The board
app-research
Study how top apps structure a journey (onboarding, paywall, setup, a core screen) and turn it into "what we took" notes on the design board: flow and structure only, never visuals. Uses connected design-library tools (Appllama, Mobbin) when available, and this skill's own pattern notes when not. Use before designing any flow, or when someone says "look at how X does it".
Where to look
- A connected design library if one is available in this session (for example the Appllama or Mobbin MCP servers). Search by journey ("onboarding", "paywall", "permission ask"), walk the top apps screen by screen, and save the screens you learn from to the board's research folder.
- Screenshots the person gives you. They are the strongest signal of what they like.
- This skill's notes,
references/patterns.md, distilled from studying the top-grossing onboarding and paywall flows. Use them when nothing is connected.
What to take
- The order of screens, what each asks, where the account and the paywall sit.
- Mechanics: a hands-on moment in the opening, the answer-is-the-button, a commitment before the price, a trial timeline.
- Pacing: how many beats, how long each holds, when the button appears.
What never to take
- Their visuals: colours, illustrations, mascots, layouts copied one to one.
- Dark patterns: fake countdowns, pre-ticked upsells, hidden prices, confirm-shaming.
Output
For every section of the flow, two to five research cards on the board's Research view: { title: 'Brainrot: the opening', took: 'One idea per beat, connected by the same hero.' }. The took line is the intent you borrowed, in one sentence. Screenshots are optional and stay private: other apps' screens are their artwork.
How to study a flow
- List every screen in order with what it asks and how you move on.
- Mark the one moment you would remember tomorrow. That is the mechanic to learn.
- Note what it does not do (no login first, no Continue on single picks).
- Write the card. Move on; three good apps beat ten skimmed ones.