Reputation system for increased engagement in public transport oriented-applications

ABSTRACT

Increasing user engagement is one of the biggest challenges when a new application is developed. An engaged user is one who finds a product valuable;highly engaged users generate profit. This study focuses on increasing user engagement in a transport application, via a user reputation score feature. The score is to reward application users and activity organisers, as well as to motivate beginners by offering a high reputation score in the first days of use. The algorithms are based on exponential and logarithmic functions, and were first tested on synthetic data. Real-world tests have shown that the algorithms behave as expected, but the COVID-19 pandemic created a disturbance which prevented any user from achieving the maximum score and many users from registering altogether. Data show positive results, although the real number of users is not sufficient to certify a correct behaviour. Further tests will be carried out when transport activities return to normal. © 2021 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.