During our kick-off session, I reviewed the business and product goals and aligned them with user experience goals. I then performed contextual inquiries at a sport's bar during Thursday night football. Here are the key insights that informed my designs.
NFL
ROAD TO 50 SUPER BOWL APP
Built exclusively for Super Bowl 50, the ROAD TO 50 app allowed fans and locals to explore San Francisco, schedule events, and engage with Super Bowl City. The Internet-of-things experience combined geo-location, beacon technology, and gamification. Here's how I led the UX effort for this project and designed the experience in three weeks.
Role
Director of UX
Agency
Robert Half
Client
NFL
Year
2015
DISCOVERY
1.5M
fans expected to visit Super Bowl 50 Downtown San Francisco.
25%
is the conversion rate for NFL.com subscriptions when viewing highlight reels.
$5M
the revenue goal for NFL Experience ticket sales.
65%
of adults say they follow the NFL in some form.
1.81
average number of hours per day NFL fans spend on social media.
4/5
of NFL fans in the U.S. are second-screeners, with laptops (44%) and cell phones (40%) being the top devices.
1.5M
fans expected to visit Super Bowl 50 Downtown San Francisco.
25%
is the conversion rate for NFL.com subscriptions when viewing highlight reels.
$5M
the revenue goal for NFL Experience ticket sales.
65%
of adults say they follow the NFL in some form.
1.81
average number of hours per day NFL fans spend on social media.
4/5
of NFL fans in the U.S. are second-screeners, with laptops (44%) and cell phones (40%) being the top devices.
DEFINE
The insights gathered defined a conceptual model and snapshot persona. Other activities included card sorts, journey maps, and empathy maps. Here are some of the artifacts that helped define the experience.
DESIGN
I had the responsibility of conceiving the entire experience. I created wireframes, prototypes, and interaction design specs. Once validated by our UX Research team, they got handed off to the Super Bowl 50 host committee to complete design, development, and deployment.
THE EVENTS
I created an experience that fostered engagement with events like the Super Bowl City, 50th Mile, NFL Experience, NFL Fan Pass, and many more. Here are the onboarding screens that explained these to fans.
EVENT PLANNER
A schedule of events that helped fans find all the details for all Super Bowl 50 main events. These seamlessly integrated with fans' calendars for a personalized itinerary.
NEAR ME
This feature helped fans explore the Bay area, including all NFL-sponsored events such as NFL Experience Driven by Hyundai, the 50th Mile, and Verizon's Super Bowl City.
GAMIFICATION
Fans collected badges by registering with NFL sponsors and unlocked exclusive Super Bowl content. One lucky fan won two tickets to the Super Bowl by collecting the most badges.
BEACON TECHNOLOGY
Fans were able to stay up-to-date with all of the happenings around the area at the macro and micro levels with location-based alerts triggered by beacons placed throughout San Francisco.
WHAT FANS ARE SAYING
The App was the most successful mobile experience for the NFL. I loved that the overall fans' reactions aligned with the primary experience goal, enhancing an already exciting event. To this day, the NFL still utilizes many of the features I created.
IN THE NEWS
THE MEDIA CELEBRATED THE NEWSWORTHY APP
The App That Encompasses The Hi-Tech Super Bowl 50 Atmosphere.
Super Bowl 50 Puts Tech in its Starting Lineup.
Super Bowl 50 Has a Sweet App and Crazy-Fast Internet.
1.1M
Fans who attended Super Bowl City.
132K
Downloads for one week.
4.3B
Twitter impressions.
200M
Facebook posts about Super Bowl City.
WHAT I LEARNED
EMPATHY IS CRUCIAL WHEN COMPETING AGAINST THE REALITY OF UNREALISTIC TIMELINES.
Creating an experience that needed to increase fan engagement for one million+ fans in three weeks was a significant challenge. I needed to adapt a UX process that would deliver the Super Bowl 50 app on time. I introduced a lean approach to the team. I drew inspiration from Google Venture's 5 Day Sprint. I decided to ideate, prioritize, and organize collaborative design sessions for the first week, ensuring I had enough time to design the product.
I was confident the 5 Day Sprint would work since it promised an MVP in a week, and time was the most significant critical success factor. It was the perfect solution for the problem, and I met my target end date within budget and scope. Most importantly, the fans' reaction to the App validated that empathy is crucial when competing against the reality of unrealistic timelines.