Increasing user engagement at Here.fm

Photobooth Case Study

The Here room interface includes a feature that allows users to capture snapshots of their virtual environments by clicking a camera icon on the toolbar. The concept behind this "photobooth" feature was to encourage users to share their Here rooms on social media platforms, thereby enhancing the platform's visibility.

When the feature was identified as being underutilized, I performed a comprehensive analysis to understand the underlying reasons and formulate strategies to boost its adoption.

Empathize

My initial approach involved utilizing FullStory to create user segments based on frequency of interaction with the photobooth feature. I identified behavioral patterns in relation to the feature and identified meaningful insights from these observations.

I then interviewed approximately 15 users to gain deeper insights into their interactions and expectations with photo booth. I took their insights and ran, evaluating them alongside the patterns identified earlier.

Define

Based on my research, I confirmed that photobooth was indeed underutilized. A significant proportion of users expressed confusion about the feature's functionality or, in some cases, admitted to never having utilized it.

Users also mentioned a list of improvements they wished to see included. This involved the introduction of a countdown timer, camera filters, the capability to add frames, and the ability to crop images. Users also articulated their desire to seamlessly share their photobooth captures with friends via platforms like Discord or iMessage.

Ideate

These wireframes explored how users could be able to share content. I wanted to make sharing as easy as possible and accomplished this by making a share modal accessible from existing Here.fm behaviors (element hovering and dragging).

Below, I explored a new flow for capturing photos that includes a countdown option. This would increase the visibility of system status and hopefully avoid user confusion.

Prototypes

Sharing

Exploring various options for content sharing.

New Capture Flow

A prototype animation of the new photobooth countdown.

Face Filters

Experimenting with different locations for users to access filters.

Implement

I presented my designs to the team during our weekly design crits. Although the feedback I received was largely positive, my proposed features were not prioritized at that particular time. My designs were not been built out, but the themes around increasing shareability and user engagement influenced later design choices and plans.

Additional Projects

In addition to photobooth, in my time at Here, I have worked on several other features that have made their way onto the platform.

Widgets

User widgets was a "Here-ka-thon" (Here's version of a hackathon) idea that I took on designing. The widgets encouraged users to spend more time on the app by offering bragging rights based on high engagement statistics.

After iterating on designs from critiques received during weekly design meetings, I wrote a development ticket for widgets and they were added as a feature. Three of my widgets were implemented and launched. Currently, widgets has nearly 200 daily users with a D1 retention of 31%.

Moods

Moods was an idea I generated after learning users wanted more ways to asynchronously connect with each other. Being fully active in a Here room requires users to have cameras and microphones enabled, which, for some users, is a big ask. Moods allows users to post a status update to their profile and let their friends know what they're thinking, where they are, or whatever they want!

Moods was built and launched onto the site in the Spring of 2023. As of September 2023, around 900 users post a mood everyday, which is around 8% of total DAUs on the platform.

I'm still developing designs for Here, so check back later for more!