NETFLIX

With more and more people turning to streaming services, our team wanted to analyze how Netflix could be improved to make their experience more engaging, we wanted to know what they wanted to see in the future.

Our goal was to understand the user's perspective, including their preferences and pain points.

2021 | Timeline: 15 weeks | UX Research & Design

Insights

01. Ratings & Reviews

Pain Point

Before deciding on a particular movie or television show, users choose to read ratings and/or reviews. To do so, they either had to utilize a different device or leave the Netflix platform, which was difficult and diverted the viewer.

Solution

Added a button within Netflix with the ability to launch an IMDB pop-up window. Viewers can now verify ratings and reviews from a reliable source without leaving the platform.

02. Hiding & Retrieving Content

Pain Point

Users did not comprehend the functionality of the thumbs-down feature since they could still view the disliked content on their wall, which was unpleasant. This action was less intuitive leaving the user wondering what to do.

Solution

Users may now put their disliked content to a new, retrievable hidden list using the same feature's newly added functionality.

03. Checking Cast Information

Pain Point

In order to check more cast information, viewers frequently had to leave the Netflix platform or use another device.

Solution

Option to view cast info:

while watching the content by clicking on cast on the player page
before/after watching the content by clicking on the cast name

Timeline

Competitor Analysis

Competitors:
Amazon Prime Video and Disney Plus

In to understand Netflix's shortcomings and what its competitors are doing in the industry, we began our research with a competitor analysis.

User Interviews

Conducted 8 remote user interviews of full-time students in Toronto, Canada who are studying remotely.

Aim: To dive deeper and get an understanding of users’ pain points while using the Netflix platform. We focused majorly on trying to get insights about the chosen findings from our competitor analysis.

Below are the shortcomings we chose to address:

Ratings and Reviews: Viewers have to leave the platform.
Facts and Trivia: The option to view more about the content
Thumbs-down feature: Enhancement of the existing feature to make it more functional and intuitive.

Persona

Rachel Green

A full-time student at a University in Ontario and a part-time waitress at a coffee shop. After a long day, she enjoys watching movies while eating her meals. She prefers services that offer video on demand since she is able to access content anytime she wants.

User Pain Points

Difficulty in selecting the content from a huge list
Doesn’t like to leave the platform to check ratings
Finds it time-consuming to select something to watch
Doesn’t like to Google Search for content-related information
Doesn’t want the see thumbnails of horror and gore movies on her screen
Doesn’t understand the thumbs up / thumbs down feature

1. Ratings & Reviews

Journey Map. User Flow. Usability Testing. Prototype.

The hover state of movie thumbnails displays IMDb ratings. This enables a user to quickly check ratings of content they are interested in. More details about ratings and reviews can be viewed by clicking on the IMDb button on the ‘More Info’ page. This opens an IMDb pop-up window with information from its website.

User Journey Map

User Flow

Usability Testing

Usability Issues

Questioned about the rating system on the thumbnail
Did not understand that the IMDb button in the expanded view was clickable

Updates

Added IMDb logo next to the rating
Animated the IMDb button to show that it is clickable

2. Hide & Retrieve Content

Journey Map. User Flow. Usability Testing. Prototype.

When a user clicks on the thumbs-down button to dislike something, they are also given the option to send it to a ‘hidden list.’ This gives the user the flexibility to hide or retrieve an item at any point in time. It addresses the problem of disliked content showing up on their screen again and again.

User Journey Map

User Flow

Usability Testing

Hiding Content

Usability Issues

To have more clarity in the functionality of the Thumbs Down feature
Did not understand the concept of a "Dislike List"

Updates

Added a tag to the Thumbs down button
Changed the name to "Hidden List"

Usability Testing

Retrieving Hidden Content

Usability Issues

Couldn’t find a disliked movie using the search bar

Updates

The disliked content can be retrieved using the search bar

3. Cast Information

Journey Map. User Flow. Usability Testing. Prototype.

IMDb ratings are displayed when a user hovers over a movie thumbnail, allowing them to review the ratings of the content they are interested in. By selecting the IMDb button on the 'More Info' page, users may get additional information regarding ratings and reviews. This action launches a pop-up window with data from the IMDb website.

User Journey Map

User Flow

Usability Testing

While watching the content

Usability Testing

Before/after watching Content

Usability Issues

Couldn’t leave the cast page

Updates

Added a back icon which will take the user back to the expanded view

PartyBowl