American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP)
ASCAP is a performance-rights organization (PRO) that makes sure music creators are collecting royalties for their works. The opportunity to build an app was an opportunity to improve the experience for our current and future members.
THE PROCESS
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Define
- Kickoff
- Review Data
- Competitive Analysis
- Heuristic Analysis
- Stakeholder & Member Interviews -
Research
- Interviews Readout
- Member Archetypes
- Strategic Pillars
- Features & Functionality (draft) -
Design
- Features & Functionality
- Product Roadmap
- Phase 1 Plan
- Discovery Readout
- Userflows and Wireframes
- Look & Feel
Kickoff Workshop
The first step was to align on goals and opportunities.
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“ASCAP should be a partner for our member journey, and not time consuming work."
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“ASCAP’s digital experience should be a moment of solace in a complicated industry."
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“Putting information, power, engagement, and education at our user’s fingertips."
Review Data
What can we learn from the inquiries that our Global Services team is getting?
Audited the current landscape
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Direct competitors
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Indirect competitors
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Opportunities from parallel industries for collaboration, onboarding and education, data entry and visualization
And the current web experience...
Focusing on:
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Information Architecture
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Register a work
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View Earnings
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Receive Support
We identified needs from members and stakeholders
Interviewing writers and self publishers both new and established
Interviewing groups from
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Global Services
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Distribution
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Product
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Marketing
And mapping it all together:
Member Archetypes
From the research, we mapped the following member archetypes:
Newbie
Non-members or very recent members who are just starting out in the industry. They have little knowledge of ASCAP or its offerings, though they may have done a bit
of prior research.
Needs:
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Seamless onboarding
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Introductions to ASCAP tools and offerings
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Industry crash course and “get started” guides
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“First workshops”, “First connections”, mentorships
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Status indicators and notifications
The Growing Talent
A pre-professional archetype, with varying degrees of experience in a few categories. They’ve likely registered a few songs or been a member for one or more years, but
haven’t quite “made it” yet.
Needs:
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Mentorship opportunities, workshops, and events
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Dedicated access to resources and studios
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Social tools and integrations
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More detailed or specific industry knowledge
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Solid understanding of next steps
The Established Artist
They’ve established themselves in the industry and are familiar with ASCAP’s offerings. They're looking to expand their reach, deepen their practice, and track high level creative and financial trends
Needs:
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Access to high profile events and workshops
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Access to high level insights, data, and financial trends
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Tools to grow their influence and manage a team
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Registration that can handle complex collaborations
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Tools for managers / delegates
The Pillars
Insights from our archetypes informed our strategic pillars and foundational concepts. Enabling members to create work, gain insights, and connect with their community.
We structured our solutions around pillars of the creation process
• Making work, and accessing tools to do so
• Learning about the industry, and deepening the creator's context
• Belonging to a community, and strengthening their practice
• Earning a living in order to fuel all aspects of their work
Ultimately, members need a platform that lets them focus on the creative process while supporting their career.
To focus on the creative, members need tools that are streamlined, integrated, and
immediate.
To support their careers, members need a trusted source to navigate the complexities of
the industry.
Immediacy
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Realtime registration
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Up to date earnings
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Realtime enrollment
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Live chat
Trust
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Industry guides
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Connection opportunities
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Onboarding
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Status and support
Project Roadmap
So how to we make this happen? It's time to align features to our pillars. Let's put together a roadmap.
The sitemap lists all app sections and flows, providing an outline for how our app is organized. We have included prioritized versions of our sitemap in order to account for technical and design level of effort.
We can use this sitemap as a way to start listing the features and functionalities for the key sections. The key sections of the app reflect areas where content lives. While flows represent processes that a member must go through in order to register works or onboard to the app, sections contain the output of these processes. These outputs include registered works, earnings, and profile information, among other elements.
Works
The works landing represents both the earnings and works sections, consolidated in one landing page. As works pages and cards will display earnings, the two pages can effectively live as one dashboard.
Consolidating these sections will organize the member’s view within the app, prioritizing a
single point of reference rather than multiple sources of information.
Profile
The member profile will include the member’s IPI number and QR code for quick registration access. The profile will also include personal information, a profile photo, and account settings.
In order to add elements of personalization, the profile can also include relevant member benefits, link-outs to industry articles, recommended events or distribution dates, and ability to add to a member’s calendar.
Support
Support may include live chat for Phase 1, if prioritized by the ASCAP product team. If chat
is developed for a later phase, Support should include current messaging channels. Support may include high level FAQ content and other methods of content depending on priority.
Non-auth Landing
The non-authenticated landing, for those who have not yet logged in or become members
with ASCAP, should offer onboarding content about ASCAP, industry tips for new members, and the ability to log in to the app. If the user has not yet become a member, the app will also link out to OME web for application.
Key Flows & System Functions
Flows
Flows within the app represent processes that a member goes through in order to register a work or onboard to the app. These processes are multi-step and often lead to various paths and states.
System Functions
System functions are controlled by the user’s device and persist outside of the app. In this case, they take the form of push notifications and AR features.
Works Registration
Works registration will include any flows and states necessary for a member to register a
work with ASCAP. Registration may include the ability to select collaborators based on location, history (eg. Past collaborators), IPI number entry, search, or scannable code.
Works registration may also include the ability to report a performance to ASCAP, as part of OnStage functionality, depending on priority.
Log in, Onboarding, Membership
Authentication will grant the user access to the app, and may also account for 2-factor authentication, as well as log out via Settings.
Onboarding will introduce the user to the app and ASCAP, communicate key features and
functionality, and save any initial personal information added.
If a user has not yet become a member with ASCAP, the app will link out to OME (online
member enrollment.)
Notifications
A notifications strategy document, as well as examples of notifications will be developed, detailing notification types, content, and frequency. Notification types to be determined and prioritized in design. Notification settings will be managed within a member's settings.
Augmented Reality
Augmented reality features may include AR for works registration, earnings statements, or may involve additional conceptual exploration.
Content
Content within the ASCAP app will speak to ASCAP as an organization, their role in the
industry, and the value they can provide for members. Content will educate members on the features of the app, as well as provide helpful industry information. Creating content for the ASCAP app will be an ongoing process, as we will seek to build a robust library of industry knowledge over time.
As the member’s link to ASCAP and the industry, app content should be:
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Educational: establish a knowledge baseline for both the product and the industry
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Aspirational: help members recognize their goals and next steps, both immediate and long term
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Valuable: communicate ASCAP’s mission and value as an organization
Navigation
Our navigation framework describes the ways in which users interact with the interface order to access app sections, as defined by the sitemap. Here we have included various options for our navigation structure, to be discussed and considered.
As the living manifestation of our IA, the navigation should:
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Be findable, usable, and intuitive
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Provide users with direct pathways to meet their goals and needs
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Account for key use cases and states
1. Drawer System Concept
The drawer system balances key app sections, but keeps registration accessible and prominent with an easily reachable drawer.
Pros
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Direct, gestural access to works registration
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Seamless transition between landing and all works
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Access to all sections is visible and evenly prioritized
Cons
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Support and profile are less thumb accessible
2. Slider System Concept
The slider system prioritizes registration first and foremost as the app landing, but keeps other sections accessible through swiping gestures.
Pros
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Registration is highly prioritized as the app landing
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Focusing on the most critical action is highly intuitive
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All interactions are gestural and easily accessible
Cons
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Prioritizing registration on landing hides works and earnings
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Support is less accessible directly from landing
3. Floating Action Button Concept
The floating action button system keeps registration accessible through a FAB and shows additional sections, including a dashboard, with a bottom nav.
Pros
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Bottom navigation is a pattern that users easily recognize
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The Dashboard gives members an overview of multiple sections
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The bottom nav evenly prioritizes all sections
Cons
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This navigation pattern is more traditional or expected
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Lack of navigational hierarchy
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Having both a dashboard and works landing can be redundant
Wireflows
We started to create wireflows which allowed the stakeholders to get a deeper look into the site’s architecture. It was also helpful when developing technical specifications. Its important for to account for all the functionalities a user may experience going through each individual flow. Here are some examples of wireflows for users regiestering their works:
We also made a plan to include user research as part of Phase 1.
We plan to test with ASCAP members to validate the usability and efficacy of our designs.
We plan to test with ASCAP members to validate the usability and efficacy of our designs.
Qualitative research
What is the process?
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We conduct remote, video interview tests with full, production-ready designs in order to gauge the usability and clarity of our designs
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We develop an interview script that asks users to move through specific
tasks, talking through their process -
We conduct 45 minute interviews with 10 - 12 select users.
Why do we do it?
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We will conduct usability tests in order to gauge the overall effectiveness of our product before moving into the development phase.
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Qualitative research provides nuance and insight because researchers can witness interactions real-time while users explain their actions
Quantitative research
What is the process?
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We will conduct remote testing with a short-form clickable prototype using trusted third-party testing platforms like UserZoom, Usability Hub, etc.
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We send out a link to this test and prototype, reaching 20 - 30 users and asking them to take about 15 minutes to complete the exercise.
Why do we do it?
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With remote testing, we have more immediate access to a wider range and greater number of users
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We can also quickly test key user flows, primary tasks, micro interactions, and design look & feel
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Results are quantitative, and in order to provide nuance and insight, it is recommended that we pair this with qualitative testing
What will we focus on in the later phases?
Later phases include additional app features to be included post-MVP that build on our initial framework in order to augment the member experience.
Look & Feel
While ASCAP has a styleguide, the app presents an opportunity to freshen up and
modernize some of the existing colors.
Next Steps
For next steps, we need to put together design and build phases of the app. We need to look for developers who will look at our discovery material as well as wireflows who will work with us to bring the ASCAP app vision to life.