Brooklyn, NY - Project to Bring more Users to the movie theaters again
TMT (The Movie Theater)
A Movie theater app
The Problem:
Busy individuals and families want to find easy ways to spend time together.
I designed a mobile app to help people buy movie tickets with imaginary client The Movie Theater.
Project Duration: 1 month, February 2023
The Goal:
Design an app for The Movie Theater that allows users to easily browse and purchase tickets to the movies.
My Role + Responsibilities
UX designer designing an app for The Movie Theater from conception to delivery - Conducting interviews, paper and digital wireframing, low and high-fidelity prototyping, conducting usability studies, accounting for accessibility, and iterating on designs.
User Research
I conducted interviews and created empathy maps to better understand the users I’m designing for and their needs. A primary user group I identified through research was working adults who want to find more easy ways to spend time with their loved ones, whether partners, children, friends, etc.
This user group confirmed my initial ideas about The Movie Theater’s customers but research also revealed that time was not the only factor keeping people from going to the movies in their limited free time. Other user problems included priorities for available assistive technologies or handicapped seating and awareness of MPA ratings for parents considering bringing children.
Personas
User journey map
Mapping Reena’s user journey revealed how helpful it would be for her to have access to a well-organized, clear and straight forward app for The Movie Theater.
Competitive Analysis
Design
Initial Sketches
Creating various iterations of paper wireframes ensured that necessary elements for each page addressed user pain points. For the home screen, I prioritized a genre feature, highlighting MPA rating for movies and mention of whether particular movies are accessible.
*stars were used to indicate elements of each sketch that would be used in initial digital wireframes
Wireframes
Mobile wireframes
Usability studies
I conducted two usability studies with potential users to observe their app interactions. Through these, I identified what app features are successful in helping the user complete their tasks. Additionally, I identified what features were unnecessary or distracting to completing the tasks.
High Fidelity Wireframes
The final high-fidelity prototype presented cleaner user flows for selecting a movie, movie seats and checking out.
Mobile
As the initial design phase continued, I ensured that screen designs reflected feedback and findings from user research.
Mobile Wireframes (after Usability Studies)
Providing all potential features of accessibility for a particular movie screening was important to address user needs.
Final Designs
Desktop
Desktop High-fidelity prototype here
(Adobe XD)
Accessibility Considerations
Provided info to users who require assistive technologies and other seating accommodations.
Results
The app makes users feel like The Movie Theater cares about connecting with loved ones at the movies. I provided them with an exciting, intuitive app to encourage going back to the theaters.
One quote from peer feedback:
“This app was super fun to use - I loved the colors and movie posters - now I wanna go see a movie in theaters! ”
While designing The Movie Theater’s app, I learned that first ideas for the app are merely the beginning and serve as guidelines for the process. Usability studies and peer feedback influenced each iteration of the app’s designs
Next Steps…
Conduct another round of usability studies to validate whether pain points were addressed and what requires iteration.
Used icons to help make navigation easier.
Conduct more user research to determine any new areas of need for users.
Used high contrast colors to help all users better view important info.
Enroll in UC Irvine’s MHCID ICS program to expand upon and improve my initial knowledge of UX research and design.