Bloom
Skills: Content Development | Content Modelling | Creative Strategy | Scriptwriting | User Research | UX writing
Creating new content formats that increased user retention.
Bloom is the world’s first interactive video CBT therapy app.
As Head of Writing, I led a team in developing new content formats informed by user research. These new formats boosted user retention by over 30%.
I also ran a content modelling project, created tone guidelines, and wrote everything from microcopy, CRM emails, video scripts and in-app notifications.
Project Overview
The Problem
When I joined Bloom, the only video content available was one-off sessions. Users would come to the app, type in an issue they were having, choose a video, watch it, and then be left on their own.
For CBT to work effectively, users need to regularly practise the skills in their everyday life.
The Goal
The goal was to create content that would help users to regularly practice CBT skills — as it’s through regular practice that they are more likely to overcome their issues and experience a greater sense of well-being.
The main KPI was:
Boost user retention
The Outcome
The new content formats led to an increase in user retention of over 30%, which was a success.
On a personal note, a memorable outcome for me was hearing such positive feedback from users and knowing that my work had benefitted their lives and well-being.
Research
I was fortunate to work with a brilliant Head of User Research, who ran the research. I was involved in user interviews and in analysing the data to inform the development of new content.
Primary research
Depending on the stage of the project, research methods included:
Usability studies
Diary studies
Interviews
Secondary research
The writing team (and the wider content team) were involved in researching the competition. We were particularly interested in learning about mechanics which help users continue their learning journey.
Language
It was important that Bloom was a welcoming, inclusive, and supportive space — and developing writing guidelines was key to finding the right language.
Developing writing guidelines
Co-creation. The writing guidelines were created with input from the social and product teams.
Make them useable. Different people on the team worked best in different ways. So as well as having the guidelines in Notion, we designed the guidelines to be in a printable format so writers could print them off and keep them on their desk.
My approach: Working collaboratively
One of the big joys of working at Bloom was collaborating with lots of talented folks. I worked closely with user research, SMEs, and product and production.
There was a feeling of care. About each other. About the product we were creating together. And about how we could continually improve — as individuals and as a team.
Creation
There were many different projects within the content creation process. I’m sharing four of them here:
Programs
Snackable content
Microcopy
Structured content
1. Programs
For users to see real improvements in their well-being, it’s recommended that they regularly practice the CBT skills that they learn on Bloom.
To test the concept, I created first iterations using content that already existed on the app. Once we knew users were interested in longer programs, we started testing and iterating and creating new purpose-built programs.
Led by user research
Research showed that users are more likely to complete the program if each day is broken down into small pieces of content.
Research showed that users would benefit from accountability, so accountability check-ins were introduced.
Research showed that users sometimes face difficulties, but the app didn’t address these. Trouble-shooting sessions were therefore introduced.
The first program was about calming anxiety, as anxiety was the topic most searched for on the app.
Each day in a program is broken down into small pieces of content, which user research showed helped users to complete the program.
Mike’s warm and friendly presence helps users feel at ease as they face — and overcome — their struggles.
Science, and especially neuroscience, can often feel somewhat bamboozling — but Bloom makes it all super simple.
Program titles
With 100s of pieces of content on the app, many of the titles started with ‘Overcoming… ‘ or ‘Dealing with …’ When creating the titles for the programs we wanted the names to feel more positive and engaging.
Titles like ‘Healing Breath’ and ‘A Life of Purpose’ resonated well with users.
Information on the title card:
Title
Description
Category (e.g Calm Anxiety)
Number of days
Number of sessions
Time per day
Titles for the programs
2. Snackable content
This shorter content was designed to give users a little boost during their day — it also proved key in boosting user retention. Users could subscribe to various series and receive a new piece of content in the app each day.
Content from the ‘Self-Care’ series.
Content from the ‘Develop Gratitude’ series.
Content from the ‘Morning Show’ series.
Content from the ‘Feel-Good Challenges’ series.
3. Microcopy
The microcopy within the app includes little nuggets of support and encouragement to help keep people engaged and motivated!
4. Structured content
When I first joined Bloom there was a single type of video content: one-off sessions. These were about 7-9 minutes long, and all followed the same structure with an intro, a CBT skill, and ending in a meditation.
It was good content. It was useful. And meaningful. But there was also a few problems.
The problem
Some CBT skills had been given different names in different sessions (for reasons too long to explain here!) — this created a lack of clarity for users. They could come across the same CBT skills in different sessions but it was being called a different name.
Filming each new session required time and resources. We needed to make the process more efficient.
The solution
Structuring the video content into its component elements would enable greater efficiency as we wouldn’t need to film each section again if the content already existed.
The process
I assigned each of the CBT skills a single name.
I identified generic elements (which could be used across multiple sessions).
The spreadsheet below shows the different content elements required for an individual session. The generic elements only needed to be created once, and could then be used in multiple sessions — providing clarity to users as whenever they encounter the same skill it would now be referred to by the same name!
My approach: Creating healthy work conditions
As a team lead, a big part of the role is co-creating conditions where team members:
1. Feel valued and respected for who they are and the skills they bring.
2. Feel safe to experiment and make mistakes.
3. Feel trusted.
I believe those three factors are key to people growing in the direction they want to grow — and thereby doing their best work.
Outcomes and Learnings
The new content formats led to a rise in user retention of over 30%, which was a success.
My personal learnings from working at Bloom include:
How to co-create a team environment which embraces difference, and celebrates playfulness, experimentation, and openness.
Understanding the importance of HMW (How Might We) questions. Coming from an advertising background, where I had learned to present ‘end’ ideas, this was a big shift for me. I remember approaching the Head of Product with a ‘solution’, and how he suggested framing it as a HMW question. I realised how this expanded the potential to both understand the problem and develop more solutions.
Bloom ran a session on Radical Candour, and this had a positive impact on how I give feedback.
I also learned (or relearned!) the value of not rushing. Even when under time pressure, it’s always best to keep a clear head, stay focused on the goals, and not just take the easy route of doing things how they’ve always been done. My time at Bloom reminded me to stay focused, keep an eye out for opportunities for improvement, and listen to my own intuition.