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Background

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The Scottish Book Trust (SBT), a national charity based in Edinburgh, is dedicated to changing lives through reading and writing. Their flagship early years programme, Bookbug, encourages parents and children to share stories, songs, and rhymes from birth. To enhance the digital experience of this programme, SBT embarked on a comprehensive redesign of the Bookbug app. The goal was to create a more user-friendly, accessible, and engaging platform that would better serve families and early years practitioners across Scotland.

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Objectives

Bookbug is widely recognised across Scotland as a key early intervention for developing language and literacy in children under five. While the original app served as a basic digital songbook, its navigation and interface had become dated, and it lacked features to reflect how families engage with content on the go.

The Scottish Book Trust identified an opportunity not only to improve user experience, but to support wider organisational goals like increasing awareness, encouraging donations to the charity, and deepening community engagement without introducing barriers like login or user accounts.

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User & Design Goals

• Create an intuitive, joyful experience for families using the app in everyday moments like car rides, bedtime, or nursery routines.
• Introduce high-impact features, like Session Finder to help users locate free Bookbug sessions in their local area.
  A “Bookbug for Grown-ups” section with expert advice, literacy tips, and shared reading ideas
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Business & Stakeholder Goals:

• Drive user growth and increase daily active usage across Scotland.
• Promote the charitable nature of SBT and encourage donations through soft in-app prompts.
• Avoid user friction—no login or profile required—to keep the app fully open-access and inclusive, especially for families who may have limited digital confidence or connectivity.
• Support multilingual and offline access, ensuring the app reaches a broader demographic across urban and rural communities.
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Research and Discovery

I've conducted a discovery phase involving:

• Workshops with parents, carers, and early years practitioners.
• Analysis of app store feedback and customer service queries.
• Stakeholder interviews to align design priorities with charitable and operational objectives.

Insights revealed a strong emotional connection to Bookbug’s songs and rhymes—but also a need for clearer navigation, localisation of content, and a more modern interface that felt engaging for both children and adults.

Design Strategy
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Key design decisions included:

• Zero-barrier access: No user profiles or logins were required, in keeping with SBT’s inclusive values.
• Progressive enhancement: Features like saving playlists and marking favourites were implemented using local storage, allowing personalisation without data collection.
• Donation visibility: A non-intrusive “Support Bookbug” banner was introduced on the home screen, allowing users to learn more about the charity’s impact and contribute if they wished.
• Clear session discovery: The Session Finder used geolocation and postcode search to connect families to free community events nearby.
• Scalable content framework: The app was designed to support additional language packs and themed playlists in the future.

Outcome & Impact

• The redesigned app saw a 40% increase in active users within the first 3 months of launch. Users are now engaging with the app more frequently, with families using the content during daily routines, such as bedtime and playtime.
• The subtle inclusion of donation prompts within the app contributed to a 15% increase in donations to the Scottish Book Trust, with users contributing to support the charity’s mission.
• The donation model has successfully raised awareness about the charitable nature of the app, helping SBT to fund more community outreach programs.
• The app received a significant boost in ratings, with over 90% positive reviews across both the Google Play Store and Apple App Store.
• Users have praised the redesign for its user-friendly interface, intuitive navigation, and engaging content, with several reviews specifically highlighting the ease of finding local sessions and the valuable resources for parents.

Reflection

The Bookbug app redesign was not just a visual overhaul, but a rethinking of how a charity can provide accessible, meaningful digital experiences without compromising on reach or values. By combining inclusive design with thoughtful functionality and no-login access, the app now better supports families—while also enabling the Scottish Book Trust to grow awareness and support for its mission.

To explore Bookbug or support the charity, visit scottishbooktrust.com/bookbug.

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