Caktus is an education platform powered by AI. It's designed to help students get their homework done faster thanks to access to a vast database of research papers. On top of that, Caktus helps with citing papers, writing papers, taking notes, solving math equations, applying for jobs, computer science, language, and nearly every other aspect of school.
Caktus reached out to tonik in the hope of us making their app “easier to use”. Despite branding themselves as “The Future of Education”, their outdated design style made Gen-Z students questions if it's the future they want to live in. We set out to do a full glow-up session for the entire brand identity - this includes the logo, brand messaging, graphic theme, and other visual elements of the brand.
The biggest challenge was to make everything appear new yet familiar as they've already invested thousands of marketing dollars into their brand recognition among students in high schools and colleges.
Caktus hit million of views on TikTok thanks to a partnership with college athletes.
Before we embarked on the exciting journey of app design, it was the brand identity that desperately sought our assistance. To breathe new life into our client's Caktus brand, we orchestrated engaging branding workshops. These sessions were a melting pot of ideas, where we guided our clients in discovering their brand's unique voice.
The outcome of the Brand Archetypes exercise
Through the captivating Brand Archetypes exercise, we collectively agreed on the notion that our brand should exude confidence, audacity, and fun. However, above all, our ultimate goal was to empower students, fueling their intellect and curiosity.
Brand Guidelines from our talented brand team at tonik.
With the invigorating brand refresh underway, we set our sights on revamping the app interface. Armed with the invaluable insights from a detailed UX audit, we employed the time-tested 10 Nielsen Heuristics. It became evident that the app suffered from a cacophony of features, lacking the clarity necessary for a seamless user experience. It was a labyrinth of options, leaving users clueless about what truly mattered.
We used FigJam to document our audit.
At first glance, Caktus's rivals appeared equally strong both visually and feature-wise. The only discernible difference was their attempt to make everyone happy. While they catered to copywriters, fiction writers, and Twitter influencers, Caktus stood resolute in its commitment to crafting templates that would benefit students. Eureka! This revelation became our guiding light. Instead of inundating users with overwhelming choices, we embraced the elegance of simplicity.
The market for AI writers is pretty much saturated.