Let's All Remain Calm

The Calm App Broken Down by its User Experience

Meditation has never been a practice that I have followed. However, I recently decided to give it a try as a means to sleep better. Therefore, I have now tried a few different apps, but in this article, I want to highlight the Calm app.

Calm focuses on helping you find your inner calm to help you “Sleep more. Stress less. (and) Live better.” Hence their first tag line drew me into giving their app a try.

And let me tell you, right away I was blown away with the design of the app! Instantly when I opened the app I was directed to “take a deep breath.” As a UX Designer, this small detail dazzled me. One second in, and I already felt that the app was a well-rounded experience! I could already tell that the little details were going to play an important role in this product.

And I was right. Throughout the signup process I quickly noticed that this attention to detail continued. Like many apps, I was asked to fill out a form inputting my name, email, and password. What impressed me was the manner in which Calm dealt with errors in the inputted form fields. Having created several login flows myself, I knew that many times the error messages appeared after you submitted your information. However, that was not the case with Calm. Rather they ingeniously removed a step on the user's part, by having a green check or red x icon appear as you completed the form. From a UX standpoint, this was smart since it allowed the user to still have the recognition that they filled out the form correctly, but it removed the step of the user having to first submit their details to find out this answer. Ultimately it created a more seamless experience for the user, which us UX Designers always aim to do.

The last and probably my favorite feature that delighted me was the interactive backgrounds throughout the app. As a user, I had the ability to choose from three different video backgrounds of calming scenes with corresponding audio. Easily, the app could have used a solid color background like the majority of other apps on the market. Instead, they once again decided to tie in the purpose of the product with the design, providing the user with another way to feel that sense of calmness.

For anyone looking to begin their meditation journey or find a way to destress, I would highly recommend this app. Not only does it successfully accomplishes its goal, but it does so in an impressively seamless manner for the user.