Spark Digital & The Developing Foundation launch new app – Alo

Background

The Developing Foundation, established in 1978, has been a pioneer in providing support for individuals with brain injuries and developmental disabilities. Their mission to enhance the lives of affected individuals led to the partnership with Spark Digital to develop a cutting-edge mobile app aimed at tracking developmental milestones in children.

Project Overview

The app, Alo, was designed to offer families a user-friendly tool to monitor their children’s developmental progress. This innovative app not only serves as a developmental tracker but also as an early indicator for families to seek further services when necessary.

Challenges and Solutions

The initial challenge was to transform the Foundation’s vision into a functional and user-friendly application, drawing on insights from the Foundation’s earlier web-based initiative, which, while well-intentioned, fell short in terms of accessibility and ease of use for parents and carers. Spark Digital focused on creating a mobile app that was accessible, engaging, and offered real value to the users.

Key Features

User Registration and Profile Customisation: Users can create an account by providing essential details like name, date of birth, and diagnoses. The app allows for the gradual addition of further information to enrich the user profile over time.

Distinctive Design: Spark Digital developed the Alo logo and engaging design, creating a user-friendly environment that reflects its purpose and enhances the user experience.

Developmental Assessment: An initial assessment questionnaire evaluates the child’s development across six functional areas: vision, auditory, tactile, movement, speech, and hand function, establishing a baseline for tracking progress.

Comprehensive Milestone Tracking: The app includes 348 text and video milestones across six motor-sensory domains, facilitating detailed child development monitoring.

Interactive Content: A variety of questionnaires, reports, and games, enriched with images and videos, offer interactive and informative experiences for both parents and children.

Data-Driven Insights: Users can access statistics and view progress graphs, providing valuable insights into the child’s developmental progress and identifying areas for further attention.

Solution design

As part of the planning process, Spark Digital took into account several key elements in designing the solution for The Developing Foundation’s app:

Dynamic and Interactive Questionnaires: The design included interactive questionnaires that adjust based on user responses, providing a tailored experience that accurately tracks developmental progress.

User-Generated Content and Logging: Features are incorporated for users to log important notes about their child, aiding in comprehensive developmental tracking.

Developmentally Appropriate Activities: The app was planned to offer a range of activities and game suggestions suitable for children at different stages of development, ensuring relevancy and engagement.

Alerts for Professional Intervention: The app alerts families when professional support might be needed, based on the child’s progress and milestone achievements.

Gamification for User Engagement: To make the app more engaging, Spark Digital planned to integrate gamification elements, like rewards and badges, to motivate and celebrate the users’ progress.

Privacy-Focused Data Collection: The design strategy emphasised the collection of de-identified data, ensuring user privacy while gathering the necessary information for developmental tracking and app improvement.

Comprehensive Online Presence: The development plan also included creating a public-facing website to provide information about the app, its features, and the overarching goals of The Developing Foundation.

These considerations were integral to Spark Digital’s approach, aiming to create a robust and user-centric solution that aligns with the Foundation’s mission and user needs.

Marketing and Launch

The launch of the Alo app has been supported by an extensive marketing campaign, spanning across the Apple App Store and major social media platforms, including Meta and TikTok. The campaign focused on highlighting the app’s unique features and the value it brings to families managing developmental milestones. Engaging content, testimonials, and video posts helped to create a buzz and drive significant app downloads and user engagement.

Future Directions

Going forward, Spark Digital and The Developing Foundation plan to continuously enhance the app, incorporating user feedback and technological advancements to meet evolving needs. The success of this project has set a new standard for digital tools in developmental support and has paved the way for future innovations in the field.