Napster's Listener Network.

The subscription music app Napster, formerly Rhapsody, is a revolutionary way to browse and search through millions of songs at your fingertips. you can play anywhere, anytime. We were always searching for ways we can make it easier for our users to find new music.

Art Director, UX Designer | 2016

Problem

Subscription services rely on their customers to stay engaged. When a user cancels early after signing up, it becomes a high cost for the company. We wanted to find out why users cancel and come up with a solution to keep them engaged and likely become a lifetime member.

My Role & Process

Information Gathering & Research

The data was the first place to look for clues. Find the users who were not only loyal customers but people who loved music. We realized the users who had a higher play count were spending more time on the App. We also saw that the users who canceled spent less time.

After conducting 10-day phone interviews, we came to the conclusion that discovery was most important to everyone. We also recognized that the users who played new songs more tended to cancel less. They also worked harder for their music. These members were "Feature heavy." They searched, they played more public playlists. They played more radio. We concluded they were more independent than the other members. They spent their free time looking for music while the others searched less and relied on regular radio or Pandora.

From our interviews, we created three types of users:

Influencer

• Played at least 20 new songs per week
• Spent 7+ hours per week discovering new music on the internet, with friends, and physical music retailers.

Casual Listener

• Played at least 5 new songs every three days
• Spent less than one hour per week discovering new music on the internet, with friends, and physical music retailers.

Passive Listener

• Played less than 1 new song per week
• Spent 1 hour a week discovering new music on the internet. Listens in the car 8+ hours per week.

We realized that the Influencers were a unique group. All of the members equally cared about music, but the Influencers were obsessed with looking for it. The Passive Discoverers said they'd listen to music more, but they didn't have the time. It was interesting because all of the members, we tested, said they had "busy lives." The Influencers just found the time.