Fun UI: Lessons Learned
From Building a ConsumerOriented Media Product
Neil Mix
Pandora Media, Inc.
Lesson #1:
Verbosity sucks.
(see presentation title)
What is Pandora?
• Internet radio based on the Music Genome
Project
• Personalized stations
• 15+ million registered listeners
• pandora.com
Who am I?
• Senior Software Engineer
• Builder of Pandora music player
• Web and iPhone
Not a designer.
About Pandora
• “If you don’t agree that this is the coolest
application you’ve seen in a long while, reread this post over and over until you agree,
because you are wrong.” - TechCrunch
• “Slick, Flash player allows easy controls and
quick access to music.” - ExtremeTech
Topics
• Design
• Execution
• Customers
Design
Welcome to Savage Beast
Credit: Benjamin Earwicker
Problem
• Kiosk business not working
• Great technology
• Searching for a problem
Which direction?
• Other media types
• Other music products
Decision:
Internet Radio
Why?
• Leverage passion inherent in your culture
• Don’t be a feature
Setting the stage
The Plan
You + Music + ASAP = Goodness
Note:
ASAP
Traditional music site:
Traditional music site:
Traditional music site:
“Listen Now”
means
music starts
Count the decisions:
Ask yourself:
What am I supposed
to do when I
get here?
You + Music + ASAP = Task Oriented
Task Oriented = Quantifiable
The Funnel
objectivity
Quantifiable results
tell you if your
design works
Usability tests
Digression: driving
• High self rating
• No outcome control
Driving -> design
• High self rating
• No outcome control
Surprises from usability tests
• Music selection
• Thumbs feedback
music selection
Music selection
thumbs feedback
Thumbs feedback
Objectivity is crucial to
gauging the effectiveness
of your design
Simplicity.
Simplicity
Pandora then:
Pandora now:
Would you believe…
94 screens!
You cannot remove features.
You cannot remove features.
Ever.
Simplicity gets
one chance
In other words:
Day 1 is the simplest
your product will ever be.*
*First time visitor view:
looks simple
!=
simple
Example: what if…
• Someone misspells?
• Two artists have the same name?
• An artist and a song have the same name?
Answer:
• Collect “missed search” data
• Refine
Managing tradeoffs
Expert critique
• Player is too small
• Feature X not discoverable
Discoverable
Sometimes you
win by losing
Knowing key features
Quality of music
determines
listening hours.
listening hours = success
The most important feature:
music (duh!)
Process
• Weekly playlist meetings
• Playlist changes
• Data collection
• Trend and release correlations
• Objectivity
Objectivity requires data.
Lots of data.
Know which levers
effect usage the most.
Always ask:
How will I measure
the effectiveness
of
this feature?
/Design
Execution
Technology
Technology: Flash
Why: Ubiquity
Pain point: Media
X-browser bug count:
Zero.
Technology: AJAX
Reason: Advertising
Pain point: Cost structure
Problem
• radio = bandwidth
• bandwidth = $$
• banner ads = failing business model
Solution: better ads
Demonstrating:
Technology as a
tool to solve
business problems
Life as a developer
CEO
Ð
CTO
Ð
Design
Ð
Engineering
Surprise:
I hold a lot of influence.
Why?
All specs
are incomplete.
Guess who fills
in the cracks?
But…
• Not a designer…
• How does that work?
Digression: My Story
Musician
Ð
Technology Geek
Ð
UI Designer*
Ð
Technology Geek
*About Being a UI Designer…
Good Things I Did As A UI Designer
1) umm…
2) well…
3) see, uh…
How I Became a UI Designer
• Step 1: Read a book about UI design
• Step 2: Expert!
I am the inmate
running the asylum.
But…
• Not a designer…
• How does that work?
Shared passion
CEO
CTO
Design
Engineering
Passionate
about
user
experience
But…
• Not a designer…
• How does that work?
Shared passion
and objectivity
User experience
is a cultural value
Keeping the site running
Emergency!
• “I use Norton…”
• “I hear dogs barking…”
• “I love bookmarks…”
Notable quote:
“Boy, our traffic is a faucet that
jams listeners through every
conceivable path in our code.”
If it can happen,
it will happen.
/Execution
Customers
Customer appreciation
The most important cultural value:
A desire to keep your customers happy.
User experience means
the entire experience
Tactics
• Customers talk to engineers
• Founder tours the country
• Real people answer emails…quickly!
Answer
every
question.
I remember this song I
heard once ten years ago…
What’s the JavaScript
command you used to…
I’m starting my own company
and I was wondering…
Don’t fret over grammar.
Does it really help?
Yes.
Word of mouth is the
cheapest, most effective
marketing ever
Happy customers mean
• Lower costs
• Faster growth
• Valuable branding
• Powerful allies
User experience
becomes your branding
/Customers
New Frontiers
Remember that stuff
about simplicity?
And now…
iPhone
Reflection on values…
• Younger: innovation
• Older: simplicity
For iPhone…
Simplicity = “borrowing”
Comfort in borrowing
• Fewer decisions to make
• Less risk
• If you have a good role model
Not every design
requires innovation.
Not every design
requires innovation.
Most designs
require no innovation.
rich UI != usability
rich UI = tool
can be user friendly*
*use with care
usability = doing the expected
/Presentation
Audience Response
Questions?