Copper Books: iOS App

Led product and design for an early-stage startup's first mobile app to create a meaningful community for authors and readers.

Copper Books’ website and download the iOS app → to learn more.

 

Project Overview

As a first design hire, I was tasked to build Copper’s first native mobile app.

In my role as a Product Designer, I focused on leading design and co-leading product, while connecting users and businesses to deliver a highly ambitious MVP 1.0 within a product-market fit framework.

Copper Books processes at a glance

Logistics

For this year-long project, I worked closely with a core (full-time) cross-functional team of 6 including a project manager, an iOS developer, a front-end developer, a back-end developer, and Copper’s CEO.

In the multiple weekly sprints over months, I delivered two cycles of designs across two MVP Versions 1.0 and 1.5 -- alongside developing organizational tools like feature briefs, research summaries with customer-centric insights, and design hand-off documentation to co-create outcomes with ensured alignments.

Solution

At the core of Copper’s experience is the mission to transform the way we connect around books.

Therefore the main challenge became how to serve two audiences (a double-sized marketplace) in the user journey of engaging with a book online; in other words, how to support authors and connect them with their audience while honoring the readers' wants and asks to engage with the authors of the books they love.

ios app live demo, may 2022

 

ios app launch (recorded demo, may, 2022)

Project Goals

Copper’s business goals were supported by design goals as follows:

Product & Design Process

The product & design process were hand in hand aligned to support an ambitious product roadmap to launch Copper’s first mobile app. Below are outlined 12 key steps from ideation to design delivery:

Outcome

For Copper’s first mobile app the outcome is built around a seamless book experience, promoting social connections, and establishing synchronous and asynchronous modes of engagement so both communities can grow holistically.

Amongst the main features are Library, Discussion, and Events, including basic functionality for Onboarding, Searching, and viewing Profiles.

Designs help both authors and readers engage and grow in an authentic way by:

  • Centralizing all the book content in one place through the Library.

  • Connect directly while members read their books via asynchronous Discussions.

  • Host and join gatherings with readers and authors via synchronous video-based Events.

 

Results

  • As a growing pre-seed startup, Copper has been able to capture approximately 6,500+ early-access users that have signup up via lead generation form; including thousands of testimonials for the need and desire for a digital product to cater to these underserved consumer groups of authors and readers.

  • Early engagement with two dozen beta authors for user testing, and persona building with a total of 14% of early-access users (685 individuals) all of who responded to a 24+ question reading survey to improve upon the product feature roadmap, and user experience over 75 days.

  • Between March and April of 2022, Copper transitioned from beta mode on Testflight to the App Store via invite-only codes first, and a public launch on May 5, 2022.

  • For the first month (30-days) of launching, Copper Books received a total of 2.1K direct app downloads, 2.5K app store product detail page impressions, and 8K app store overall searches.

  • To date, Copper counts with 38+ 5-star reviews app store ratings, two dozen positive user reviews, and over 150+ testimonials of onboarded members indicating favorite features and responding to evolving needs, improvements, and additional features. 

  • What’s next? Copper is actively working towards a targeted goal of 1,000 Monthly Active Users (MAUs). Fast follows to be implemented include ‘social sharing’, a ‘feed’, a more robust ‘notifications center and preferences’, ‘global search’, and other meaningful features to improve the way authors reach and deepen their relationships with readers.

If you’d like to learn more about this project, the problem space, product & design process, or have any other questions, feedback, or comments — I look forward to hearing from you