HBO Max: Usability project

Streaming platforms have become widely popular, with over 1 billion consumers subscribing to streaming subscriptions worldwide during the 2020 pandemic. HBO Max was one of these platforms that consumers could enjoy from the safety of their home. I was part of a student UX research team who had one goal in mind, improve the experience for HBO's thousands of users. I wanted to make the experience as seamless as possible and provide users with a great experience. Primarily focusing on the components of user profiles, how users keep track of shows they favorite and how they would watch shows and movies offline. 

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The team wanted to understand pain points that were faced by mobile users using the app.  Creating a moderator guide that could be utilized in the usability sessions was the first step. Moderated sessions were then conducted to get deep understanding of common user frustrations with the streaming service. I was involved in all aspects research: recruitment, scheduling, moderating session and analyzing the qualitative data.  Pilot test were conducted prior to ensure quality of the moderator guide. After a few iterations, I executed usability sessions and synthesized the results that were collected. Lastly, I presented the findings to two stakeholders within HBO, one being a senior UX Researcher within HBO, to share collected data. 

Preliminary Steps

To achieve the goal, I adopted a virtual moderated usability test that was conducted via Zoom. Target audience were individuals who had some experience with platform streaming services.  Secondary research was done to search for commonality amongst users. Social media platforms and app reviews were viewed to see what  was frustrating users.

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Research method and objectives were formulated based on research and a timeline was created to ensure that the team were able to meet the deadline. Recruitment strategies were created and a participant screener was created to ensure quality participants. 

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Recruitment Strategy

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Participants

• 19 remote 1:1 moderated usability sessions via zoom

• Ages between 20-60 years old

• 10 women, 8 men, 1 non-binary 

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To ensure that diversity and representation were present in our research study, efforts were taken to recruit participants in different geographic locations within the United States. Using a convenience sample, 19 total participants were recruited to partake in this study. 

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Execution of Study 

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Upon receiving an eligible participant, 30 minute usability sessions took place with 3 separate journeys to better understand user frustrations. The sessions were recorded to ensure quality of data collection, in addition, to my personal note taking throughout the session time.  After the data was collected, I would pinpoint any themes or commonalities that were found between participants. Analyzing the usability test recordings, I prepared a presentation with 4 of the key findings and insights. 

When asked to complete certain tasks, participants were often confused with certain interactions prompting the moderator to probe the participant for further details. Allowing users to speak with no interruptions provided key details that would have been missed if the next objective was started. 

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Participants were often confused by the lack of visual cues provided by the app experience and looked for any indication that they completed the correct action. Suggestions were created based on the interactions observed by participants such as: adding visual ques, utilizing language that is industry standard and using skeuomorphism's to ease the user's cognitive effort. 

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Our findings and recommendations included visual and sensory feedback to improve user experience on the app and help the app be more intuitive for users. ​

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Some limitations that we ran into as a group was that this was a University of Southern California school project, so we were limited on resources and time. It would of been helpful to have the resources that the HBO team has such as participant list and incentives that would have ensure more optimal recruitment strategies. 

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• Provided insight into different functionalities and how they could be improved upon. Developer's should focus on user perspectives when creating streaming service platforms for users. 

• It's crucial to have your users in mind when creating new features on apps such as adding interactive visual cues, using industry standard accepted language, utilizing user mental models and incorporating app badges to provide clear insights to users.

• The project was able to meet the deadline, with the team meeting each milestone on time. The final report was met with overwhelmingly positive stakeholder feedback from the HBO Max Senior UX Researcher.

• Our findings and recommendations included increasing visual and sensory feedback provided to improve the interaction between user and app.