A new streaming service for Blockbuster that partners with other services and provides access to a vast variety of content all in one place.
ROLE
Product Designer
TIMELINE
10 weeks
SKILLS
Product Design, Product Thinking, Visual Design, Interaction Design
TEAM
PM, Content, Strategy, Visual Design, Research
Blockbuster was a brand popular between the 1990s and early 2000s. Working with a team of interns at Siegel+Gale, our brief was to redefine Blockbuster, making it the future of all aggregated streaming for individuals to watch what they love in one place.
My role in this project consisted of collaborating closely with the research team, delving into the intricacies of user behavior, market trends, and emerging technologies, and working with the strategy team to formulate a roadmap that not only acknowledged the brand's storied past but also projected its relevance into the future through this digital experience.
SUMMARY
Advent of streaming services and the decline in physical media rentals caused Blockbuster to face significant competition in the early 2000s.
THE FUTURE OF STREAMING
Blockbuster is reinventing itself as a streaming aggregator due to so many choices in the streaming industry, what would their streaming platform look and feel like?
Survey Insights.
💡
People love to find new things to watch and the discovery process. 79% of people were subscribed to more than 5 services.
Content Discovery
Interview Insights.
🤝
“To me, Blockbuster is not pretentious or uncomfortable but accessible, approachable, and authentic”.
Core Attributes of Blockbuster
💫
68% did not want the new brand to have a “retro” feeling, and expected the brand to be more “creative” and “innovative”.
Blockbuster Should Modernize
✨
“Use new nontraditional ways to tackle traditional problems, rather than proposing solutions that are disconnected from reality”.
Creativity + Innovation
🤳🏽
53% of consumers look for more ways to celebrate their entertainment interests outside of just watching the content.
Not Just Watching
🙊
“Most of the time I’m watching something, I often find myself on my phone updating my friends on captivating moments”.
Multitasking
RESEARCH
What happens when people stream content online? What are their thoughts on Blockbuster the brand?
We first conducted both qualitative and quantitative studies to understand current perceptions of both Blockbuster and streaming. We had 12 qualitative interviews with S+G employees and sent out a survey with 137 responses. I worked with the research team to develop questions to ask users about their streaming habits and their thoughts on Blockbuster.
COMPETITIVE AUDIT
Content Overload. Users are overwhelmed by choices unless seeking specific content, leading to decision difficulties in a sea of options.
Lots of Plan Options. Aggregation of services creates a space in the market that could cause confusion. Platforms currently have many
Personalized, but Independent. Many platforms had very personalized content, but it was too individualized and lacked the aspect of community.
What are streaming competitors doing to retain and engage consumers?
I spearheaded an in-depth competitive audit of leading streaming platforms. Dissecting these experiences and looking at interfaces, content libraries, and engagement strategies, informed how our product could position itself in the market through its design.
How can we create a streaming platform for a revitalized brand and create human connections through entertainment?
STRATEGY
What is our strategy and guiding principles when designing to create a comprehensive and joyful experience?
After conducting research by talking to people, fielding a survey, and analyzing existing platforms, we created a strategy to build our new brand and platform. It was imperative to formulate a plan to create a brand and platform that was both effective for users and for the sustainability of Blockbuster as a brand.
Provide a seamless bundle management experience.
By consolidating all streaming content in a single place, we can improve content discovery by providing a seamless experience.
🤝
✨
Create human connections through entertainment and features to encourage connectivity and interaction.
Prioritize experience over just delivering content.
🙊
Experiences on the platform should emulate nostalgic feelings but also be revolutionized for the industry.
Lean into Blockbuster’s legacy, while looking into the future.
DEVELOPMENT
Developing a product that delivers an engaging experience that combines strategy.
With a short timeline after conducting research and formulating a design strategy, I had to begin quickly prototyping ideas for the platform with insights and strategies in mind. Throughout the process, getting quick feedback from mentors and team members on the look and feel of the interface and of the product features.
Sketch 1: Homepage & Friends Activity
The layout prioritized personalization, offering tailored recommendations based on viewing history, preferences, and real-time trends. We honed in on the friend’s activity feature, ensuring that users could effortlessly explore genres and trending titles.
Sketch 2: Episode Page & Reviews
In tackling the episode page and reviews section, my primary focus was on simplicity and reducing cognitive load for the user. The challenge was to present a wealth of information without overwhelming the viewer, ensuring a seamless and enjoyable experience.
Sketch 3: Content Assistant Interaction
We designed the Content Assistant to respond dynamically to user queries. It was important to distinguish between creating a compelling feature that users would want to incorporate into their experience and also not disrupting or confusing them.
DESIGN SYSTEM
Logo
What happens when people stream content online? What are their thoughts on Blockbuster the brand?
The creation of our platform's design system was created through collaboration with a visual designer in which we balanced functionality and aesthetics. This collaboration was pivotal in crafting a dynamic, useful, and cohesive design system that not only looked appealing but also enhanced the overall user experience.
Typography
Colors
Symbols + Components
FINAL DESIGN
Users can select a bundle option that is right for them.
BUNDLES, BUNDLES, BUNDLES
Whether they must have Netflix or want to only spend a few dollars, users have a wide variety of bundles to choose from.
Easily find content by filtering.
REDUCING OVERLOAD
After users have added services to their bundles, they have access to a lot of great content. Simplifying the watch experience reduces content overload and creates an easy content discovery experience.
Buster provides users with the most personalized content recommendations.
BUST
When blockbuster had in-person stores, visitors could talk to an experienced representative and they could rely on them to provide them with recommendations of what to watch. We wanted to emulate that experience digitally and build upon our brand legacy by having Buster.
See reviews from friends to aid in decision-making.
FRIENDSHIPS ARE ESSENTIAL
Users of streaming services really prioritized the opinions of their friends and family in the search for content. Having a space in which these opinions could be voiced helps users to decide what to watch.
Movie and TV lovers can share and discuss their favorite content on Block Party.
UNITE AT THE BLOCK PARTY
Our research showed that users valued having a community of friends when watching content, so we created Block Party to provide human connections digitally and create a community for open discussion.
The Block is a new streaming service that partners with other services and provides access to a vast variety of content all in one place.
PROJECT TAKEAWAYS
When creating a platform for a brand that currently exists, I learned that it was essential to tie every piece of experience and design back to the strategy. Working with a strategist helped me to understand that design decisions cannot exist in a vaccum when designing for brands and that it was necessary to cater everything to what the brand desires.
Working with a team of writers, researchers, strategists, and marketers meant that there was a plethora of different skills and expertise in this project. However, with the short timeline, we had to constantly be working on many parts of building this brand and platform at the same time. From this, I learned the importance of effectively communicating progress quickly and taking agency to ask for feedback and updates from other teams in order to create an effective end product.