Resident Advisor
Enhancing music discovery & venue accessibility for a feature add: case study
Summary
Role: UX Designer, Researcher
Timeline: 6 weeks
Problem Statement
Resident Advisor is an online music platform, dedicated to showcasing electronic music, artists, and events across the globe. It’s known as a preeminent voice in music journalism, and also a widely-used ticketing system for events.
Their site and app showcases real strengths in original branding and keeps their unique identity throughout, but in this case study I show how some users -particularly those with disabilities - face challenges in making informed decisions about attending events and navigating the website itself. Rather than a redesign of the website and app I attempt to showcase a few highlighted problems through research and potential feature adds to address user needs in this realm of accessibility.
“Over 60% of [differently abled] music fans have decided not to attend events because there is no access information online.”
— Kulture City, nonprofit
This further highlights the need to increase accessibility information - both about the venue and event, but also in the way it’s presented - to help users make informed decisions.
From the above, we know that accessibility is an issue in the music industry - both in the digital space online, with accessing information, and physically at concerts or events themselves.
User Goals
Preview music content before committing to events
Access detailed venue accessibility information in order to make informed decisions
Customize the RA website match individual accessibility needs
Business Goals
Position RA as an inclusive and accessible platform
Redirect business support resources away from regularly responding to accessibility queries
Expand market reach to previously underserved audiences
Hypothesis
By providing more comprehensive pre-event information, accessibility details, and customizable interface options, we can increase user confidence in purchasing decisions and make electronic music events more accessible to a broader audience.
Research
Competitor Analysis
A look at competitors in this field - Dice, a discovery platform for gigs and live events, and Ticketmaster, the large worldwide tickets sales and discovery platform, shows that accessibility options during the users’ website and app experience have not always been considered. Only Dice had a section dedicated to venues’ accessibility information, and a multimedia player. However, along with Ticketmaster, they did pass accessibility guidelines whereas Resident Advisor did not.
User Interviews
I spoke to 5 individuals - some who were mobility impaired, vision impaired, or neurotypical - about their experiences, good and bad, with their ticket purchasing and overall experiences at concerts and music festivals. The overall consensus with the individuals I spoke with was that there wasn’t an example of a truly outstanding digital experience in this space, although there were a number of venues or festivals that excelled in terms of having relevant information, signage, appropriate seating, and knowledgeable staff.
It was also interesting to hear how much of a negative impression a bad experience could leave. One user said of her experience. ‘it felt isolating and I couldn’t enjoy the concert because I couldn’t see much. It’s disheartening to pay the same price for a not-great experience.’ In her case it felt like the accessibility section was an afterthought, and gave her the impression that the concert organizers didn’t care whether people living with disabilities had fun or not.
Another individual remarked, ‘I wish people understood that accessibility isn’t just about physical access but also about having clear and easily obtainable information beforehand. It reduces anxiety and makes the experience more enjoyable for everyone.’
Taking Shape
Following the interviews and finding resonant themes, I organized different pain points and motivations of users and posed the following ‘How Might We’ statements, which helped me form the personas and lay the foundations for the type of feature adds I wanted to incorporate in this case study:
User Personas
After developing the key themes and ‘How Might We’ statements following the interviews, I developed 3 personas to guide the design decisions.
Design
Based on the interviews, I decided the feature add would have the following:
Lo-fi wireframes
The following are very early screens that shows what the addition of the accessibility information section, multimedia preview player, and accessibility widget could look like.
Brand
As the purpose of this case study didn’t involve an overhaul of the overall look and feel of the site, or its existing brand colors or elements, I traced and vectorized the logo, kept the same colors, and found similar fonts from their site and app.
Hi-Fi Designs and Testing
As the purpose of this case study didn’t involve an overhaul of the overall look and feel of the site, or its existing brand colors or elements, I traced and vectorized the logo, kept the same colors, and found similar fonts from their site and app.
In the desktop version, I added a section for an accessibility widget with different profiles, that in theory could change the website and make certain things less distracting or less colorful for example, for someone with a hard time with contrast; or it could make the font size bigger for someone with a visual impairment.
In both the phone and desktop versions, I added venue information sections, and a music player widget for an event preview.
Usability Testing and Iterations
I tested both versions with 5 users, and got positive feedback that if executed properly, these would be great additions to the website and app, with some feedback to think through the widget presentation itself.
2 users thought the accessibility widget itself looked a little unfinished - for example, having the black text against a gray background was confusing, and they didn’t like the text against the red background either. This led me to focus most of my iteration efforts here and change the colors and visual elements, so it wasn’t a jarring experience for users or lead them to wonder why the overall feel was different.
Based on the feedback, I made the following changes:
Sized down icons that looked too large and unnatural with accompanying text in the venue accessibility secions
Changed the background color of some buttons from gray to white in the accessibility widget, which confused some users in thinking it was already grayed out / unavailable to click
Make the menu icon sticky, so it scrolls with the site
Changed the accessibility widget background color from white to black, to address comments that the widget did not appear sleek or finished
Final screens
Results and Reflection
Areas for Improvement:
Earlier involvement of accessibility experts
More extensive user testing
Better documentation of edge cases
Faster iteration cycles
More thorough cognitive accessibility testing
Broader range of assistive technology testing
Key Learnings:
Accessibility features benefit all users, not just those with specific needs
Regular feedback from users is crucial for continuous improvement
Different users have different needs, and flexibility is key
This project reinforced that making electronic music events more accessible isn't just about meeting technical standards – it's about creating a platform where everyone can confidently discover and enjoy music experiences.
This project has significantly enhanced my understanding of accessibility in digital design. It's pushed me to think beyond standard UX practices and consider the diverse needs of users with various disabilities - I hope it’ll remind me more about being more inclusive and empathetic as a designer.