Mash-Up
Mash-up is an entertainment app that provides users with recommendations for new shows, movies, books, podcasts, and music based on their current media consumption. This will help alleviate the constant questions of what to watch, listen to, or read.
This is a project I worked on during my UX/UI Immersive Course. From the research, UX, and UI I was able to create this prototype with valuable feedback provided by my instructor and my class.
Problem
Users cannot find new entertainment/media (Movies, Shows, Music, Books, and Podcasts) that meet their current interests.
How Might We assist users with discovering new entertainment/media based on their current viewing, reading, and listening habits?
After connecting with five users via a screener survey and brief interviews it was discovered that users have a tough time deciding what to watch, read or listen to next. The issue has worsened with the constant media "binge" brought on by the pandemic. Using the information provided by the users a user flow was created to map out the pages of the app.
Once the user flow was mapped out sketches were created and tested using the Marvel app. Guerrilla testing was conducted remotely via Zoom with five users sourced from Social Media.
In testing the sketches it was discovered that the icons for navigating through the different sections of the app were confusing and visually cluttered. Users could not successfully move a Recommendation to the Queue/Favorites on their first try. Given the feedback and the observations made during initial usability testing, there would be a steep learning curve to get used to the app.
Changes were made to streamline the navigation when creating the low-fidelity prototype. These changes were tested remotely via Zoom with an additional five users also sourced from Social Media. Users had a better success rate for navigating to the different sections of the app, however, there was still some confusion surrounding the Queue and Favorites sections. Users were unsure if Recommendations should be moved to the favorites or Queue to revisit later.
With the user feedback, it was time to create the high-fidelity prototype. During testing, it was discovered users felt overwhelmed by the number of options or frustrated by the lack of options in entertainment media. Due to these feelings, I wanted to ensure the color palette was minimal and provided users with a calming feeling.
Insights
After testing the high-fidelity prototype users really enjoyed the color palette and layout of the app. It was suggested that the account icon be moved to the main menu to avoid users thinking the account button would take you back to the home page. A user also suggested adding a scroll bar to indicate that there are more options on the page.
Next Steps
I will be making some slight changes based and user feedback, building out the rest of the app, and re-testing with new users.
What I Learned
At the beginning of the journey, I believed that Mash-Up would be a bright and colorful 90s-inspired app with complex navigation. After user research, I realized that users utilize entertainment media as an escape and the app should be a calm and simple place to escape to.