This app is generating a great impact on the psychological and physical health of users. What is the key to its effectiveness?
Usually, we understand that the objective of a mobile application is simply to cover a specific need of the user. Thus, the vast majority of apps specialize in a specific section of the virtual experience.
It is not the case of Meyo . This project emerged in Barcelona, in 2018, and is reaping great success among users and critics of the virtual world. Far from specializing in a specific function, Meyo is a virtual assistant that is responsible for monitoring the user’s physical and psychological health, providing him with interesting tools so that he can develop his well-being in different facets: meditation, brain training, nutrition, sports… .
Meyo, an app of apps that is revolutionizing the sector
To analyze the keys to the success of this 360º health assistant, we have met with Andreu Palou , who co-leads this technological and business adventure.
Bertrand Regader. How did the idea of developing Meyo come about?
Andreu Palou : After several years working with Tabaré Majem within the food-health binomial on different projects and being pioneers in the field of food personalization, the idea arose of going even further and offering a “total” product that In addition to helping with food, work in other areas to improve people’s health.
Could it be said that Meyo is many apps in one?
Yes, and in fact at times we have wondered if it was too much for a single application. But in the end the concept of the product is “one” and it has to fulfill its functionality.
Day by day we work intensely to implement tools that help the user to find “their Meyo”: There will be people interested only in carrying out meditation activities , or in overcoming very specific challenges such as losing weight, or quitting smoking, or learning to have more self-esteem, or simply get the best and most personalized diet, but there will also be those who, from a more general point of view, want to improve in different aspects of their lives that combine nutrition, physical and mental exercise, with other more psychological aspects from a 360º perspective. And this is where we have to work hard so that all types of users find their place without getting lost along the way.
So far, how has the reception been in terms of the number of downloads?
The reception so far has been very good and without using advertising we have reached 15 thousand downloads in 4 weeks. Although it is true that, due to the situation of confinement in which we find ourselves today, we have had to make certain adaptations to our content, and the application is still not 100%.
Over the next few weeks we hope to reach 100,000 downloads with the launch of the premium version of Meyo with new challenges and content of an impressive level, both in terms of the quality of the multimedia content itself, as well as the rigor and scientific value of the challenges. and proposals for the user.
Is it difficult to develop a project of this type considering that there are very different types of users who can benefit from the app?
Exact. This is what I mentioned before: the challenge is to get each user to identify with “their Meyo”, and be able to reach it without getting lost along the way with the multiple functionalities and layers of the app.
Both at a technical level in the programming of the app and in the development of content, it is very difficult to be able to satisfy all types of users: it is one more challenge and we are delighted to face it.
What are some of the contents offered by Meyo in relation to enhancing the psychological well-being of users?
When we talk about helping to improve Meyo’s psychological well-being, we are talking about helping them in every area of their lives with which they are not satisfied and want to improve it.
Therefore, the first aspect that we deal with is the interpretation of what the user needs: we have worked on an agent conveyed in a chatbot that listens to what the user has to say and if it detects any area in which the app can help, it will be offers.
Once we have detected what the user needs to improve and already within the challenges of the app, we work with different alternatives and functionalities: motivational videos or voiceovers guided by professionals, meditations and physical or relaxation exercises, tasks and activities to be carried out outside the app. … and all this with prizes and rewards for the user.
As for the physical health content that it offers, what options for personalizing food does Meyo have?
From the point of view of food, we work with rigorous methodologies developed by professionals in the sector with great prestige, knowledge and experience. If we talk about how we work personalization, we have to talk about levels:
The key is to understand that, depending on the information we have about a person, personalization can reach one level or another: that is, if we know that the person is a 43-year-old man who is 1.80 meters tall and weighs 85kg, then we can customize your diet. If we also know that this person is allergic to nuts, has gluten intolerance and suffers from hypertension, this personalization will go one level further. If you have undergone a nutrigenetic analysis and have certain gene variants that may indicate that in order to lose weight on a low-calorie diet, it is better that it be low in lipids, or that the intake of omega 3 fatty acids is more recommended to prevent cardiovascular diseases, personalization continue to increase.
Finally, it is necessary to take into account the person’s activity and adapt this personalization dynamically: It is obvious that it is not the same for a person to do intense exercise frequently, as for them to lead a totally sedentary life. This can be extrapolated to shorter periods: if we know that today the person has done “vigorous” physical exercise, we can recommend certain recipes for lunch to dinner that will be different from if they have spent the day sitting in their table in front of a computer.
Within this dynamization we could continue talking about the state of mind: it is not the same to recommend one type of food or another depending on the person’s state of mind… we also have to adapt to the psychological state… as we see it is not an easy subject …
We adapt the information provided by the user and we can personalize the diet that best suits their characteristics, as well as assess the affinity for supermarket products or recipes for cooked dishes.
What are the next goals you set for yourself?
Qualitatively, the next objective is to get to the app that we have in mind, with a level of quality and, above all, of utility for its users that marks a before and after. Once we get it, take the step and jump the pond to the American market.
Quantitatively, we hope to reach 100 thousand downloads and the first thousand subscribers before the summer, all while society in general and us in particular recover a certain normality after everything that is happening with the coronavirus.
To the classic question “what do you do?” I always answer “basically I am a psychologist”. In fact, my academic training has revolved around the psychology of development, education and community, a field of study influenced my volunteer activities, as well as my first work experiences in personal services.