FlickFinder

This project was undertaken as part of PSYC1028 - a course called “The Psychology of Human Centred Design”.

The goal was to produce a prototype for a solution to a real world problem.

Creating a Problem Hypothesis

The start of the process involved developing a problem hypothesis, which would later be tested through user interviews.

I believe [users of subscription-based film and television streaming services (who watch films with other people)] experience [frustration and wasted time] when [trying to select a film] because [it is difficult to find films that are mutually enjoyable by multiple people].

I noticed this problem personally, when finding movies to watch with family.

Research Process

Secondary Research

I started the research process with an exploration of user frustrations. I searched reddit forums such as r/movies, r/television and r/family. In doing so, I discovered that I was not alone in this experience.

Sample of secondary research insights

Ethics Plan

As this was a psychology course, it was also essential to create an ethics plan prior to interviews.

Ethics Plan Sample

Interview plan

The course taught us to write interview questions only after defining research objectives.

Techniques such as rapport building opening questions, repeat-and-confirms, prompts and probes were incorporated into interview questions.

Most importantly, we learned how to craft questions in a way that avoids biasing or constraining responses.

Sample of interview plan

Interviews

Interviews were conducted with participants from multiple customer segments, including people who watch films with family, people who watch films with friends, people who watch films with partners and people who watch films alone.

Affinity Mapping

An affinity map was used to organise and categorise research insights.

Problem (Re)definition

Updated Problem Statement

I believe [users of subscription-based movie and television streaming services] experience [frustration and/or wasted time] when [trying to select a film] because of inaccurate impressions of films based on vague descriptions, irrelevant cover images and/or a lack of available film reviews. This problem is further complicated by imprecise recommendation algorithms and the difficulty of finding films that can be enjoyed by multiple people of different age groups.

How Might We Statements

Based on a revised problem statement, a set of HMW questions was written to frame an open-ended ideation process:

1. How might we help users find a film they and their family will love faster?

2. How might we make the film selection process more fun/enjoyable?

3. How might we give users film recommendations they are more likely to enjoy?

Ideation

A series of rapid fire ideation "bursts" were performed. The course taught us evidence based strategies to maximise the volume of ideas generated, including collecting inspiration from analogous fields (such as Tinder and Spotify Blends) as well as added constraints.