Spotify Groups Tab Feature
Product and UI/UX design for Mobile
ROLE: Design Researcher, Mobile App Designer, Product Designer
TOOLS: Figma
TIMELINE: February - March 2024
USER INTERVIEWS
I conducted a series of user interviews to identify how users currently interact with one another on Spotify and what features from other social media apps they like or dislike.
Participant 1
Computer Science student at Northeastern University who has a soundtrack for every moment
Values an algorithm that curates content based on your interests
Uses Spotify to create playlists and listen to Blends made with friends
Finds it difficult to find friends’ playlists, almost like Spotify is hiding them
Wishes the social aspect of sharing music was reflected digitally
The Groups Tab is a new Spotify feature that I worked on for my Interaction Design Principles course at Northeastern University. This project focused on creating a Spotify feature to strengthen how users connect with one another, centered around the question “What value will a social feature on Spotify offer its users?” Through user interviews, I discovered the average Spotify user only interacts with a few of their close friends on the app and doesn’t like how all of their followers can see their activity.
I chose to develop a feature that gives friend groups a centralized hub to view each other’s listening activity and collaborative playlists/blends. Only members added to a Group can view this content, creating a more intimate way for friends to connect over music.
Participant 2
Political Science student at Northeastern University who holds very strong opinions about Taylor Swift
Values seeing what content is trending
Enjoys sharing Spotify links with friends that include song lyrics
Feels embarrassed knowing anyone can see her listening to High School Musical occasionally
Wishes she could personalize Spotify to reflect her changing music preferences
Participant 3
Game & Animation student at Northeastern University who prefers to enjoy their real music taste privately
Values an easy learning curve for new social media features
Frequently uses the private listening feature on Spotify
Dislikes how song recommendations are not similar to what he’s been listening to
Wishes he could easily share a combination of songs and playlists with friends
Bright points:
Easy to share unique content with friends
Personalized playlists and suggestions
Blends are a step in the right direction
Social media accounts serve as an accurate representation of self
REASEARCH QUESTION DEVELOPMENT
User interviews emphasized how a person’s social media experience is heighted when they are able to decide who views their content via online friend circles, similar to Instagram and Snapchat’s Close Friends Story features.
I developed the following research question based on this, focusing on how Spotify could integrate a feature to that would create an intimate space for friends to share music.
Pain points:
Balance between social and private selections (music listened to/likes/comments)
Easy to engage in social media fights
Friends content is a pain to find on Spotify now
Less social features = bad, losing the community aspect of music
How might we replicate friend circles for Spotify?
Elevating connections through music
Music has always been an intimate way to express yourself and connect with others. Let’s face it, sharing your Spotify stats with someone holds the same weight as showing them your diary.
Groups is a new Spotify social feature for friend groups to create a centralized hub for all of your collaborative playlists/blends. Users can view each other’s activity and discover mutual top artists at any time to reminisce on the evolution of their music and core memories amongst close friends.
Create a Group and invite friends
Add friends to a new Group by using the suggested friends option or searching for specific users.
Connect with group members through Music and Activity pages
Group members can use the Music page to easily access their collaborative playlists, or view their friends’ listening activity and current top artists/songs on the Activity page.
Final Prototype Workflow
