AMI Entertainment Network, a prominent player in the interactive digital entertainment industry, recognized a significant gap in the management tools available for operators and venue staff overseeing digital jukeboxes. With the challenges of outdated and fragmented systems in mind, they envisioned the AMI Co-Pilot app as a comprehensive solution. In my role at the organization, I was tasked with driving the design and user experience of the app, making sure it truly met the needs of both operators and venue personnel. In this case study, I’ll walk you through the design process and the insights that shaped the AMI Co-Pilot app into a valuable tool for its users.
Problem Statement
When we think about the modern jukebox, images of pulsating lights, large touchscreens, and the ability to access virtually any song via the cloud come to mind. However, beneath this vibrant exterior lies a complex system of controls and management features.
Since the rise of the digital jukebox, these staples of the American bar scene have relied on custom software designed to deliver an intuitive user experience for both patrons and those responsible for installation and administration—commonly referred to as "operators" in the bar and hospitality industries.
Operators, who manage everything from ATMs to entertainment equipment, distribute these jukeboxes to bars and restaurants through contractual agreements. Revenue generated is typically shared between the venue owners and operators. Both groups are constantly on the move: venue staff are dedicated to providing excellent service to patrons throughout their shifts, while operators travel between locations to maintain devices, collect revenue, and ensure everything runs smoothly.
Despite their critical roles, the tools available to manage, personalize, and oversee jukeboxes often fell short in terms of mobile-friendliness. Many essential tasks required access to a computer or necessitated being in close proximity to the jukebox itself, while even more functions demanded reaching out to technical support via phone. This fragmentation created inefficiencies in the management process that AMI wanted to address.
Goals
To kick off the project, I met with the product manager to clarify goals and prioritize features. These were the 4 goals we discussed:
Develop an app capable of supporting two distinct user experiences: a comprehensive operator interface and a streamlined venue staff interface.
Display key data to operators based on user research.
Identify a standout feature to drive adoption.
Design the app to be highly adaptable, ready to accommodate an expanding array of features.
UX Research
The goals outlined left considerable room for interpretation, underscoring the need for an extensive UX research project to identify key features and functionality that would meet both operator and venue staff needs. To achieve this, I initiated a structured research process to gather actionable insights that would shape the app’s development.
Phase one of the research focused on analyzing click-track data from the operator website, the main tool for remotely monitoring and managing devices. My goal was to identify the most frequently accessed data and actions. I found that operators primarily used the site to check the online status and health of their jukeboxes to decide if a physical visit was needed. Their workflow typically involved logging in, viewing the device list, and sorting it based on last connection time, revenue collected yesterday and today, and total cash collected within the device.
Phase two analyzed the jukebox service menu to identify common actions taken by operators at the device and venue staff using the infrared remote control. The findings revealed that operators frequently recalibrated the touchscreen and adjusted volume, while venue staff often rejected song selections to align with the ambiance and temporarily powered down the jukebox during events like sports broadcasts or live performances by bands or a DJ.
Phase three included in-depth phone interviews with AMI tech support agents to identify the most common questions and issues they addressed for customers. This information was crucial in pinpointing tasks that could be streamlined through the app, potentially reducing the number of service calls. I then reached out to over a dozen operators of varying sizes to validate the click-track data and gain deeper insights into their behaviors on the operator website. These conversations helped me understand the motivations behind their actions and confirmed the essential administrative tools they relied on.
Phase four concentrated on identifying a standout feature to boost app adoption. I concluded that integrating AMI's Ad Manager tool into the Co-Pilot app would be the most effective approach. The depth of this analysis is detailed in a separate document titled 'UX Review of Ad Manager.'
User Personas
Our target audience consisted of three persona types:
1. Operators
2. Venue Owners
3. Venue Staff
EXAMPLE 1:
Bob, 50, is the owner of a company providing digital jukeboxes and entertainment equipment to bars and restaurants. Bob is a highly motivated entrepreneur with a passion for music and entertainment. His primary goal is to ensure the seamless operation of digital jukeboxes and other entertainment equipment in the establishments he serves. With customers across multiple towns, Bob is a busy individual who juggles multiple responsibilities. He needs efficient tools that provide him with real-time information about all the devices on his route. Bob’s key responsibilities include servicing jukeboxes, collecting cash, and providing training to staff at the venues. He understands that timely intervention can significantly impact the profitability of the establishments he serves.
Bob values convenience and efficiency. He needs tools that simplify his daily tasks. Reliability and ease of use are critical. He needs an intuitive and user-friendly platform that provides essential information at a glance. "In this business, time is money. I need tools that give me real-time insights. The easier it is to manage, the better I can serve my locations and grow my route.”
EXAMPLE 2:
Alex, 48, is the owner of a small chain of restaurants. Bob is his jukebox operator. Alex has AMI digital jukeboxes installed in all three locations. He values the jukebox as a source of entertainment and extra revenue, as his customers love it and frequently play music from it. The digital signage feature that accompanies the jukebox has quickly become a vital tool for Alex too, allowing him to promote his business on the jukebox and connected TVs. He uses it to advertise events, showcase food and drink specials, and even engage with regulars by sending birthday wishes.
Maintaining the ambiance of his restaurants is a top priority. Alex collaborates with Bob to filter out inappropriate music, but the ability for his bartenders and restaurant staff to manually skip songs remains important to ensure a consistent atmosphere. Alex is a savvy and tech-friendly restaurateur who embraces digital tools to enhance the customer experience and drive profitability, so he values the digital signage capabilities that Bob has trained him to use.
However, managing promotions and events is time-sensitive, and Alex would prefer a more mobile-friendly solution for updating digital signage from anywhere, whether he's at the restaurant or on the go. "My restaurants thrive on great ambiance, and the AMI jukebox plays a big role in that. The Ad Manager tool is fantastic, but it's a hassle that I can't manage it on my smartphone.”
EXAMPLE 3:
Lily, 30, has been a bartender at one of Alex's restaurants for over five years, and she knows the regulars exceptionally well. For her, music plays a significant role in making her shifts more enjoyable. Lily is personable, attentive, values her regular customers, and strives to make their visits enjoyable. She appreciates the power of music to set the right mood in the bar.
The AMI jukebox in the bar area provides background music, but Lily occasionally pays to play her preferred tunes to enhance her own work experience. The regulars at the bar frequently use the jukebox, and the music generally aligns with the bar's ambiance. However, there are instances when Lily needs to skip a song, especially if it's overplayed or generally unpopular.
Lily places great importance on the music played, which not only affects her work experience but also the overall mood in the bar area. While she doesn't mind spending her own money on the jukebox, she wishes there was a rewards program to earn free credits. Also, skipping songs, can be a minor hassle due to the remote control. For example, if the bartender from the evening prior sat it down someplace different.
Insights Gained
Gaining a better understanding of operators' priorities and the operational demands of venue staff allowed me to focus on integrating the most essential functionalities into the app. I planned to create features that enabled operators to monitor device status, track revenue, and manage cash collection efficiently, all from a single interface. This streamlined approach would empower operators to make informed decisions without the need to visit each location, ultimately saving them both time and effort. Additionally, the app would replace the reliance on infrared remote controls for venue staff, moving those functionalities to their smartphones for greater convenience in managing ambiance.
Mobile App Architecture
Transitioning to the architectural design of the Co-Pilot app, I faced the challenge of organizing two distinct user experiences—one tailored for operators and the other for venue staff—ensuring that each group could navigate the app intuitively.
Color Palette and Fonts
The color palette for the Co-Pilot app features gold, white, and black, with gold specifically selected for its associations with success and wealth. This choice reinforced the app's purpose of enhancing operational efficiency for operators, who relied on jukeboxes as a primary source of income. Built native for Android and iOS, system fonts Roboto and San Francisco would be used.
Application Design
The design review presented below showcases the final high-fidelity mockups for a portion of the application. Since the engineering team aimed for a native design adhering to best practices for iOS and Android interfaces, the wireframes and mockups were sufficiently aligned, making the inclusion of both in this case study too redundant.
Based on our research, the first thing I decided to show post-login was browsable lists of all music and TV locations. Data would be limited to what operators told us was most relevant during our phone interviews. Key sorting options were also supported. Expecting, in the future, the need to support features that would allow all devices across an entire route to be modified at once, the Network tab was included as a placeholder.
Touching a location name open the Control Menu for the location selected.
Minus the Operator tab, the app’s Control Menu would be the default menu presented to bar and restaurant staff post-login. Items in the Control Menu were organized into 3 segments:
Basic
Promotion
Operator
The "Basic" tab would house basic features such as the ability to view the song currently playing, pause or reject it, adjust volume, change background music stations and more. The tab would also provide access to customization options, allowing for menu personalization and the creation of suggested "Staff Favorite" playlists. See below:
The "Promotional" tab would allow users to create, schedule, and publish digital signage to one or multiple devices. To learn more about this feature, click here. Additionally, notifications could be sent to patrons who had previously downloaded the AMI Music app to play music at that venue.
The "Operator" tab would appear only when the account was that of an operator or installer, housing tools specific for back-end management. This included access to live chat support, revenue reports, background music configuration, staff rewards configuration, and more.
Final Result
The project was a resounding success, as the final designs effectively met the objectives established at the outset of the development process. Originally released in 2018, AMI Co-Pilot became the first-ever app specifically designed for jukebox operators and venue owners, significantly aiding in new customer acquisitions. By integrating user feedback and insights, the app addressed the operational needs of both operators and venue staff while streamlining their workflows.
The mobile adaptation of Ad Manager proved highly successful, contributing to a 152% increase in local business promotions across the AMI network. Overall, the project achieved its goals, resulting in a robust and user-friendly application that supports efficient jukebox management and enhances user engagement.
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