, watchlist, and other essential functionalities.

1. Mentorship
2. Conducting UX/UI reviews and overseeing the design process.
3. Conducting research and proposing suggestions on product direction.
4. Leading the development of flows and UI in the content management system (CMS).

After being in the market for a few months, there was a need to gather more specific insights from users regarding finance media products. As a result, user interviews were conducted in February to March 2021 to gain valuable feedback and understand users' thoughts and preferences.

The screening section includes basic demographic data, as well as two other core parts as below,

The screening criteria were based on factors such as the score of social intention, investment frequency, investment amount, length of app daily usage, and frequency of app daily usage. These criteria were used to select participants for the research study.

Eventually, 10 participants were invited as interviewees for the user interviews. This allowed for a more focused and in-depth exploration of each interviewee's perspectives and insights. Additionally, a few usability testing sessions were conducted to evaluate the user experience of specific UI enhancements made to the previous app version.

A sharing section was launched to stakeholders, which included the presentation of suggestions and inspirations that emerged throughout the research process. This section aimed to disseminate valuable insights and ideas to relevant stakeholders, fostering collaboration and generating further discussion on potential improvements and innovations based on the research findings.

As an example, a core finding is that interviewees tend to seek investment tips and news through peer networks, such as instant messenger groups or social media, rather than relying on typical news or columnist articles. This preference is driven by the desire for diverse information sources and the faster spread of information within these networks. This finding provides a solid rationale for allocating resources to socialization, as it underscores the importance of facilitating information sharing and peer interactions within the platform.

Since the interview report was shared with the team, including the product manager and engineers, the interview findings have been incorporated into the planning of new product features. Based on the idea of social-driven functions, prototypes have been developed. Originally, a live chat function was planned to be included, as it was anticipated to increase the product's value by introducing an additional revenue model and strengthening the connection between the platform and end-users.