First change I would suggest is to have some kind of avatar representing the player on the screen. This allows players to identify more strongly with the game.
Second, reward and punish. Add some kind of consequence, perhaps even a game-over state. You can make this easy to avoid but it requires constant attention. Reward. Coins are your "health" not exactly a reward since you need them to continue playing, but add some random rewards (this is primarily where the addiction mechanic comes from). Big, rare rewards make games addicting.
Going further, you might want to add a set-collecting mechanic. Try playing "Ticket to Ride" and see if you could adapt some of those mechanics to your game.
Finally, the interface is not very game-like. It doesn't look like a game.
Avatar? Could do, but it might feel weird since there are no other avatars to interact with.
Here's an idea: You start out as an avatar of someone looking shabby and poor. Like, broken shoes and dirty t-shirt. As you progress you start looking smarter and smarter. Eventually you travel in a suit with a businessman looking little hand-luggage. I'd have to get graphical to pull that off which is not something I'm good at.
Yes, the interface needs to be improved. It's hard to make something cute without Photoshop skills. I'd happily pay someone if I had the time to organize and I knew the results would be decent.
Second, reward and punish. Add some kind of consequence, perhaps even a game-over state. You can make this easy to avoid but it requires constant attention. Reward. Coins are your "health" not exactly a reward since you need them to continue playing, but add some random rewards (this is primarily where the addiction mechanic comes from). Big, rare rewards make games addicting.
Going further, you might want to add a set-collecting mechanic. Try playing "Ticket to Ride" and see if you could adapt some of those mechanics to your game.
Finally, the interface is not very game-like. It doesn't look like a game.