Project overview

Miu is a side project about an audiobook app made for listeners who value simplicity, affordability and high quality audiobooks. I prototyped and researched this project, while researching I found out that what users value the most is the apps they use being affordable. I also analyzed competitors these users use to deliver my final project.

The research objective

Starting this project, I had an idea of building an audiobook app. Pursuing classes and working on my portfolio has left me unable to catch on books that have been on my shelf since last year, however I never considered audiobooks due to subscription plans and for me accessibility touches affordability in some senses. While sketching I wanted to find out other users' experiences with audiobook apps

Competitor feature analysis and sketching

As a consumer of audio form content such as podcasts and music I looked and observed what features these apps have that make the experience delightful. This helped me compile a couple features to incorporate while sketching. Competitors I looked into were Apple podcasts and Spotify. I observed; subscription plans with access to content through ads, easy navigation, and recommendation systems to recommend users new music/books based on their listening.

While sketching I focused on creating recommendation carousels which were observed in both competitors, cards containing a recent listen (easy access to the last thing users were listening to) and showing users progress/duration. My sketching process is 40% sketching and 60% annotations.

The user flow: onboarding

User flows are an essential part of my design process, they help me determine what type of tasks I want the user to perform, what tasks are possible, and predicting the path the user might take. This particular flow follows the user signing in and trying an audiobook sample.

The first iterations

My wireframing process usually happens on paper where I brainstorm, after the session I move into hi-fi (detailed) screens and linking the flow.

User research

Subscription prices deter commitment

other professional apps have a lot of books but they always require me to buy a 1+ year membership to listen to them. I may only listen to them a few days a month which is not good value for my money

- survey participant

Individuals deeply passionate about reading yet constrained by their hectic lifestyles have encountered frustrations with existing solutions, such as disruptions, low-quality experiences, limited content options, and pricing models that hinder commitment.

After the first iteration I wanted to gain more insight about what other users like myself have encountered so I launched a survey on Facebook asking users about their audiobook experience. With 9 responses I was able to gain more insight and confirm my hypothesis. I assumed users like myself might shy away from these subscription services due to the price. I learned of users who feel that audiobooks take away the experience of reading, pain points with subscription services and limited content options.

Identifying the problem space

How might we empower users seeking alternatives to reading enjoy a high quality and immersive user experience that compliments their lifestyle and needs?

With the survey I was able to collect some user pain points they have encountered while trying to find a platform for them.

poor quality audiobook

cost of audiobooks

subscription plans that are a huge commitment

limited recommendations

User preferences and insights

With the survey I asked users questions such as: "what apps do you use to consume audio form content" "what do you like about those apps" in order to understand what users look for (gain creators).

Users seek non-disruptive platforms (ads)

Affordable options

Easy to use and navigate

Personalization

Iterating and applying user insights

Peek, explore and commit

One thing I observed in another competitor, apple books, is allowing users to peek and explore content without paying. I implemented this as I thought it is a great way to help users make commitment and allow them to assess the quality and content Miu has to offer.