spotify | eda

Project Overview

Spotify is a music streaming platform that gives users access to a large catalog of music. Spotify implements a number of simple strategies with great effectiveness. Spotify's mission is to give people access to all the music they want all the time - in a completely legal and accessible way.

Problem Statement

For this project, conducting user research, knowing the business goals, and understanding the users' needs were key in helping Spotify achieve its goals better through adding features. I tried to find solutions to the shortcomings that I observed in terms of users discovering new things, low interaction, and easy usability.

Design Process

Discovery Phase

1. Desk Research

Using data from reviewing previous research findings to gain a broad understanding of the field.

2. Qualitative Research

I interviewed 4 users on video calls to understand the challenges they face with using Spotify Web Player. A few sample tasks are listed below.

Please open the personal playlist and listened mostly
Choose a song according to your mood
Open <X> artist's <Y> song
Define the titles on the home page
Start <X> episode of <Y> podcast

3. Quantitative Research

I did an online survey using Google Forms to collect data from the target audience to get information andto observe any pattern that they may want. A total of 14 people responded in this section, the results of this survey are:

7. Is there an experience on the Spotify web app that doesn't make you happy?

8. Which feature would you be happy to have in the Spotify web app?

Key Insights

Although users said that they could easily find what they were looking for in the application, they stated that they had deficiencies in discoveringnew things and interacting. While creating a new playlist is easy, they mentioned the pain points of adding songs and finding similar songs within the list.

The majority of users are usingthe shuffle feature, which is not currently easy to use and visible considering my heuristic approach.

While Spotify users can easily use the application for basic actions, they have difficulty in dynamic actions such asdiscovering or being aware of newness and interacting with other users.

Although the use ofpodcastsis quite common, the same solutions are offered with music. There are features in the two areas where it differs.

Treasure Phase

1. Affinity Map

Using data from review previous research findings to gain a broad understanding of the field.

2. Persona

As a result of the research and the data, I've gathered from them, I have come up with two types of potential Spotify Web Player users. Elsa helped me to understand more deeply the different uses of the app. On the other hand, John helped me create better solutions to increase the interaction in the application and increase the ability of users to discover within the application.

Idea Phase

1. Information Architecture

Informed by research, I created a revised map for Spotify Web Player, showing how the new feature would integrate within the existing architecture.

2. User Task Flow

I focused on decreasing the processes needed for the main task, increasing the visibility of features, and providing users discover new things by simulating the redesigned flow.

New Features

Priority features I have improved and added with the data I have obtained from the research I have done.

Home:

I wanted to increase the dynamism and interaction on the home page. I added categories and friend activities. I made the monotonous interface more dynamic with cards of different sizes.

Playlist:

I made the shuffle and mini-player features more visible. I made it more specific about which song is playing in the playlist. I provided easy access by adding a search box and date-filtering features.

Search:

I have provided accessibility by putting the search box on the main pages. I changed the name of the search page to discover because I noticed that users are confused when they see mood and new release titles on the search page. I thought it would be more consistent to customize this page to just discover.

SideBar:

I have observed that users have difficulty finding their personal playlists. Likewise, I noticed that the lists are mixed in the sidebar. I added a dropdown menu in the sidebar under the title of my playlists and with the see all option, I made it possible to access all their playlists easily.

Podcast:

I noticed that the top podcast page within the podcast is not different from the main podcast page and does not offer any rating. I added top podcast ranking and rating. I also observed that users scroll a lot to reach the episode they are looking for. I added a seasoned filter to reduce this.

Design Phase

1. Design System

2. Wireframes

3. Visual Design

Next Steps

In the next stage, I will evaluate the product by making user tests with users. I will iteratively improve the product by applying the feedback received. By reaching more users, I will validate the product and confirm the decisions.