With a mission to "change the way the world reads," Scribd offers an unlimited* reading subscription with access to books, audiobooks, comics, magazines, podcasts, documents and more. It was the first open publishing and reading subscription platform. Now, as it continues to grow, Scribd is looking to create (a) new feature(s) to optimize their platform, solve common user problems and increase user engagement.
This is a design school project, and it is not affiliated with the company. I selected an app I am familiar with to conduct a redesign exercise.
To kick off the project, I conducted a market research to uncover the behaviors and trends particularly relevant to the publishing industry as well as e-books and audiobooks consumption
I conducted a competitive analysis of the industry to identify strengths, weaknesses, and gaps from competitors to uncover opportunity in the market.
With a better understanding of the industry, I then scheduled in-depth interviews with 4 participants. Two interviews were conducted in person, while the other half was conducted virtually. Through a series of open-ended questions, I gained a greater understanding of user needs, motivations and pain points.
See User Interviews
An empathy mapping exercise was conducted to synthesize research observations and gain deeper insights about the users, their needs, motivations and pain points.
See Empathy Map
From the observations and insights gathered through research, I constructed Jamie Montague, a persona created to exemplify the user and humanize the design process.
With a better understanding of the user needs, motivations and frustrations, I generated potential solutions to meet frequent user needs and support business growth. Three opportunities for new features were identified, including:
1. A 'sample audiobook' button to help users choose the right audiobooks to listen to.
2. A new feature that allows users to save a clip of the audiobook, serving a similar purpose to that of highlighting/ annotating a book.
Lastly, if time allows, a third feature will be created to help users track the content (books, audiobooks, podcasts and other documents) they consume on the app as well as the time spent reading and listening to content on Scribd.
With that in mind, I created task flows to indicate the ideal paths to complete key tasks; 1. listen to an audiobook sample to decide whether to not to listen to an audiobook. 2. Save a clip of(or "highlight") an audiobook 3. Retrieve highlights (listen to saved clips).
Once I identified the main flows, I analyzed the app's current information architecture. Taking into account both user and business needs, I added the new features where it best fit the existing sitemap.
I created a few sketches as low-fidelity early iterations of the new features, outlining the structure, layout, navigation and key design elements.
The sketches below represent the following features:
1. Listen to sample audiobook
2. Save audiobook highlight
3. Retrieve audiobook highlight
4. Activity tracker
Once a general design direction was established, I created high fidelity wireframes using Figma. I used Scribd's existing imagery, brand style and UI elements to digitize the new features.
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I created a prototype on Figma to test the task flows previously identified. This includes 1) Play audiobook Sample 2) Create audiobook highlight 3) Retrieve audiobook highlight 4) Track reading activity
See Prototype
To determine if the designed features are effective, I set 4 tasks for 4 participants to complete. I observed their patterns and behaviors through screen recordings and notes.
Objectives:
- Evaluate overall design appeal
- Evaluate the quality and ease relevant to 1. overall feature 2. completing each task
- Identify any areas of improvement relevant to navigation and design
Generally, all participants were able to complete all tasks with ease, and the new features received consistent positive feedback. The participants also provided constructive insights;
Sample Audiobook:
Half of participants considered the 'sample audiobook' link to be slightly hidden.
Create Audiobook Clip:
Some participants indicated that the input fields when creating an audiobook highlight were minimally unclear.
Activity Tracker:
There was some confusion on how to navigate the activity tracker in order to access yearly, monthly and weekly reading info.
See Results Debrief
Based on the the results of the usability test, the following revisions were implemented.
This project, have me the opportunity to experience what it's like to work within the constraints of an existing product with clearly defined styles, goals and guidelines. This was somewhat challenging at times, since it limited my design decisions. However, I quickly realized that this had the opportunity to majorly aid my design process rather than hinder it. Ultimately, this allowed to clearly and easily narrow down and define my design solutions.
Next, I would like to design a quick first-time user tutorial indicating how to save an audiobook clip and where to find it later. Also, I'd like to expand the activity tacker to include additional reading insights.
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