ActiveSG+: Strategic Research for Singapore's Wellness Ecosystem
Transforming Sports Engagement Through Human-Centered Design Research
The Opportunity
During Singapore's SG60 celebrations, the government gave every Singaporean a $100 ActiveSG credit top-up—creating a unique strategic window to understand what drives wellness engagement at scale. ActiveSG approached us to design a membership rewards program that would convert this one-time injection into sustained behavior change. But Singapore already had Healthy 365, an established health rewards app. The real challenge wasn't just designing a rewards system—it was finding differentiated positioning during a critical moment when millions of citizens would engage with ActiveSG for the first time.
Research & Strategic Analysis
As lead researcher, I designed a comprehensive study to uncover strategic positioning opportunities: competitive analysis of 10+ other rewards programs, surveys with 486 public and 33 corporate respondents, and 14 focus group discussions with 51 participants. Using jobs-to-be-done frameworks, user journey mapping, and persona development, I synthesized insights that revealed an uncomfortable truth—when users described their ideal rewards system, they essentially described Healthy 365. Building what they asked for would create zero differentiation. But probing beyond stated preferences uncovered the actual barrier: "I want to try rock climbing, but don't want to pay $50 to find out if I'll hate it." Financial risk, not motivation, prevented sports exploration.
The Strategic Pivot
Real research isn't just executing what's briefed—it's finding angles that align user needs with organizational strategy. Through strategic analysis, I recognized ActiveSG's unique assets (world-class facilities, certified coaches, proven Circle programs) could solve this barrier in ways no commercial platform could. I recommended pivoting from rewards competition to a credit-based sports discovery platform. But this challenged the original brief, so I developed a presentation deck and facilitated multiple stakeholder rounds throughout the project—building buy-in incrementally rather than presenting a final "surprise" recommendation.
Impact & Validation
The research informed ActiveSG's strategic roadmap, positioning them for differentiated market entry through "earn → explore → engage" behavioral loops that democratize sports access. We created concept posters mapping the three-phase implementation and secured stakeholder approval for the pivot. The work expanded Trinax's government portfolio and demonstrated our capability to deliver strategic insights during high-stakes public initiatives.
"They took time to understand what we needed and worked to translate this into practical solutions. Their approach focused on ensuring the project outcomes met our organisational objectives. We would consider working with TRINAX again based on this engagement."
— Louisa Lim, Customer Experience & Membership, ActiveSG
