The context
Move Beyond Passive Viewing
In 2018, FIFA World Cup was a crucial event for all top video streaming platforms in China. These platforms aimed to acquire the rights to broadcast the largest sporting event nationally. Youku managed to secure the official partnership with China Central Television (CCTV), the state broadcaster, by leveraging Alibaba's "content + e-commerce" business model. As a result, Youku was able to broadcast all 64 matches of the 2018 World Cup for free on its mobile app. The challenge was to create an engaging and interactive viewing experience for users on mobile devices, which had not been possible with traditional TV broadcasts.
The Challenge
Tight timeline: 2 weeks for quick launch and 4 weeks for rapid iterations based on real-time data.
Cross-functional collaboration: Collaboration among multiple teams from different business domains, including content platforms and e-commerce platforms within the Alibaba ecosystem, to ensure effective communication and a synchronized design process to avoid conflicting functionality.
The Outcome
As the lead for interactive experience design, my role in the Youku World Cup project was to ideate and refine interactive cheer features for the live broadcasting room. These features enabled fans to connect with each other and increased engagement for millions of users. This success ultimately led to the extension of this model to the entire Youku Sports channel.
* Credits: Illustrations designed by Creative Team
Business Goal
Increase Engagement and Retain Users
During the 2018 World Cup, Youku gained the rights to stream the games online, leading to a massive number of users onto the platform. The challenge was to retain these users and increase engagement, as user retention is a crucial success metric for the business.
The primary objective was to optimize the user funnel by ensuring that users not only entered the platform but also consumed content, engaged with the platform, and remained active on it over time.
Competitive Landscape
World Cup Marketing Strategies
As the FIFA World Cup is the biggest sporting event IP in the world, other platforms had also implemented massive pre and post-game marketing strategies, making it difficult to differentiate ourselves. However, live streaming is Youku's strong suit, and we focused on delivering not just a professional but also an entertaining experience. By creating a unique World Cup experience, users were more likely to participate in the event, ultimately increasing engagement and retention on the Youku platform.
Target Audience
Casual Fans & Super Fans
Through research, we identified two main types of users who watch the World Cup.
Emotional Map
Wave-line for Fan Engagement
Through the emotional map, we identified that both casual fans and super fans experience boredom and lack of engagement during slower periods of the game, resulting in a loss of interest and declining engagement.
Initial Assumptions
Frame Opportunity Area
How might we enhance the connection and excitement of online sports fans through a more interactive viewing experience?
Initial Solution
A Comprehensive Interactive Experience
Our solution aims to create an interactive and engaging viewing experience for online sports fans, replicating the atmosphere of live games. It consists of a comprehensive cheer interaction plan from pre-game to post-game.Pre Game — users will be prompted to choose their team and receive a "ticket," which will determine their group for interactive features.During Game — incorporate interactive features such as "flag-waving," which simulates the atmosphere of a live game and encourages participation and excitement among the users.Post Game — users will have the opportunity to share their experiences, thereby expanding the community of engaged viewers.
Rapid Design test
Launch A Small Experiment
The initial solution had a long and complex process that required a significant amount of development resources and time. Therefore, we conducted a small experiment to validate the effectiveness of the "flag-waving" interaction. We optimized the existing live streaming framework by replacing the "like" button with a "flag-waving" button that reflected the user's team. The click-through rate increased by 40%, indicating that the interaction was effective.
Final Solution
Build Excitement through Lightweight Cheer Interactions
Our final solution aimed to create an engaging and interactive viewing experience for online sports fans, enabling them to connect with the game and each other. The lightweight ways of cheering allowed fans to see the excitement building in the room and feel a sense of community.
Drive user retention for casual fans
To drive user retention for casual fans who are motivated by entertainment, we focused on enhancing their entertainment experience by promoting other engaging content on the Youku platform. By tailoring content recommendations based on users' viewing behavior and history, we can keep them coming back for more.
Drive user retention for super fans
To retain super fans who are motivated by bonding and have strong connections, we encouraged them to participate in discussions and join interest groups after the game. By providing a platform for like-minded fans to interact and share their passion for the sport, we can foster a sense of community and loyalty, leading to increased user retention.
THE RESULTS
Boosted User Engagement and Retention
After implementing the interactive cheering feature for the Youku World Cup live stream, user engagement and activity levels were increased, with effective guidance provided for users to continue interacting with the platform after the event ended, resulting in a 41% increase in the number of participants, a 70% increase in the number of clicks, and a 6% increase in the retention rate of the Youku Planet product.
The Impact
Extended to the Entire Youku Sports Channel
Our project revolutionized the way people experience sports events on mobile devices by providing an interactive and engaging viewing experience. By incorporating interactive features that enabled users to engage with the game and each other, we created a shared emotional experience among fans, which was previously lacking in online sports events. The interactive cheering feature not only drove greater engagement, excitement, and retention rates for the Youku platform, but it also served as a successful model that has been replicated on the Youku Sports channel.