SHUFFLE
Shuffle is a fun, visually and auditory stimulating application that builds a virtual album library & provides music recommendations based on a game mechanic that allows the user to rate different albums.
When users sign up for the app, they are prompted to connect their streaming service that populates the user’s library into the app. From there, users can organize their albums to their specifications, make playlists, and showcase both their most played albums and top album choices. Users can also search for different artists and albums and add them to their library throughout the app.
Finally, users can ‘shuffle’ by starting a game where an album is presented & users are prompted to rate said album to their specifications, new and updated recommendations are determined through this mechanic and their unbiased streaming habits.
Background
When ideating and doing preliminary research, a few of the main issues with streaming services were determined to be: the lack of coherent music recommendations, frustration with the way streaming services organized users collections, and the perception that many streaming services had an invisible bias towards playing certain artists, tracks, or genres. Originally, a three-pronged approach was implemented during the ideation phase: Discovery, Organization and Social Networking. Social networking was eventually dropped to narrow and clarify the scope of the project.
The problem statement evolved to:
“How might we create a music app that creates top quality recommendations and brings the joys of vinyl collecting to the digital sphere?”
A breakthrough was determined when I started researching users' listening habits, and I was led down a rabbit hole about the growth in popularity of vinyl collecting in the past few years. In 2021 alone, revenue from vinyl sales grew 61% and have been steadily rising since 2004. Close to half of those purchasing vinyl are aged 18-35, with the second largest demographic aged 50+. I determined that while nothing else compares with a physical collection, an app that can capture the feeling of curating, and displaying a collection of records could captivate the 18-35 demographic.
With this new information in mind, a new strategy was formed. I focused on features and ideas that I gathered from my preliminary survey and interviews, including having user’s most played albums displayed, as well as having options to sort and search by genre. I defined my four main pages and from there built them outward. I then tested the prototype with a few subjects and made necessary suggested tweaks and changes. The result was an easy and fun to use app that satisfied users' two main complaints—organization and recommendations, in a way that was reminiscent of putting together a physical vinyl collection.
PROCESS
Drawing from a preliminary survey and interview process, I used the sticky note method and organized user quotes into sections:
I then moved on to some quick sketches and narrowed down ideas:
Eventually moving on to low-fidelity wireframes.
Research
I focused on user research first, using Reddit as a way to gather participants for a brief survey that provided the base for my first round of ideating. I also did quite a bit of contextual research on the user's listening habits, as well as the user's vinyl collecting habits. Furthermore, I then did a competitive analysis to understand competition and make sure what I was creating added value to the market.
After my high-fidelity prototype was appropriate for testing, I had several users try the prototype. They provided feedback and I made necessary tweaks. Some of my favorite suggestions and common themes included adding an opportunity to have an audio preview within the prototype/app, fixing navigation issues, and adding a more robust sign-up process.
Concept Evolution
I chose to create Shuffle as a gamified music recommendation app because I wanted to do something different other than just create a new streaming service. I wanted to add something new to the market and help fill in the gaps. Likewise, I also wanted to potentially create a space where independent musicians and labels could gather more exposure, and having a place with unbiased recommendations could potentially help.
Visual design was critical to me during this project. I really wanted to make sure I was highlighting and complimenting album artwork on every screen. While interviewing users, one of their favorite things about vinyl collecting was their ability to see and appreciate album artwork at a larger scale. I also wanted to visually communicate the app’s lighthearted and game-like feel while still feeling young & ‘cool’ as my target demographic is in the 18-35 year old range. The color palette chosen is bright & I hand-drew most of the icons to give the app a homemade, funky, DIY feeling. I also wanted to use bright colors & white space to differentiate from Spotify. I did first experiment with a more minimalistic approach, but ultimately decided to highlight a fun, youthful vibe.
The largest challenge for this project was narrowing down the scope. I initially really wanted to add a social media component, but realized it might be too ambitious and would take away from the streamlined approach. I feel I accomplished a similar objective by allowing opportunities for easy sharing to other social media platforms. Moreover, while completing this project, the phase “simpler isn’t always easier” definitely comes to mind. As difficult as it is to narrow the scope of larger projects, it is also difficult to create a UI that is intuitive, straightforward and has a few, well working and easy to understand components. Overall, I am very pleased with the way Shuffle has evolved and come to the stage it is at presently & I am excited with what I have achieved and accomplished within this limited time frame. In the future, I would like to further expand and refine the app and maybe even take it to a development phase.
A five-minute tour through Shuffle.