Matt's memoji

Helping People with Asthma and COPD Start Strong with Hailie

Project

MVP validation and build

Role

Lead Designer

Company

Etch Group

The challenge

Hailie had proven its smart inhaler technology in clinical trials, but moving into the U.S. consumer market meant facing a new challenge: how do you help people actually use it in their daily lives?

We knew that even the most innovative tech would fail if the experience wasn’t simple, welcoming, and motivating. For people managing asthma or COPD, every extra hurdle can mean frustration and eventually, disengagement.

That’s where onboarding became critical. A strong first experience could turn “just another health app” into a trusted companion.

What I focussed on

1. Learning from people, not assumptions

I worked with Hailie’s team to run interviews and surveys with people living with asthma and COPD. What stood out: people didn’t just want reminders — they wanted to feel like they were in control. Many said the first few days with a health product usually decided whether they’d stick with it.

2. Redesigning onboarding around success

Instead of dropping new users straight into setup screens, I designed a guided first-run experience that:

  • Framed the “why” early. Helping users connect their goals (like “walk my dog without worrying about wheezing”) to how Hailie could support them.
  • Made setup feel easy. Clear steps, friendly language, and progress indicators that built confidence rather than anxiety.
  • Set expectations for value. Showing what they’d get out of Hailie in the first week (insights, nudges, and peace of mind).

3. Nudging engagement after onboarding

We paired onboarding with simple, contextual nudges — like reminders tailored to weather or activity — that helped people feel supported without nagged.

Testing the inhaler

Personas and building the prototype

The outcome

This shift in focus from “get people into the app” to “set people up for success” gave Hailie a much stronger foundation for engagement.

  • Users left onboarding feeling clear about the value of the product.
  • Setup friction dropped, making adoption smoother.
  • The app’s early interactions felt encouraging and personal, not clinical or cold.

By grounding onboarding in empathy and real user goals, we turned the first touchpoint into a moment of trust — one that encouraged people to keep coming back.

Why this mattered

For Hailie, better onboarding wasn’t just a UX improvement — it was a business strategy. Helping people start strong meant higher retention, more engaged customers, and ultimately a better chance at success in a new market.

For me, it was a reminder that the first mile of the journey often decides the whole trip. Thoughtful onboarding can turn intention into habit — and in this case, help people breathe easier in more ways than one.

Outcomes

  • • $50 million in funding
  • • Users became more informed about what triggered their asthma
  • • They could have better conversations with their clinicians about their condition
  • • The business had a viable product to release into the US market.
  • • Launched in the US
  • • 80 page document comprised of a review and recommendation summary of the app that was redesigned by New Deal Design (The redesign was largely based on my initial 8 weeks of work!)