A reading society is a knowledge-based society and, by extension, a developed society. According to a paper by African Research Review; computer and other media, harsh economic reality, societal demand for materialism, and inadequate library materials among others are causes of poor reading culture.

The advent of the mobile technology provides almost unlimited access to books and many written publications. On the flip side, it also provided its users with many options for alternative media thereby creating an apathy for reading and thats a major problem

The goal is to design a product that encourages and helps users develop a reading culture.

In order to design a product that adequately meets the need of potential users I employed a quantitative research. I prepared a set of questions and took a survey - taking responses from over 20 participants

The potential target user of the product are individuals who fall within the age group of 18 - 30 years. 

This age group is targeted because it encompasses a younger demographic that are heavy users of mobile technology

From the survey carried out, I garnered the following.

From my findings, I deduced that; 

Potential users are already familiar with e-book reading apps and are willing to explore other apps that give them a better reading experience.

Ess personifies a potential user and a breakdown of her persona is seen below

We curated as many ideas as possible and carefully sifted through the rubble to find the ones that best solve the problem

I decided to go with an orange hue as the primary colour for LEES. A very vibrant colour; because I want the brand to give off a cheerful vibe. Reading can be fun and  LEES should reflect that as a brand.

The logo is a simple combination mark; The "L" cuts through a book icon and while the remaining letters are kept plain and simple, spelling out LEES.   Lees; which means “read” in Afrikaans

We tested our design(prototype) with friends and a few other random people. The users were able to complete basic tasks. Generally we got lots of positive feedback and if we build it out, we have a chance at delivering a truly useful product

I also want to state that deeper research with a larger sample size will produce more detailed and elaborate data and in turn help design and develop a better product altogether

From the results of the research, I reckon that the product’s strengths lie more in its ability to give its users a unique and better reading experience, hence a periodic review of its features is necessary.

In conclusion, While this product seeks to develop a reading culture among its users and the larger community by providing access to e-books and creating a virtual community—a lot more could be done by individuals and public organisations in order to imbibe a reading culture in the society.