APIX
Description
Video streaming sites have never been more popular. Especially with quarantine, the streaming world has bloomed and is growing by the day. Apix is a startup streaming company that launched its free version two years ago. With its ever-growing loyal user base, Apix is in need of an upgrade from its free version to a premium version.
Role
Product Design
Timeline
August 2020
Tools
Adobe XD, Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Illustrator
Process
Discovery
User Interviews
Secondary Research
Competitive Analysis
Affinity Map
Personas
Ideation
User Flows
Sketches
Design
Wireframes
High-fidelity Prototype
Interaction Design
Visual Design
Branding
Testing
User Testing
Iterations
DISCOVERY
The Problem
How can Apix profit while keeping the trust of its user base?
Apix has built its healthy user base through its freemium product. Suddenly changing everything into a paid subscription would cause many users to lose trust and back out of using Apix. However, due to the business growth, Apix is in need of a major upgrade in terms of profit. It needs a redesign that will appease users who either want to join a premium plan or continue using Apix for free
Challenges
How can Apix keep the trust of its users?
How can I compel users to switch from the free to the premium membership?
How can I provide a seamless and simple switch to a premium membership?
How will Apix earn a profit if a majority of users stay on the free membership?
User Interviews
I conducted a series of interviews with potential users, and then synthesized the interview data into an affinity map. I categorized the findings into four main sections:
Pain Points
Viewing Habits
Features
Demographics
These four categories helped define what users struggled with, what they wanted, who they are, and what their tendencies are. Synthesizing this information allowed me to focus on shaping business goals around user goals.
Competitive Analysis
Flow
Flexibility
Interface
Netflix
Overall cancelling and switching is fine, less of a hassle compared to other apps. Users typically do not feel the need to cancel at all.
30 day free trial. Able to cancel at any time. Must have payment info before trial. 3 different plan options.
Black background with red tones. Top and bottom navigation bars. Simple, easy to understand.
Hulu
Cancelling and changing subscription is a huge hassle. Must wait for termination period and most options still have ads.
30 day free trial. Able to cancel at any time. Must have payment info before trial. 4 different plan options.
Dark background with green and white tones. Layout of content needs work.
Disney Plus
Cancelling app is a hassle as it is hidden deep within the app, making it hard for users to easily switch memberships or accounts.
No free trial. Able to cancel at any time. Must have payment info before trial. 3 different plan options.
Dark background with white tones. Navigation is made very easy and sectors of Disney are well organized.
Secondary Research
I conducted a series of secondary research through articles, blogs, user reviews, informational studies, and app-store reviews to find how Apix can compel users to not only stay on Apix but also upgrade to the premium version:
Convenience. People pay to make life easier and memberships do exactly that
Nurture. A friendly email thanking the user, with a small list of perks the premium provides
Urgency/Promotion. Show perks of what premium users experience and provide a promotional value. People don’t like missing out
Unlock. Promise unlocked features premium provides compared to freemium
Clarity. Have clear calls to action to lead users in the right direction
Ads. Premium should remove ads of all kinds
Preview. Tease users with a preview of content available only in premium
Ease. If the transition is easy then people are more inclined to make the switch
Meet the Users!
Dany Clarke
Dany is a hard-working software engineer. She has goals oriented towards easily finding the right content for herself and paying for a premium product that is truly worth paying for.
Jon Harrington
Jon is a masters student who is constantly out and about during the day. He has goals to using a premium app that is tailored to his desires and that he can use while outside of his apartment.
Solutions
Give users the freedom to either stay on freemium or be able to shift to premium at any time
Highlight premium perks without overflowing users with advertisements
Lead the user with clear calls to action and a page dedicated to promoting the premium service
Place ads within the freemium and clearly tell users when/where the ads will be and what content will/will not have ads
IDEATION
User Flow
After completing the discovery process, I ideated through user flows of red routes that Apix users would take to complete two tasks: Signing up for a free account and upgrading to a premium account.
Sketches
I created these conceptual sketches with pencil, pen and paper to generate ideas quickly. I then created a prototype from these sketches and conducted guerrilla usability tests to uncover usability issues, element inconsistencies, and recurring pain points.
DESIGN
Wireframes
After conducting guerilla usability tests from the sketches, I created a wireframe prototype. These are a few examples of the low-fidelity screens I worked on.
Style Guide
This is a style guide that I created for Apix. It contains the typography, color palette, and visual elements that build the visual experience or Apix.
High-Fidelity Prototype
I incorporated my design system into my wireframes and created the high-fidelity prototype. I included subtle animations, visual hierarchies, clear call to actions, and made the experience as simple, aesthetic, and seamless as possible.
Free member upgrading to premium membership
Other High-Fidelity Screens
TESTING
Usability Testing
I conducted two rounds of tests for my prototypes. From these tests, some results were:
The process of going from free to premium and vice versa was a bit too simple, making it too easy for users to just switch back and forth whenever they wanted.
Some elements and pages were too similar to eachother. For example, “Settings” and “Preferences” were similar as well as the icon for “My stuff” being an icon typically used for a profile page.
The process was overall very simple and understandable. Apix was commended on how it took the users much fewer steps to get to where they typically wanted.
RESULTS and TAKEAWAYS
Business-minded goal
User research and tests showed me how I could take Apix to the next level with balancing a freemium and premium service. Wanting to keep its loyal, healthy user base, Apix needed to provide a way for users to optionally be able to switch from the free service to premium, while also allowing them to stay on the free service if need be. I utillized compelling, but not demanding, methods to entice users to the premium service.
Discover pain points early
Through interviews and research of app reviews, I found many pain points that users faced in different name-brand streaming apps. Those reviews helped solve many issues early on and design a seamless experience.
Less is more
Like the great saying goes, “Less is more”. Initially, I had more steps and interactions that users would need to reach certain points but each round of testing helped reduce the complexity of the process. Minimizing the aesthetic over time received positive feedback from testers as they mentioned that the minimalistic interface worked better in this setting than other apps that they have interacted with.