Research & Concepting

QVC Companion Applications

Project Details

Role

Research & Concept Team Member
Who's In the Party?

Me, the Design Lead, UX, and Development team
Length of the Quest

January 2013
Tools

Photoshop, Illustrator, Google Docs

Lisa Robertson Show: Companion Experience

With the popularity of companion apps rising, QVC started to develop concepts to support two of its larger properties. As a member of the concept team for Lisa Robertson’s experience, I provided a competitive analysis of three other experiences on the market. The WWE, The Walking Dead, and USA all had their own versions of companion experiences that I was able to draw information from and bring back to the team.

As a member of the concept team, I also worked to sketch lo-fi wireframes which were taken and expanded upon by my manager, and the design lead to a more high-fidelity mock-up.

A version of this product went live in 2012 but has since been retired.

Competitive Analysis

WWE 2nd Screen Experience

☺︎ Strengths

Runs through WWE App
Fluid, Quick moving, few glitches, clean
Engaging graphics, fan tweets, and images keep people engaged and excited
Polls- Answers load immediately so they stay relevant
Video feeds pop up during commercials that either provide more special content for users or continue the feed of a live match.

☹︎ Weaknesses

Can be glitchy (but far less than the web platforms)
It is only for iPad app holders
Design Note: A heavy amount of specially produced graphics mean a heavier workload

Psych 2nd Screen Experience

☺︎ Strengths

Runs through a website - more devices
A timer lets you know when the next piece will be populated so that you don’t miss it/ keeps you engaged
They have a constructed shell that allows them to use the concept for all other USA-related show properties (White Collar, Royal Pains, Covert Affairs) with minimal skin/color changes and changes to the “voice” of the copy
Simple - Easy to understand/navigate

☹︎ Weaknesses

Can be glitchy
Polls needed a bit of a buffer to collect and display results and quickly became irrelevant
Things load slower/get jumpy

Walking Dead 2nd Screen Experience

☺︎ Strengths

Runs through a website - more devices
Poll - Prediction: Interesting way to engage viewers before the show really starts
SPOILER WARNING - They warn you if you are not watching the premiere broadcast using the experience will contain spoilers
Videos Play within experience (no overlay)
A timer lets you know when the next piece will be populated so that you don’t miss it/ keeps you engaged

☹︎ Weaknesses

Can be glitchy
Polls can be glitchy and results show in a boring/ugly way (seem kinda slapped on)
Doesn’t translate on phone

Before companion experiences became popular, the multimedia team had a few months of sessions to brainstorm what a version of an iPad app experience could look like. Along with a mentor/coworker, we came up with and sketched concepts which were then turned into mid-fi mock-ups to present as concepts. While these didn’t go much further than the initial meetings, it was a good experience to have.