Fill The Seats
Connecting season ticket holders to the average fan.
ABOUT
"Fill the Seats" is a social platform that bridges the gap between season ticket holders and average fans. Many stadiums are dominated by season ticket holders, yet a significant number of games go unattended. With the aim of addressing this issue, I created an intuitive application that connects season ticket holders with enthusiastic fans. "Fill the Seats" is a socially interactive platform where users can create profiles and connect with like-minded individuals who share a passion for their team.
THE ISSUE
Season ticket holders contribute to over 75% of NHL attendance, with some cases reaching up to 85%. Surprisingly, the average season ticket holder attends less than 33% of the games they hold tickets for. While some tickets are sold or shared with friends and family, a majority of them unfortunately go to waste.
THE SOLUTION
Designing an application to bridge the gap between season ticket holders and the average fan by:
Creating a seamless social platform that encourages ticket sharing.
Enabling personalized fandom expression through custom profiles, fostering connections among like-minded individuals.
Promoting fan-ticket holder interaction for enhanced engagement.
Facilitating targeted search options for ticket holders to connect with their ideal fans.
DISCOVERY
Designer Role(s)
To validate my initial concept for Fill the Seats, I conducted secondary research on sporting fans, attendance figures, season ticket holder behaviors, and demographics across major US sports (football, baseball, basketball, and hockey). The research confirmed my hypothesis about the issue of ticket "waste." Following that, I conducted user interviews with five ticket holders to gain deeper insights into their habits and perspectives. The findings from these interviews were synthesized into an affinity map, which guided the creation of a narrow scoped persona. This persona helped me understand the goals, needs, and frustrations of the primary user I was designing the app for. With this persona in mind, I began ideating the initial concepts for the Fill the Seats app.
Research
My secondary research revealed that the announced attendance for the four major sports was generally positive. However, upon further investigation, I discovered a distinction between announced attendance and the actual number of people attending the stadiums. This is where the scan rate becomes relevant. Additionally, I conducted research on the percentage of season ticket holders in stadiums and the demographic characteristics of the average ticket holders.
However…
Announced Attendance Vs. Scan Rate
While announced attendance may include tickets sold or allocated, the scan rate reflects the actual turnout of attendees who physically enter the stadium or venue.
“The scan rate across all sports dropped from an average of 70% to 40% following the covid pandemic”
Proportion of Stadium Occupied by Season Ticket Holders:
50-90%
Season Ticket Holder Demographics
Sex
Male
Age
25-54
Income
>$75,000
Profession
User Interviews
Management, Professional, Technical
I conducted 5 user interviews to gather insights and answer important questions regarding ticket holders' behavior. The interviews focused on ticket holders who attended at least 5 games annually, missed games they had tickets for, owned a smartphone, and were sports fans in general. The main questions explored during the interviews were:
Why do people who purchase tickets not attend the games?
What demographic characteristics are associated with ticket holders who let their tickets go to waste?
Are ticket holders interested in finding fans to use their tickets when they cannot attend or transfer them?
How would ticket holders prefer to be compensated if their tickets could be transferred back to the team?
Do ticket holders prefer to choose who attends the game on their behalf or let the team find a fan to use the ticket?
“I often find out last minute that I can't attend a game, leaving me with no opportunity to sell or give away the tickets.”
“It feels awful to waste a ticket I’ve paid for.”
"I don't need money for my tickets, I just want them to be used. Let a passionate fan take my place!"
“It would be incredibly rewarding to know that a fan had the opportunity to attend a game and cheer for our team.”
2. DEFINE
Affinity Mapping
Recurring themes:
The individuals were primarily business professionals with demanding schedules and middle-to-upper class incomes, many of whom had families.
Common reasons for missing games included work conflicts and long commutes to the game venues.
There was a prevailing sense of guilt among ticket holders when their tickets went unused.
The majority of respondents expressed indifference towards receiving monetary compensation for their unused tickets.
Often, ticket holders only realized last minute that they were unable to attend the games.
Ticket holders preferred their tickets to be utilized by fans supporting the same team.
People were reluctant to return their tickets to the team unless they received something in exchange.
3. IDEATE
User Personas and HMW’s
Based on affinity mapping and research results, a focused persona was developed to represent the average season ticket holder. This persona provided valuable insights into their needs, desires, and challenges.
How Might We…
Simplify the process of ticket transfer for holders seeking to give away their tickets.
Alleviate the anxiety and frustration associated with missing a game.
Facilitate the connection between ticket holders and potential recipients to ensure tickets are utilized.
Offer a sense of fulfillment and gratification for ticket holders who have successfully transferred their tickets to another fan.
Red Route User Flows
Sign up
2. Fan Requests Ticket
3. Ticket holder giving away ticket
4. Design
With a well-defined user flows and a strong product vision, I translated my ideas into tangible sketches, focusing on creating a streamlined and user-friendly voting experience to enhance satisfaction and minimize frustration. Before transitioning from sketches to low-fidelity wireframes, I conducted guerrilla usability testing with a group of five individuals. This approach helped me uncover underlying issues and identify potential areas for improvement in the design.
Guerilla Usability Testing
I utilized the POP app from Marvel to conduct guerrilla usability testing with five users. Throughout the testing process, a couple of key pain points emerged, which I will discuss below.
One issue that arose was users' difficulty in locating the next arrow during onboarding. To address this, a simple solution was implemented by incorporating a "Continue" button in the Low Fidelity wireframes.
Users expressed confusion during testing regarding what should be included in the two sections for fan stories and game experiences. To address this, I made improvements by separating the two onboarding screens and providing descriptive text to guide users on what to write about in each section.
Visual Design Process
Moodboard
As the app progressed from low fidelity mockups to higher fidelity design, it was essential to develop its overall look, feel, and personality. To achieve this, a moodboard was employed to explore the desired tone, visual aesthetic, and ambiance of the application. Key attributes such as passion, community, and generosity served as the foundation for the mood board, influencing the app's overall design direction.
Usability Testing
To optimize the design and interactions within the application, I conducted two rounds of usability testing. Each round comprised 5 interviews lasting around 30 minutes with potential users. After the first round, edits were made based on the feedback received before proceeding to the second round. During the testing sessions, users were assigned specific tasks and encouraged to articulate their thought process as they navigated through the application. Following both rounds of usability testing, all the issues in the app were identified and addressed through final edits.
Although users had a positive overall experience, a few issues were uncovered, including:
Last active user indication: Users expressed interest in knowing the last time a user was logged in when selecting a fan to transfer a ticket to, ensuring that the user is still active.
Lack of confirmation after ticket transfer: Users reported confusion after transferring a ticket, as there was no confirmation provided to indicate a successful transfer.
Overlooked progress bar during onboarding: Users did not notice the presence of a progress bar during the onboarding process.
To address these issues, I implemented the following design iterations:
Inclusion of last login information on all profiles during the search process.
Introduction of a confirmation page to provide users with reassurance after completing a ticket transfer.
Adjustment of the progress bar's placement above the continue button for improved visibility and usability.
5. Results
After extensive usability testing and multiple iterations of screen designs, I successfully developed the following product. Leveraging user insights, I created a social ticket exchange platform that enables ticket holders to connect with passionate fans. Say goodbye to ticket waste with my innovative solution!
