Musician Marketing Web App
Optimized organization for musicians and label managers.
Background
This project originated from discussions with artists and producers about the challenges of marketing their work on social media. The importance of social media in artist promotion is evident, yet it often presents difficulties in motivation and organization, detracting from creative work.
Role
Various UX research methods were employed to identify challenges faced by musicians and label managers in marketing via social media. A web app was then designed to streamline their marketing efforts.
Research Goal
Pinpoint existing challenges for artists in consistently posting and marketing themselves. Develop a tool that alleviates the stress and workload associated with self-promotion and marketing.
Duration
2 weeks, Spring 2023
Software
Figma, Optimal Workshop, Useberry,
User Interviews
Interviews were conducted with producers and label managers to understand the key challenges in social media marketing. This helped in focusing the research towards achieving the project's objectives.
“I struggle to always have content and plan social media posts”
Insights
There are already tools available that help users monitor the performance of their social media accounts.
Users struggle to stay organized when trying to post on social media consistently and plan for their success.
Maximizing success on social media for artists comes down to consistency and always having assets to post.
For label managers, making sure that all artists are on the same page with the release schedule and have assets is a huge struggle.
Surveys
Example Question
What Struggles do you face when marketing your work using social media?
Answer
Organization
Stress
Consistency
Assets
N/A
Percentage
Insights
84% of users felt that social media is a must have tool for artists to build success as an artist.
38% of users market their work 3+ times a week on social media while another 38% market their work only once a few weeks.
92% of users reported that they as an artist or label manager would be less successful without the use of social media.
Users said when it comes to marketing their work on social media the biggest obstacles they face are posting consistently and having assets to post.
The most popular platforms that artists used to market themselves were Instagram, Twitter, and Discord.
Competitive Analysis
Competitive analysis was conducted on tools like Toneden.io and Meta Business Suite, focusing on their social media marketing features. The study highlighted a lack of emphasis on planning and asset creation in these tools.
Insights
Competitors main product is offering a way for users to view how their social media has been performing.
Most competitors offer a smart link feature which helps listeners find their artists music on multiple platforms.
There was no competitor which focused on optimizing organization and planning releases, or showing users different strategies to push their social media.
All competitors offered subscription plans which offered exclusive features to subscribers.
Persona
Problem
Managing social media assets and planning release schedules can often feel burdensome and tedious, especially for musicians and label managers. In addition, the tools that exist to help push artists social media don't focus enough on planning and organization or provide resources for maintaining assets to post.
Solution
This projects aim is to demonstrate to artists and label managers how they can effectively plan and organize their releases to maximize audience growth, while simultaneously reducing the stress associated with the social media marketing process.
Point of view
"As an artist or label manager, I want a tool that can help me manage the stress of social media marketing and feel confident when putting out a release schedule."
How might we
How might we provide a service or app that helps artists and label managers plan releases swiftly while feeling in control and less overwhelmed by social media marketing.
Feature Prioritization
Process
Feature prioritization was strategically aligned with the core objective to develop an application that streamlines the creation of release schedules for musicians and label managers, enhancing efficiency and organization. Insights from extensive research underscored the dual challenges of maintaining motivation and organization, informing the development of features that respond directly to these industry needs.
MVP User Flow
User flows were centered on constructing a Minimum Viable Product (MVP) that addressed the fundamental requirement of initiating a release schedule. The process was streamlined to start at the dashboard, leading users through a sequence of actions—from initiating a campaign to populating a timeline and specifying daily marketing tasks within modal prompts—thereby simplifying the campaign creation journey.
Early Designs
Feedback
Following stakeholder feedback, it became apparent that the event creation aspect of the release schedule warranted a redesign with a stronger visual emphasis. The goal was to enhance the interface to allow users to immediately ascertain key details, such as the presence of uploaded assets or the selection of social media platforms for an event, fostering a more intuitive and visually-driven user experience.
Iterations
Insights
Incorporating stakeholder feedback, a revised system for event addition to release schedules was developed with an enhanced visual interface. The updated design ensures that upon completing the module, users can effortlessly visualize both the uploaded assets and the designated social media platforms for distribution.
Typography
Sora
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ
The selection of the Sora font for the music marketing web application was a deliberate choice, motivated by its contemporary design and crisp lines, which echo the app's dedication to structure and efficiency. Sora's high readability and clear legibility are pivotal for presenting vital information like song titles, artist names, and release dates with distinct clarity, thus supporting the application's streamlined user experience.
Color
Primary
Hex: #615EFF
Dark
Hex: #1C1C1E
Dark hue
Hex: #353538
Gray
Hex: #7E7E85
Light hue
Hex: #F0F0F2
Light
Hex: #FEFEFE
User Testing
Task
Create a Campaign
4
3
1
2m 24s
Select Start/End Dates
4
4
0
13s
Create Campaign Event
4
3
1
10s
Fill Out Event Form
4
3
1
1m 4s
100%
Felt tool was useful
81%
Task completion
75%
Recommended design revisions
Insights
81% of tasks were completed by users, average test time: 3m 48s
Users expressed this tool would be extremely useful for them as artists or label managers
Iteration on visual design is needed (dark mode, because users tend to work in darker environments)
A need for hover states and icons in campaign type and event type modals
Social media icon selection needs colors that correspond to platform type
More use of primary blue color for CTA’s
Final Designs
Insights
Upon reviewing the comprehensive data from user testing, substantial revisions were implemented, primarily enhancing the visual elements. This response to user feedback, which indicated strong satisfaction and enthusiasm regarding the app's functionality, led to significant improvements to the user interface.
Main Changes
Added dark mode with the option to switch to light mode using Figma variants.
Social media icons now have interactive hover states, as well as colors that correspond to the platform.
Improved grayscale and added more intentional use of primary color.
Increased some font sizes for more readability.
Introduced an Icon overhaul with the sidebar as an example, adding more visual aspects to our app.
Event cards are now directly connected rather than by a thin line.
Results & Next Steps
Results
The concept of the web app tailored for artists and musicians was met with widespread approval from users. They expressed keen interest in seeing this idea evolve into a fully-fledged platform in the future. Their enthusiasm also spurred a range of individual suggestions for potential features, envisioning a more expansive scope beyond the initial MVP.
“I would LOVE to have a tool like this”
Next Steps
Should further development of this tool be pursued, the focus would be on introducing additional features to enrich the release planning process. This enhancement would aim to provide users with greater depth, control, and a broader range of capabilities within the application.
Feature for users to share release schedules with artists.
Event modals that have different designs based on the type of post (Instagram post, YouTube, SoundCloud, etc.)
A resource page where users can learn to create social media assets to post consistently.
