By Ville Houttu
The big names in media and entertainment apps surely owe their success largely to the slick user experience that they deliver to their customers. So it makes sense that developers of new apps should cast an analytical eye over just what it is that makes these UX masters special
When looking for inspiration in building your own media and entertainment app, analysing the successes of others is a great place to start.
By studying the design, functionalities, and user engagement strategies of popular apps like Netflix, Spotify, YouTube, Hulu, Disney Plus, and Twitch, you can make informed decisions about which features will work best for your target audience.
Netflix
Netflix is a streaming service that has mastered the art of customer engagement. One of the primary UX lessons from Netflix is the way they have organised their content. Netflix’s clean, minimalistic UI and segmented categories like “Popular”, “Watch Again”, and “Recommended” make finding content a breeze.
Quick navigation options keep users engaged longer, so organising your content to suit your users’ preferences1 and improve their experience is crucial.
With a specialised algorithm, Netflix analyses viewing habits, searches, and watch history to provide personalised recommendations. This approach leads to higher engagement, retention, and improved user experience (UX)2.
Users can also enhance their personalisation through options like language, genre, and quality, allowing for a tailored streaming experience to match their unique preferences.
Netflix’s widespread popularity can also be attributed to its accessibility. With availability on every device and platform, users can easily access the content they want from whatever device they prefer. This is absolutely essential when it comes to media consumption.
Spotify
Spotify is another popular media and entertainment app that has revolutionised the music streaming industry. Known for its easy navigation of nearly 80 million tracks, Spotify has created a library that is both comprehensive and user-friendly3.
Spotify has simplified music discovery for its users by introducing filters to weed out unwanted genres of music. Moreover, their search bar feature gives users fast and effective results, making it easy to find the songs or podcasts they’re looking for.
Social media integration is another feature that Spotify nailed out of the gate. Not only does Spotify’s seamless integration with platforms like Twitter and Facebook make sharing playlists and individual song titles with other users easy, but it is also a great feature for new artists to receive quick exposure and gain a new following.
Spotify’s app has a distinctive and visually pleasing colour scheme, consistent throughout its branding efforts and associated user interfaces. A uniform aesthetic across all marketing channels, including social media, helps to build a sense of familiarity and trust among its users.
YouTube
YouTube is at the pinnacle of popular media applications. With its incredibly diverse audience and access to a near-limitless selection of video content, it comes as no surprise that it’s one of the most visited websites in the world.
The key to YouTube’s success is its user-friendly homepage, featuring a search bar and engaging thumbnail displays of popular videos. This underscores the importance of simple website design4, allowing for smooth navigation and an uncluttered interface.
By focusing on essential content with a clean and clear design, user engagement is boosted, and repeat visits are encouraged.
YouTube isn’t shy about trying out new features and designs to determine the most effective approach. Recently, the platform introduced “shorts”, allowing users to view and create short, vertical videos similar to the style of TikTok.
By recognising the popularity of this new trend, YouTube is able to keep users engaged and provide them with experiences that are relevant to their wants.
When it comes to mobility, YouTube is definitely ahead of the game. Its mobile-friendly streaming capabilities and optimised app make it easy for users to access the content they want from any device or platform, while making it simple to upload and share new content on the channel.
Hulu
Netflix isn’t the only major streaming service on the market. Hulu is another popular entertainment app offering users an extensive library of films, TV shows, and original content.
The rise of minimalist designs has made it important for designers to combat clutter and confusion in user interfaces.
Hulu, for example, has achieved this by using simple, concise designs with only the necessary elements. In addition, their homepage offers a limited selection of content5, making it easy for users to find what they need without feeling overwhelmed.
Hulu’s app has impressively accurate recommendations thanks to algorithms that factor in a user’s search history and preferences. This leads to relevant suggestions, quick content discovery, and a greater chance that users can find what they want.
Disney Plus
A relatively new player in the market, Disney Plus has become a formidable competitor in the streaming industry and is quickly taking market share from long-standing streaming services.
Disney Plus has a distinct look and feel that is immediately apparent when using the app. Its navigation bar is easy to navigate, and content is displayed in an aesthetically pleasing grid format. In addition, content categories are clearly defined, making it easy for users to quickly find what they’re looking for.
When categorising content on the Disney Plus platform, they have mastered the art of placing the content in a way that’s easy for the user to find and watch. Disney Plus categorises its content into various sections like “Marvel”, “Disney”, “Star Wars”, “National Geographic”, and other relevant video categories.
By deploying this unique grouping format, Disney Plus is able to effectively market its content while providing a personalised browsing experience.
Disney’s reputation for storytelling is evident in its UX platform. Disney Plus offers a unique feature that provides users with short teasers and trailers when they hover over a specific movie or show, allowing them to immerse themselves in the content without additional effort.
This makes the platform more engaging and invites users to enjoy their favourite shows and movies more fully.
Disney Plus also listens to its users and improves its platform based on feedback. For example, one change based on popular demand is the ability to skip movie credits. By continually monitoring and responding to user feedback, Disney Plus is always improving the customer experience (CX)6.
Twitch
Twitch is a streaming platform that’s quickly become the go-to for online gamers and influencers worldwide.
Twitch’s sense of community is key to its success. The platform prioritises connecting gamers worldwide via live streaming and chat. This focus on community has cultivated a loyal audience who regularly tune in for favourite streamers and events.
Twitch’s platform is geared toward keeping users engaged for extended periods. They achieve this through interactive features like chat, emotes, and notifications. These elements encourage users to remain active during streams and provide a sense of connectedness with the streamer in real time. This makes watching streams more engaging than traditional broadcasting formats.
Twitch’s gamification tools go beyond gaming, offering badges, achievements, and competitions that keep viewers engaged. Paid subscriptions, emotes, and virtual cheers incentivise users to return, while Twitch’s rewards system offers an opportunity to increase user retention.
Start Incorporating Great Design Elements Into Your Own Applications
No matter your industry, great design can make or break your user experience. Incorporating some of the best development practices from popular media and entertainment applications can help to create a strong foundation for successful UX and UI design6.
About the Author
Ville Houttu is the founder and CEO of Vincit. He helped Vincit’s parent company in Finland go public on Nasdaq First North marketplace. Ville has an MSc in Engineering and focuses on a lean working model while scaling operations that prizes development and design innovation. With Ville’s leadership, Vincit USA has been recognised as one of the Inc 5000 Fastest-Growing Companies. In 2020, it ranked in the top 50 in the FAST Company’s Best Workplaces for Innovators. He is also one of the few Ironman triathletes who plays pedal steel guitar on several albums on Spotify.
References
- . “Time To Create A Software Application? What To Consider?”, The World Financial Review, 19 April 2023 https://worldfinancialreview.com/time-to-create-a-software-application-what-to-consider/
- Blog: “What is UX Strategy? And How Can You Create and Transform the Customer Journey?”, Vincit, 2 November 2021 https://www.vincit.com/blog/what-is-ux-strategy
- “8 Proven Ways of Enhancing Customer Experience”, The World Financial Review, 6 August 2022 https://worldfinancialreview.com/8-proven-ways-of-enhancing-customer-experience/
- “5 Reasons You Need a Custom Web Design for Your Business”, The World Financial Review, 20 April 2021 https://worldfinancialreview.com/5-reasons-you-need-a-custom-web-design-for-your-business/
- Blog: “Building Dynamic Web Applications With Gatsby + HeadlessCMS + Netlify”, Vincit, 23 June 2020 https://www.vincit.com/blog/building-dynamic-web-applications-with-gatsby-headlesscms-netlify
- “UX vs UI: How They Work Together in Web Design”, The World Financial Review, 1 December 2021 https://worldfinancialreview.com/ux-vs-ui-how-they-work-together-in-web-design/
