Chess training platform that allows to customize learning experience

Project Overview

This chess project was an interesting puzzle. I had to choose the best move to engage all its pieces: business goals, several groups of clients with different needs, and industry-specific content.

The client Babakuli Annakov, has been coaching kids and grown-ups for over two decades in Fresno, TX. He led students to victories and helped them with college applications. Annakov wants to streamline and scale up his business.

Project Scope

Client: GM Annakov Chess Academy.

My role: Research, Product ideation, Design, Copy, Testing

Duration: 80 hours

In Client’s Own Words

Students can access information in seconds when they study or play on computers, but they don’t get the joy of communication, discovery and deep understanding that classes with a coach bring.

GM Annakov

 In case you are in a hurry…

The Challenge

Product: How can we scale up the business based on individual and group chess coaching sessions?

Content: How can we show game-specific advantages of the product to people who do not know anything about chess?

The Solution

I’ve worked out a concept of an online chess coaching platform that creates individual study plans. Students can follow the plan on their own or in combination with individual or group sessions.

Interested? Let’s dive deeper into the project

My Process

  • Discovering

    Market research

    User research

  • Defining

    Synthesizing research results

    Defining the problem

  • Developing

    Thinking up solutions with the help of HMW statements

  • Delivering

    Designing copy and visuals to explain the concept

    Testing the concept

Discovering

Empathizing with chess players & uncovering gaps in the market

Market Research + User research + Comparative research

Market Research

Queen’s gambit and pandemic make chess market hot

An amateur player myself, I had experience with some online platforms and applications. Yet, I scrutinised what is available at the market in English and Russian. I also talked to several subject matter experts, and studied articles on the recent technological advances.

 

Key takeaways

  • Chess booms due to the pandemic, ‘Queen’s gambit’ movie, and young charismatic players

  • Multiple platforms provide relevant opponents, game analysis, multiple educational resources

  • Players are overwhelmed with resources and options, finding a good coach remains a challenge.

 Most frequent words used by competitors

I wondered why people keep studying and playing chess?

User Research

An increasing number of adults study chess online, but  they are quick to drop out for various reasons

Both kids and grown-ups study chess at the Academy. I focused my research on adults because the location is the deal-breaker when it comes to kids.

Research Goals

  • Understand motivation

  • Identify the best ways to study chess

  • Uncover emotions

  • Learn about vocabulary

Method and scope

Research insights

Why do they play chess?

 

Competition, feeling smart, and a sense of community

How do they play?

 

Mostly online, but they long for in-person matches

How do they study?

 

Game analysis is the most effective, but boring

What is difficult?

 

Finding the right coach, navigating through loads of material

 Frequently used words

Defining

Zooming in on players’ goals and aligning them with business’ goals.

Persona + Empathy Map + User and Business’ goals and pains

Persona

Jim, my user persona for the project, embodies the feelings and thoughts that the research participants shared. His ultimate goal is winning and feeling good about himself.

Empathy Map

But when he plays chess, he also seeks relaxation and escaping from his problems. He watches videos of his heroes on Twitch for inspiration and ideas.

Aligning Goals and Pains

Students’ achievements contribute to the Chess Academy’s popularity which translates into more revenue. However, adult students frequently lose enthusiasm after a few months of studies because analyzing games is less exciting than just playing.

Developing

Brainstorming solutions with the help of research insights

POV+ HMW

Point of View Statements

Writing a point of view statement helped me see clearly the obstacles that chess players face as they learn.

How Might We Statements

POVs helped me formulate my How Might We (HMW) statements. The main question was …

 

HMW help chess players win?

 

It led to a number of additional questions

 

HMW help chess players be part of the community?

HMW help chess players find the right coach?

HMW show chess players their strength and weaknesses?

HMW tailor the assignments?

 

I wrote down ideas in my notebook, discussed them with other students in Design Lab and with some chess players I know.

Developing

Designing with words and testing the concept

User Story Map+Content+Sketches+Mid-Fi Wireframes+Prototype

The Challenge

 

How do you explain the concept of a complex product in simple words and visuals?

User Story Map

I created a user story map to list many steps Jim, my persona, would have to take on his journey to chess victories. It included the profile, a performance tracker, assignments, puzzles, game analysis, and communication with other students. The map is the cornerstone of the project that I fine-tuned many times throughout the process.

I used a storyboard to explain the idea to the client

Designing with Words

 

Before opening Figma or even taking a pencil and paper, I opened a Word document and started writing. I kept in mind the words and phrases participants used to describe their actions and emotions when they play chess.

From Paper to Figma

I needed to test the concept of the platform fast, so I postponed the development of the UI kit to a later stage. The client characterized his business as “serious and traditional” and expressed his preference for black and white. I decided to add purple and green to the design of the first prototype because the colors are associated with intellect and youth. I wanted to test them with users.

 
 

Testing

Measuring the appeal of the chess platform concept with potential clients

Prototype test + Results Analysis+ Future steps

  • Test type

    Moderated test via Zoom

    Four people tested the product. Three of them matched the characteristics of a persona. One of them was a parent of a student ( the other category of Chess Academy’s clients).

  • Goal

    1. Check if the concept of the product is explained clearly

    2. Understand how appealing is the product to potential users

    3. Observe users’ reaction to various elements of the product

Test Results Overview

Users understood the concept of the product and found it appealing. The copy of the value proposition focused on the winning element because participants of the research said they play chess to win. Although the testers agreed that they love winning, they reacted with more enthusiasm to sections about community.

Success

 

Users were excited about these features

  1. Progress analysis

  2. Three types of game analysis

  3. Tailored assignments and puzzles

  4. Tournaments and communication with other students within the platform

“Game analysis is not something people are looking forward to, so it is good that there is an incentive for them to do it”

“Building your own network of chess people is interesting”

Suggestions

 

Users volunteered the following alterations to the copy

  1. Move up information about tournaments and community building

  2. Move up reviews

  3. More lifestyle elements and fun vibe for the copy and images

Criticism

 

The users were unanimous about the things they didn’t like

  1. Focus on winning and gaining titles

  2. Using chess terms that may be not familiar to people who are new to the game

  3. Words about success and weaknesses seemed intimidating

“Many people would not understand why openings are important, or what is ‘bullet’ or ‘rapid’.”

“People are tired of being judged, it should not look like another place where they would be.”

 First Round of Iterations

  1. I added some black and white images of chess players to show it to the client as an option for the main page desing

  2. I changed the text to talk more about other areas where the Academy’s students succeeded.

  3. I moved up reviews about the school because all users said it would be the first thing they read.

    The first version is on the left, the iteration is on the right

4. I made the message friendlier to chess beginners: changed the wording around weaknesses and removed chess terms from the graphic.

5. I moved information about the community and tournaments up because all test participants showed excitement over this bit.

The first version is on the left, the iteration is on the right

6. I changed the titles and the description of the membership plans to make them sound more positive. Although Bullet, Rapid and Blitz are the most common types of the game, people thought of other meanings of these words when they first saw them.

The first version is on the left, the iteration is on the right

Main takeaways

  1. Users may say that something motivates them, but human emotions are complex. While people said in their initial interviews that they played chess because they liked winning, they didn’t appreciate the copy that focused on this aspect. I’ve made a mental note for myself not to be satisfied with the first answer but to dig deeper and ask the same question several times.

  2. The idea doesn’t have to be very different from what is out there to be appealing. I thought that a new way of studying would excite people the most. Although they liked it, they were delighted about good old tournaments because they involved socializing.

Next steps

  1. Creating the presentation of the findings to the client’s investors

  2. Validating the details of the product with developers

  3. Finalising the UI kit with the client

  4. Crafting MVP for core features

  5. Creating roadmap for next features

  6. Continuing to validate the idea

  7. Working out the marketing strategy for the product