INTRODUCTION
Why are memories so important?
Nostalgia and memories are integral to the human experience, allowing us to revisit moments that shape our identity. They help us relive the joy of a recent birthday party, the fondness of a childhood pet, or even allowing us to feel reconnected with with loved ones we've lost. Nostalgia not only preserves our past but also enriches our present by fostering emotional connections and shaping our sense of remembrance.
Memories play a pivotal role in shaping identity, fostering emotional well-being, and preserving connections to significant moments and people in our lives. However, as time passes, many individuals struggle to fully recall and emotionally relive meaningful experiences. Existing tools for memory preservation, such as photos or videos, lack the ability to engage multiple senses, which limits the depth of the emotional connection. This gap presents a unique opportunity to design a solution that enables users to capture, recreate, and relive their memories in a more immersive and impactful way.
COMPETITIVE ANALYSIS
Understanding the Market Landscape
To better understand the strategies and features that resonate with users, we conducted a competitive analysis of four platforms: Spotify, BeReal, Locket, and LoveBox.
SWOT Analysis
By examining their strengths, weaknesses, and key functionalities, we gained insights into what works well, where they fall short, and how they engage their users.
COMPETITIVE ANALYSIS FINDINGS
Research Findings
01.
Social Media Thrives on Curiosity ("Nosiness")- People engage with social platforms because they want to stay updated on what others are doing, thinking, or enjoying. This natural curiosity drives repeated app usage. Apps that successfully tap into this social curiosity tend to have higher engagement and retention.
02.
Collaboration & Shared Experiences Create Stronger Engagement- Apps that allow direct interaction or shared content creation tend to sustain user engagement better.
(Locket's decline could be attributed to its limited social reach—it’s exclusive to a small circle of friends, which restricts engagement opportunities compared to broader platforms.)
03.
Incentives & Notifications Keep Users Coming Back- FOMO (Fear of Missing Out) plays a key role in engagement. Push notifications and time-sensitive interactions are big for engagement. Apps that don’t effectively remind users or create a reason to return risk lower retention.
INTERVIEWS
Our Interview Questions
To ensure our design effectively meets user needs, we conducted in-depth interviews with 14 participants across a diverse age range (15-60+ years old). Our goal was to understand how people preserve, recreate, and emotionally connect to past experiences using technology.
INTERVIEW QUESTIONS
What challenges do you face when trying to preserve or recreate emotional connections to past experiences?
How are you using technology to remember old/special moments? (Such as through audio recordings, videos, photos, notes, smell etc.)
How often do you use apps or products that remind you of strong sensory and memory experiences
Which sense brings back the most meaningful memories for you, and why? (Is it audio recordings, videos, photos, notes, smell, etc.)
How comfortable would you feel sharing personal (sensory related) data with an app? (Pulls in safety aspect)
When thinking about a sensory memory app, what would make it a part of your daily life?
DESIGN FOR AMERICA
Designing a sensory memory tool that enables users to capture, recreate, and relive their past experiences through multiple sensory modalities in an interactive and personalized manner, helping individuals strengthen their emotional ties to significant memories
TIMELINE
October 2024- Current
ROLE
UX Designer
UX researcher
TOOLS
Figma
Clickup
MAIN INTERVIEW TAKEAWAY
Our Interview Key Findings
Multi-Sensory Triggers Deepen Emotional Connections
Users strongly associate memories with sound, visuals, and even scents. Integrating voice notes, photos, and contextual sensory cues enhances recall and nostalgia.
Memories are Personal, Not Routine
Users don’t want memory preservation to feel like a daily chore. Instead, they prefer event-based prompts (e.g., “It’s been a year since this moment—want to revisit it?”).
Gamification Should Feel Meaningful, Not Forced
Features like streaks or memory “unboxing” encourage engagement, but users don’t want excessive gamification that makes memory-keeping feel like an obligation.
Many users would like the ability to customize their notifications or be able to opt out
Memory Preservation is Stronger with Community
Users value shared memory spaces, where family and friends can collaborate, comment, and contribute to collective experiences.
SURVEYS
Survey Structure & Key Focus Areas
After conducting in-depth interviews to explore how people emotionally connect to past experiences through sensory memory, we expanded our research with a broader survey to quantify these insights and prioritize key features. Our goal with the survey was to:
Identify patterns in how different age groups engage with memory preservation tools.
Understand which sensory triggers (sight, sound, smell, etc.) are most effective for recalling emotional moments.
Prioritize features that users find most valuable in a sensory memory application.
To build on our qualitative insights, we designed a survey that:
Captured demographic trends to see how memory preservation habits differ by age.
Explored technology use by identifying the most common tools for storing and recalling memories (e.g., photo albums, voice memos, apps like Instagram, BeReal, or Spotify).
Ranked feature priorities based on previous interview findings, helping us refine which functionalities to focus on in our design.
Investigated emotional behavior—whether users tend to embrace or reject past moments, providing deeper psychological insight into memory engagement.
KEY SURVEY FINDINGS
Using Survey Data to Inform Design Decisions
The survey not only reinforced key findings from our interviews—such as the importance of reflection over routine and the need for customizable memory-sharing options. But it also revealed new insights that shaped our design direction. Specifically, we discovered:
Specifically, we discovered:
A divide in privacy preferences, with users equally split between keeping memories private vs. sharing with close friends.
An untapped opportunity in voice memos, which many users don’t currently use but see potential value in.
A strong demand for a centralized memory hub, where users can store and access photos, voice recordings, notes, and videos in one place.
BRAINSTORMING AND IDEATION
Exploring Features & Design Directions
After analyzing our interview and survey findings, we moved into the ideation phase. Using collaborative white boarding and sticky-note exercises, we explored abstract concepts and potential key features that could bring our sensory memory tool to life.
We began by breaking down our research insights into two categories↴
ABSTRACT IDEAS
Broader conceptual themes that guided our approach to emotional connection and memory preservation.
KEY FEATURES
Concrete functionalities that aligned with user needs, ensuring an intuitive and meaningful experience.
OUR PROCESS:
This project is still currently in progress!
We are currently in the ideating phase, if you would like to learn more about my current timeline of my work please feel free to reach out.