Research
Academic and Market Research
Research Goals
Our research aimed to understand how climbers currently discover routes, track progress, receive coaching feedback, and stay motivated during onsite climbing sessions. We also examined how existing digital tools support or fail to support playful and human-centred climbing experiences.
Academic Paper 1
Topic: Gamification in sports and exercise
What it did well: Showed how badges, goals, and feedback can improve engagement and persistence.
What it missed: Limited discussion of onsite social interaction and coaching support.
Academic Paper 2
Topic: Human-centred design in fitness technology
What it did well: Highlighted the importance of designing around user confidence, motivation, and ability levels.
What it missed: Did not address climbing-specific route decision challenges.
Academic Paper 3
Topic: Social motivation in physical activity communities
What it did well: Demonstrated that peer interaction can improve consistency and emotional support.
What it missed: Focused more on online communities than onsite interactions.
Academic Paper 4
Topic: Feedback systems in skill learning
What it did well: Emphasised the value of short, timely, and actionable feedback in learning environments.
What it missed: Lacked examples of lightweight feedback tools for fast-paced sports contexts.
Commercial Review
Existing Products and Gaps
Product 1: Strava
Strengths: Progress tracking, goal setting, community visibility.
Weaknesses: Not designed for climbing route-level interaction or onsite coaching.
Product 2: MyClimb / Similar Climbing Apps
Strengths: Climbing logs, route records, climbing-specific focus.
Weaknesses: Limited playful guidance and weak support for coach-to-climber interaction.
Product 3: Keep / Fitness Apps
Strengths: Structured guidance and workout journeys.
Weaknesses: Generic fitness framing, not responsive to gym-specific climbing conditions.
Product 4: Social Platforms
Strengths: Sharing, inspiration, community-building.
Weaknesses: Too broad and not optimised for immediate onsite decision-making.
Key Research Insight
Existing tools often support either tracking, fitness, or social sharing, but rarely combine all three in a way that is lightweight, playful, and useful during real climbing sessions. This gap motivated us to design ClimbQuest as an onsite climbing experience that integrates route guidance, progress visualisation, and quick coaching feedback.