The Problem
Museum visitors want a more personalized visiting experience.
My Role
UX designer designing an audio guide app for the art museum.
The Goal
Design an app that offers recommendations about what artworks could interest the user based on their interests and their likes / dislikes of previously viewed ones.
Responsibilities
Conducting interviews, paper and digital wireframing, low and high-fidelity prototyping, conducting usability studies, accounting for accessibility, and iterating on designs.
The Product
An art museum in Paris wanted to offer its visitors a modern audio-guide app, which they could use in order to experience a personalized visit to the museum, based on the recommendations that the app offers while using it.
Project Duration
April 2021 to October 2021
Understanding the user
I conducted interviews and created empathy maps to understand the users I’m designing for and their needs. A primary user group identified through research was working adults who visit art museums at least once a year and are interested in contemporary art.
This user group confirmed initial assumptions about the museum’s visitors, but research
also revealed that visitors would like a more personalized visiting experience.
also revealed that visitors would like a more personalized visiting experience.
User pain points
Personalization
Visitors want a more personalized museum visit
Visitors want a more personalized museum visit
Accessibility
Audio guides don’t offer usually fine-grained playback control
Audio guides don’t offer usually fine-grained playback control
Opt-into features
Users want the possibility to opt-into receiving art recommendations
Users want the possibility to opt-into receiving art recommendations
Persona & Problem Statement
Adrian is a 62-year-old architect who loves art and who would like a more personalized experience when he visits art museums.
User Journey Map
Mapping Adrian’s user journey revealed how an immersive museum visit could look like.
Starting the design
Paper wireframes
Taking the time to draft iterations of each screen of the app on paper ensured that the elements that made it to digital wireframes would be well-suited to address user pain points. Stars were used to mark the elements of each sketch that would be used in the initial digital wireframes.
Digital wireframes
As the initial design phase continued, I made sure to base screen designs on feedback and findings from the user research.
Fine-grained audio track control was added in order to offer a better listening experience
User feedback was requested in order to offer better recommendations
Low-fidelity prototype
Using the completed set of digital wireframes, I created a low-fidelity prototype. The primary user flow I connected was to start a guided tour and to offer likes / dislikes for each artwork.
View the app’s low-fidelity prototype
Usability study: findings
I conducted two rounds of usability studies. Findings from the first study helped guide the designs from wireframes to mockups. The second study used a high-fidelity prototype and revealed what aspects of the mockups needed refining.
Round 1 findings
1. Users want to opt-into rating artworks
2. Users want to resume unfinished tours
Round 2 findings
1. Users want to control audio track speed
2. Users want to more customization options (e.g. dark mode)
Refining the design
Mockups
Early designs allowed for some customization,
but after the usability studies, I added additional options like opting-into rating artworks.
but after the usability studies, I added additional options like opting-into rating artworks.
Before Usability Study
After Usability Study
The second usability study revealed that users want more control over the audio track speed.
I also added the dark mode option to this screen.
Before Usability Study
After Usability Study
Key Mockups
High-fidelity Prototype
The final high-fidelity prototype presented more customized user flows for taking guided tours, as well as more control over the audio tracks.
View the high-fidelity prototype
Accessibility considerations
1. Provided fine-grained audio track controls and closed captions.
2. Added dark mode for making the app easier on the eye.
3. Added multiple languages for both the audio tracks and the app menu.
Going Forward
Takeaways
Impact
The app makes users feel like the art museum wants them to have a more personalized visiting experience.
What I learned
While designing the museum audio guide app, I learned that the first ideas for the app are only the beginning of the process. Usability studies and peer feedback influenced each iteration of the app’s designs.
Next Steps
1. Conduct another round of usability studies to validate whether the pain points users experienced have been effectively addressed
2. Conduct more user research to determine any new areas of need.
Let's Connect!
Thank you for your time reviewing my work on the art museum audio guide app! If you’d like to
see more or get in touch, my contact information is provided below.
see more or get in touch, my contact information is provided below.
Email: paul.tamas@gmail.com
Website: paultamas.design