How Yousician gamified music learning to perfectly match modern lifestyles

WHAT YOU’LL LEARN

  • How gamification can elevate musical practice apps

  • How to change the typical learning methods to fit this modern day and age

  • How to keep your users inspired and motivated

THE CHALLENGE

If you are a musician or a music enthusiast, you might have heard of Yousician, the revolutionary app for mastering musical skills. Yet, despite its widespread popularity today, the journey to success was far from smooth sailing. The app encountered numerous hurdles along the way. Unfortunately, Yousician had difficulties while updating old learning methods. This included keeping users interested and dealing with technical issues, such as ensuring seamless performance while integrating gamification features within the app.

The umbrella for most of the issues was reimagining the conventional approach to mastering musical instruments. Why?

Yousician faced various challenges while modernizing music learning techniques.

Fostering and maintaining user engagement throughout their learning journey was crucial. With users’ attention spans becoming shorter by the day, Yousician had to ensure that its platform provided motivation and incentives to encourage learners long-term.

Furthermore, with busy schedules, it was tough for users to practice regularly, even online. Online sessions, though more convenient, can feel taxing on busy days, and even the digital music learning course might be hard to keep up with. Users were doubting the value of expensive subscriptions that may not fit their lifestyle or energy levels.

THE ASSUMPTION

The CEO and founder of the app, Chris Thür, understood the scarcity of flexible, accessible, and personalized learning experiences. It was clear that this contributed to turning music learning into an uncommon or unapproachable hobby in modern-day lifestyles.

Thür also knew that the technical parts of learning, like reading chords and notes, is a challenge that some beginner musicians find hard to overcome. Beginners often struggle with these aspects, which slows down their progress and lessens their motivation.

Additionally, not everyone wants to learn classical tunes like Mozart; modern-day musicians prefer music that speaks to them personally. Learners are more likely to connect with songs relative to lived experiences, emotions, and aspirations.

THE SOLUTION

When Yousician finally launched, it was clear how it differentiated from typical musical lessons. After all, it offered a unique affordable, interactive, and gamified approach.

The accessibility and engagement features entice users throughout their learning process. It fosters a sense of enjoyment and accomplishment as they progress in their musical journey.

Furthermore, the platform’s user-friendly interface ensures user retention by making the user journey smooth and simple. This drives aspiring musicians to choose Yousician as their preferred platform for mastering musical skills with ease and confidence.

As the fastest-growing music education company globally, Yousician set a new standard in the industry. Naturally, the way gamification was implemented in the Yousician app is what every music-learning application should take note of:

1. Progress tracking persuades users

The app’s section called “missions” offers an overview of progress. Starting at level 0, users progress through structured lessons designed to achieve specific goals. Each level is divided into different sections, providing users with a clear path to skill development and allowing them to monitor their advancement.

These exercises cover a wide range of technical learning needs, including ear training, chord recognition, and note-reading improvement. Knowing what skills they are gaining and seeing how far they have come, motivates the practicing musicians to keep a steady learning curve.

2. Instant feedback activates the sense of improvement

The practice mode allows users to toggle between left and right-hand modes, with instant feedback on their playing. Words like “perfect” or “late/early” show the user’s note accuracy. This real-time feedback creates a gamified learning environment. Consequently, users want to achieve more in their progress.

Additionally, users see their evaluation at the end of each session in the form of a score and a number of stars, reflecting their performance.

This approach to feedback creates a sense of accomplishment. It empowers users to take ownership of their musical journey and motivates them to advance in the Yousician app.

3. Competition drives users to practice more:

In-app challenges enable users to compete with other musicians at the same level or with friends. Users can view their competitors’ scores for a particular song. They can then aim to surpass these scores by playing the same song themselves. Consequently, this triggers their sense of competition and makes them want to keep playing. After all, it feels better when your efforts result in victory!

THE IMPACT

The app’s gamified interface provides users with the interaction and engagement they desire. Consequently, the interest in the app is skyrocketing – combined with their GuitarTuna app, they have 20 million learners monthly, making the company a leader in the music learning app industry!