Improving browse and discovery in the mobile app
So we were in the early days of creating an app to feature content from the major networks of 21st Century Fox. Among the many projects I worked on to that end, I led the UI/UX/prototyping for browse and discovery.
A design agency delivered initial designs and, while the UI was very pleasing, our video starts from the collections (i.e. browse categories) were crap. Users didn’t notice the top nav, they didn’t know to swipe horizontally to see other collections, they had to swipe all the way down a collection to open each cell, they were confused by the collection names, et al. So, off I went!
Making brands play nice in a single app required compromise. No FOX blue, FX red, or NatGeo yellow. Instead the content (e.g. key art, logos) would do the branding for us.
I went through many iterations, presenting every version to product managers and stakeholders through many rounds. This was after executives caught wind of my penchant for interactive prototyping, so creating high-fidelity deliverables on ridiculous timelines became the norm, 😭. Here are a few of them (play with all my prototypes here):
Executives were adamant that atmospheric background videos be incorporated in the design (believing it necessary to the nostalgia of the traditional tv watching experience). I agreed that atmospheric video was captivating, but not so much of it to the detriment of usability (e.g. illegible UI on top of video with varying colors). I tried to come up with a happy medium in every iteration. Ideally, we would’ve tested them all, but the folks upstairs decided that was a luxury! So, we AB tested a Netflix version against the current design, 🤷🏻♂️.
Drum roll 🥁…While the Netflix version showed marked improvement in user browsing behavior and repeat viewership for converted users, there were still clear tradeoffs in the design change. Despite the improved browsing experience of the Netflix UI, overall unique conversions were flat and first time users were slightly less likely to convert. Ultimately, the current UI appeared to offer a more impactful marketing/branding experience, but inhibited either the ability or desire for users to browse further into the app. With that, we decided to stick with the current UI and make tweaks to address some of the pain points.