Some participants indicate that they are reluctant to share their outdoor activities on social media, while some participants are willing to do so.
Participants who prefer to use social media feature in the app while doing outdoor activities:
Yihan: Both participants show an interest in using social media to find pals. Users tend to stick with a fully-functioning app instead of using multiple ones. In particular, many Chinese people prefer using WeChat as an info-gaining tool in daily life. This is equivalent to American users using Facebook Messenger since they both are social media. This is a good sign that outdoor participants are actively looking for opportunities through social networking.
Quotes from the interview:
Pieter: “I have to reach out to people on another platform since AllTrails does not provide a user chatting option to us. I believe that definitely is something many users have demanded.”
Sky: “If you’re able to develop such a 3-in-1 tool just for the outdoor activity purpose, I would say I’ll definitely give it a try!”
Xingyu: One participant said she likes using social media to share experiences when doing outdoor activities.
Quotes from the interview:
Alex: “I am kinda addicted to social media and cannot stop checking my iPhone even when I'm going out with my best friends…and I like posting photos about my outdoor experience.”
Participants who do not prefer to share their outdoor activities on social media:
Yuehan: Only one participant indicated they would share their outdoor activity experience on social media.
Jun: Both participants indicated that they don’t like to share their outdoor activities experience on social media due to their privacy.
Most interviews show that the information on current applications lacks details.
Jun: Participants show some desires about what can be included in the app design:
Participants want a way to find the location of the restaurant and the parking location.
Quote from the interview:
Lan: “restroom locations, specific entrance location and parking instructions;”
Participants want a way to communicate with people but currently does not include this feature.
Quote from the interview:
Lan: “The social function that people can invites others on hiking”
Participants want a feature that includes a "recommendation bottle of water for this trial" but currently does not because of the lack of details.
Quote from the interview:
Yang: “I am looking for an application that can include water location, and also it will be cool that the application can show bottles of water users need to carry.”
Christine: An application which provides detailed information on vital resources would be a helpful guide for users.
Quote from the interview:
“I went on a beach clean up last year on a hot day and I was ill prepared because I did not bring water. Adding a nearby resources feature would be very helpful.”
Yuehan: One participant indicated that the filter function for current outdoor applications should be more precise and have more options. Two participants suggested that we should include weather-related functions in our design because it is exactly what is missing from the current outdoor activities apps.
Quote from the interview:
Participant #2: “...for example, suggest different trails based on weather.”
Xingyu: One participant shares one hiking experience in Hawaii. He said that he got the hiking spot recommendation from one social media platform RED but the trail information was lack of details and brought him a bad experience
Quote from the interview:
Richard: “I only know the trail location but have no idea about how difficult it was...The trail was eroded seriously but the app did not remind me of that so that I did not prepare enough.”
Most interviews indicate that people like to go outdoors with their friends instead of doing alone, but some interviewees suggested that it may depend on what activities.
Participants who say it depends on the activity:
Christine: One participant mentioned how they prefer participating in outdoor activities in a group only when safety is a concern. For example, the participant prefers hiking with others but prefers walking in the neighborhood alone.
Xingyu: Both my participants said that they prefer conducting outdoor activities with their friends. However, one interviewee mentioned that when he goes fishing, he prefers fishing alone and does not like others with him.
Participants who prefer to go outdoors with friends:
Yuehan: All participants indicated they usually don't like to conduct outdoor activity alone and prefer to go out with friends.
All participants also said that invitations from others are a major incentive for them to conduct outdoor activities.
Yihan: Both my participants stated that it depends on the situation, but they tend to go outdoors with friends around.
Quotes from the interviews:
Sky: “I started exploring some farther locations by myself recently. But sometimes if I feel like I don’t wanna be alone, I will reach out to the group opportunities I saw in WeChat.”
Pieter: “It depends. I went hiking to the nearby trails by myself more often, especially due to the COVID. But if I go somewhere pretty far, like long-trip hiking/camping to Zion, Yosemite, etc., I would find some tour pals in advance of the trip.”
Jun: Both my participants indicated that they enjoy outdoor activities but they don’t hike alone.
Quotes from the interviews:
Lan: “I enjoy outdoor activities by myself. But for hiking, I never act alone,I prefer hiking with my friends.”
Yang: “I usually hike with my friend, I am not interested in hiking alone because I feel dangerous.”
Some participants show a desire in tracking their outdoor activities with health statistics, as their motivation is to keep in good health.
Yihan: Both participants think using the stats data can stimulate their motivation for exercising. One participant even suggested that implementing a leader board function in connection with the social media so that people have similar physical activity can interact and make friends.
Christine: Both participants mentioned that a feature that tracks distance mileage and keeps a history of data is useful in analyzing growth.
Some participants indicate that they haven’t used any application designed specifically for outdoor activities.
Winston: All participants mentioned that they have not seen any advertisement for the outdoor app. Two of the participants never used the outdoor apps.
Quotes from the interviews:
Jack & Mars: “I literally never use any outdoor apps, though I download many useful apps on my phone. If I’ve seen any advertisement, I will download the app no matter whether I will use it later on.”
Yuehan: Only one participant indicated that they have used an application dedicated to outdoor activities, which is Alltrails. Other participants only used general applications like Google Maps and Tripadvisor for their outdoor activities.
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