3 Indian apps with different approaches to ensuring peace of mind

Anshul Kamath, the founder of Evolve, agrees that awareness of mental health has increased significantly during the pandemic. “Before, mental health used to be seen as synonymous with mental illnesses like depression. However, today everyone realizes that just as we focus on our physical health, we also need to take care of our mental health on a regular basis,” he said. indianexpress.com through an email interaction.

Varun Gandhi, co-founder and CEO of ‘ser’, quantifies the increase by saying that “more than 100,000 new users joined from April to December 2021”, the majority organically.

Kamath also credits Google Play for the success. He says that they have also run about 60 alpha and beta testing experiments on the Play Store over the last six months to better understand its users. Gandhi agrees that being featured in “Google Play collections” helped fuel their growth.

The pandemic also meant that usage and time spent on these apps increased. All three apps claim they saw an uptick even as the third wave began in December. For Evolve, the average time users spent on the app also increased, while ‘ser’ claims the growth has continued well into January 2022.

Different approaches

All three apps have a different approach. Evolve helps users with their mental well-being through interactive content based on Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT). Users can work on a specific problem they are facing using the app. It has close to 100,000 users from all over the world and is based on a freemium model with a mix of free and premium elements. Some of the content is free forever, although it also offers an annual and monthly subscription.

“Someone going through a breakup or burnout has sessions contextualized to the specific issue they’re facing. These virtual sessions are interactive and designed to simulate how a therapist or life coach would work with them in person. Aside from this, users can also do daily practices for their daily self-care and mental well-being,” explained Kamath. The app has a proprietary interactive interface designed to simulate in-person sessions conducted by a therapist or life coach.

Meanwhile, the completely free to access jumpingMinds.ai (jM) app is designed more for the daily stress users face. It’s more about users finding and talking to their peers about common problems. “Unlike most players who employ a therapy-first approach, jumpingMinds has taken a user-first approach to making wellness easy, accessible and fun. It is the first community platform of its kind powered by deep technology that offers an anonymous safe space,” said Ariba Khan, founder and CEO of Jumping Minds.

Khan claims that 75 percent of people who reached out to the app felt better after just one conversation. On ‘The Friends Therapy’ approach they take, he explains that one of the challenges with mental health and wellness is low user retention along with high stigma and a lack of mental health professionals. The idea of ​​the application is to create “an interactive, safe and empathetic network of friends” that listens to the user and supports him.

For ‘be’, more than 65 percent of the audience is in the Gen-Z age group. Most of its users have never undergone any type of therapy or are not yet considering doing so, according to its founder, and it is this void that they want to fill. The app also offers sessions called mini-therapies, which are bite-sized, interactive sessions about how you’re feeling right now. “These mini-sessions help users really identify how they feel and why they are confused about their feelings,” he said, noting that they have been designed by mental health professionals from around the world.

It also claims to have a more diverse audience and has 65 per cent female users, while 60 per cent of users are outside of India, mainly in the US and UK. Anxiety and stress, relationships, depression, focus and productivity, loneliness, and sleep were the top 5 overall issues that the ‘ser’ app helped address. While the app will be free for the first four months of 2022, it also plans to start with monthly and yearly subscription fee models.

Evolve is also targeting people who identify as LGBTQIA, and Kamath is convinced that it is an underserved section. The company ran some experiments on the Google Play Console during Pride month last year, including an inclusive logo and branding. This resulted in a huge increase in conversion rates, according to its founder. The app offers curated content specifically for members of the community, including interactive insights into embracing sexuality and talking to loved ones.

limitations

But the developers of these apps know that offering mental health advice through an app is not an easy problem to solve. According to Kamath, there are challenges around customization and measuring progress. He admits that a generic one-size-fits-all solution doesn’t work for all users.

“Understanding users through purely digital interactions and being able to customize solutions that work for them is a big challenge,” he admitted. But what works in their favor is that these apps are affordable. In his opinion, they can be “a great first line solution for people to use.” In fact, therapy sessions are expensive in India. Most of the well-qualified therapists charge from Rs 1000 or more per session and most insist on weekly sessions.

In many cases, these applications advise users to go further. “We have a curated list of experts that users can connect with. Some of these services are free and others are paid. However, the type of user who downloads an app is generally someone who wants to explore a virtual solution, so a very small percentage of our users end up taking advantage of this option,” said Kamath.

Gandhi also admits that personalization is easier said than done and that even a therapist takes a session or two (sometimes more) to understand what’s going on before offering advice. “Another challenge is willingness to pay, especially in the context of the majority of people in India. But if we find a way to solve the other challenges, people will understand the value and will also be willing to pay,” he said.

Additionally, between 1 and 3 percent of ‘ser’ app users are referred to their network of mental health professionals for appropriate therapeutic support, either for counseling or clinical psychiatry, as needed. “We also encourage our users to participate in certain mental health communities and support groups, as these activities of connecting, sharing and opening up with people can be very helpful. In addition, our mini-therapies, regardless of the discomfort that is addressed, involve activities that connect you to real life”, emphasized Gandhi.