Scribe: Enhanced Podcast App Concept

2019 • Personal Project • MFA Capstone 

Overview

My capstone project for my MFA in Interactive Media at the University of Miami focused on developing Scribe, a podcast application designed to enhance how users interact with podcasts.

As a podcast listener, I identified a need for a more interactive platform to facilitate learning, knowledge retention, and resource sharing. Scribe, the podcast app I conceptualized and designed, allows podcast listeners to capture time-stamped notes and engage more deeply with content, and also allows for podcast makers to integrate their own resources and notes into podcast episodes. By integrating relevant information directly into the listening experience, Scribe introduces a dynamic new way for listeners to interact with podcasts.

View the prototype here. I also created and coded a landing page for the project at getscribeapp.com

My role

UX Designer

THE PROBLEM

How might we simplify the process of locating and adding notes for mentioned resources within podcasts?

RESEARCH

To kick off this project, I started with generative research to thoroughly understand the podcast landscape from various angles, including the experiences of listeners, creators, and the functionalities of existing podcast apps.

Interviews & Survey

The initial part of my research involved interviewing friends and family to understand their podcast listening habits. After conversational interview, I conducted a survey using a Google Forms, which I shared via social media and got 80 responses.

Key survey findings included:

• 57.5% respondents listen to podcasts primarily for educational purposes and to learn new things.

• 88.8% of respondents have looked up additional information related to podcast content at some point—some research while listening, others pause to look up information, and a few prefer to wait until the episode ends or make a note to research later.

• 38.8% respondents actively take notes during podcasts for later reference, documenting key details such as names, dates, and actionable items.

“I take notes on things I want to look up later or remember, I note things like names, things I want to remember, websites, etc.”

—Survey Participant

I also gained additional insights after speaking with Dr. Andrew Porter from the University of Miami who runs The Sex Wrap podcast, to incorporate the podcast creator perspective. He highlighted the role of social media in expanding their listener base, and the importance of community engagement. This led to the idea of integrating social media links directly on the podcast’s page—a feature surprisingly absent in current platforms.

These findings prompted two critical questions:

• How can we make it easy for listeners and podcast creators to access and integrate supplemental information directly within the podcast app?

• How can we enable efficient note creation, saving, and retrieval during the podcast listening experience?

COMPETITOR ANALYSIS

After gathering these initial insights, I conducted a competitor analysis based on the features most requested in the surveys and a review of options in Apple’s App Store, as Scribe is designed primarily for iOS users. This analysis revealed a significant market opportunity: most apps lack dynamic interaction functionalities, especially in the realm of note-taking. This gap underscores a niche market of users who desire a more engaging and productive podcast experience.

DESIGN PROCESS

Wireframes

FEATURES OVERVIEW

I chose the name "Scribe" for this app because it reflects the app's key feature of saving and viewing podcast notes, much like a scribe records important information. The name also echoes the word "subscribe," which is what listeners do to follow their favorite podcasts.

KEY FEATURES IN ACTION

TESTING & FEEDBACK

I developed a high-fidelity prototype of the Scribe app using Adobe XD and conducted usability testing sessions, each lasting one hour, with 10 participants. The objective was to gauge initial reactions to the user interface and assess overall usability.

Testing Goals and Evaluation Metrics

Participants performed tasks that highlighted the app’s primary functions. We assessed their performance using three metrics, effectiveness, measured by the completion rate, efficiency, recorded as the time participants spent on tasks, and satisfaction, determined using the Single Ease Question (SEQ) and System Usability Scale (SUS).

KEY FINDINGS

Participants generally found the prototype well-designed, as reflected in high completion rates and satisfaction scores.

However, several issues were identified that need addressing:

• Confusion over categories “Resources”, “Podcast”, “My notes” 

• Lack of clarification about the connection between my notes, saved notes, and links 

• Lack of feedback after a resource or note is saved

• Lack of ability to save a point in a podcast without adding a note 

• Confusion over how to export/share 

• “Notes” tab looks too similar to “Podcast” tab

FINAL PROTOTYPE

After testing, I implemented the feedback to create the final high-fidelity, clickable prototype.

Feedback from testing also led to the conceptualization of an Apple Watch extension, allowing users to bookmark segments of a podcast with a simple tap—ideal for active listeners who multitask but wish to highlight moments for later review.