ECHO
Echo responsive website
Echo is a responsive website that allows an up-and-coming artist to promote their new album and encourage users to PRE-SAVE it to their media library.
Expertise
User Research & UI Design
Platforms
Adobe XD
Deliverables
User Research, Prototyping, User Testing, UI Screens
Timeline
May 2022 - June 2022
THE CHALLENGE
Encouraging the Pre-Save
With pre-saving, die-hard fans have immediate access to a song as soon as it becomes available. PRE-SAVE has yet to gain widespread acceptance, as some users don’t know how it works, want to connect with the artist first, and seek an incentive to commit to PRE-SAVE.
With my site, I aimed to create a scaleable website that could support an emerging artist and provide users with PRE-SAVE options globally.
High Level Goals
1. Make it quick and easy for users to understand when they pre-save a song or album
2. List some incentive options for the user to encourage deeper engagement.
3. Give music listeners more control over the music library by providing multiple platforms to sync their library
My Role
Myself, Learn UX w/Elize, Adobe, RCA Records, and a team of designers collaborated bi-weekly on this project for 4 weeks.
I created a survey which helped the team and I carry out some user research. This proved to be very useful for our initial designs.
User Research Insights
For the purpose of improving the user experience of Echo’s website, I created a survey to gain some better understanding of user's music choice habits.
TIME
Users don’t spend a long time on an artist’s website, so the design needs to provide a minimal amount of screens so the user can locate their needs all in one location.
TOUR DATES
Users more often go to artist’s websites for tour information, so the design needs to provide tour date information and ticket purchasing that is quickly and easily accessible for the user.
WHY PRESAVE?
In order for users to PRESAVE music, they need to feel a connection with the artist and/or have an incentive to do so; the idea is to reward them for doing so so that they are more likely to click PRESAVE.
Competitor Analysis
For Echo's website, I explored some of the more popular artist's websites to gain insight into how we can incorporate some of those elements.
Lana Del Rey
Immediate call to action buttons for the user to see. In one part of the website, one of the artist’s songs is playing as a the user is moving through the website. It frames a fun and moody experience for the user.
- There’s a music video in the background and button that says “Enter Website” before the user get’s to the entire website.
- On the website, there are social media icons and email sign-up options, but they are less obvious than on other platforms.
Jhene Aiko
She includes a lyrics section on her website as well as a gallery where fans can connect with her.
- Artist’s gallery, but no narrative about each image.
- Lots of hero images used. The hero image on both the desktop and mobile is key
How might we promote Echo’s new music while also balancing the user’s goals?
Final Designs
PRESAVE IMMEDIATELY
Outcomes
Created a product that can be expanded to bigger case study with incredible collaboration with stakeholders, designers, and testers.
It was a positive development that the users objectives were able to align with the business objectives
Echo is not a real artist but this was a real-world inspired project with RCA records therefore no final build from a development team was made.
“Everything was so well laid out together. I do like that you did a mobile comp. Most of our users are young. You included music and streaming in multiple areas. As a stakeholder I think I’d be extremely happy with having as much opportunity for people to stream the single as much as they can.”
- Leo Araujo Lead Interaction Designer, RCA Records
What I’d do differently
Get my users to test competitor websites and gain insight on what they liked and disliked
Examine musicians’ fan clubs in more detail and consider how that might be helpful to promote an up-and-coming artist.
Takeaways
This was by far the most thrilling project I’ve ever been able to be a part of. Because this was my first time working with RCA Records, Elize Presents, and Adobe, I was initially nervous. Given Heidi’s area of expertise at GoDaddy, I was nervous about presenting in front of her and the rest of the stakeholders, but I eventually learned to trust my instincts and remember the team was there to help me succeed. Furthermore, I feel so incredibly fortunate to have presented to Leo, the RCA Records Lead Interaction Designer, and Matt, the Senior Product manager at Adobe. Elize really helped me hone my presentation and public speaking skills so I am looking forward to applying that in my future endeavors. I am certain the insights that I gained from this project will be very helpful in the future. The designers I got to meet and connect with as well were amazing. The team and I plan to stay in touch to help each other grow in our careers.
