1st Iteration | Prototype

In the feature’s initial design, the Group Queue feature was accessed via the Go to queue button in the song menu. Users can invite friends to join their group queue by showing them the queue code, or alternatively by pressing Send Invites and selecting which friends they want to invite.

1st Iteration | Usability Testing

Usability testing on the initial design involved 3 participants. Participants were asked to complete the following tasks:

• Create group queue by scanning code
• Create group queue by sending invites
• Add a song to the group queue
• Invite a friend to the group queue
• Leave group queue
• Join a friend’s group queue 

Following testing, participants were asked debrief questions. Testing was done remotely using screen sharing on Google Meet.

1st Iteration | Usability Issues and Design Changes

A total of 9 usability issues were identified. The table below lists the issues by severity / consequences and by the number of participants that encountered the issue. This ordering helped me prioritize design changes.

2nd Iteration | Prototype

The biggest change from the 1st to 2nd prototype was replacing the scan and send invite workflow with a password entry workflow. The new workflow is similar to the workflow for joining a wi-fi network. Users would be shown a list of group queues nearby, and can join by selecting one and entering the password.

2nd Iteration | Usability Testing

In the second round of usability testing, 3 participants were asked to complete the following tasks:

• Create group queue
• Find password to share with friends
• Change queue password
• Leave group queue
• Join a friend’s group queue
• Add a song to the group queue

2nd Iteration | Usability Issues and Design Changes

In the second round of testing, a total of 8 usability issues were identified, none of which had severe consequences. Design changes were again prioritized based on severity / consequences, and the number of participants that reported the usability issue.

Latest Prototype

Overall, participants felt that this new feature would help make the music selection process easier and more fun. During usability testing, all participants indicated that they would use group queueing if implemented. One participant said that it was a,

"...good way to listen to music with friends and it's easier than having one person having to find every single song on the playlist."

However, there's still a lot that could be done to improve group queueing: What if users could automatically join a queue if they were under the same wi-fi network? Can the group queue make song suggestions based on queue members' listening history?

These are some questions that I’d like to expand on as I continue to work on this project. For now, click here to explore the latest Figma prototype.

Reflections & Learnings

As I reflect on this project, a few things I would do moving forward are:

• Incorporate quantitative metrics. Participant subjective feedback was the main indicator of whether the feature was more efficient and fun. In hindsight, including quantitative metrics might help validate this further. Some metrics I would consider are the Net Promoter Score, PSSUQ, and the number of touch points in the old vs. new workflow.
• Improve remote testing setup. Simultaneously watching what the participant was doing, taking notes, and facilitating the sessions on my small computer screen was definitely a challenge. My process could benefit from having an extra note taker, recorded sessions, and a second monitor.