The challenge
The Gallifreyan translator tool allows fans to translate text into the symbols (the official language of the Time Lords) and download or share their creations.
This project stemmed from a proactive push to introduce the Google Ventures style week-long cross-disciple design sprint format as a way to fast-track innovative ideas stuck in backlogs.
Key goals
Our goal for the design sprint was to produce a working proof of concept to user test.
Our wider ambitions were to fast-track the launch of the MVP (minimum viable product) for the translator tool, with the hope that it would prove an engaging tool for fans and contribute to key site performance indicators, Increasing; site traffic, repeat visitation and average time on site.
My responsibilities
As UX Lead/facilitator, I led the project from inception to launch, which involved;
• Working with senior leadership to find a suitable candidate to road-test the format
• Planning and facilitating the 5-day design sprint
• Feature prioritisation for MVP release and beyond
• Providing creative direction for the P.O.C. (proof of concept)
• Oversight and hands-on input into design and delivery rollout
• Working with senior leadership to find a suitable candidate to road-test the format
• Planning and facilitating the 5-day design sprint
• Feature prioritisation for MVP release and beyond
• Providing creative direction for the P.O.C. (proof of concept)
• Oversight and hands-on input into design and delivery rollout
Outcomes
Following the successful design sprint and encouraging user feedback, we rapidly built the MVP for this exciting new feature which launched in late October 2024 to extremely positive fan reception. We are still measuring some key performance indicators however so far the tool has surpassed typical benchmarks, indicating high engagement;
• 3rd most visited page on the website* (just behind the homepage)
• Average Session Duration over 7 mins
• Average Time on Page nearly 6 mins
• 3rd most visited page on the website* (just behind the homepage)
• Average Session Duration over 7 mins
• Average Time on Page nearly 6 mins
*Piano analytics, month 1 (Nov. 2024)
Read on for a more detailed case study...
Planning and facilitation
The design sprint was run remotely with a cross-discipline team of engineers, product, marketing, design and customer representatives. I adapted the standard format with custom Miro activities to suit the opportunity and timeline, whilst organising attendees and experts.
The team were bought on the journey from idea to a working proof of concept (POC) in 5 days, with all attendees encouraged to actively participate in workshops from note taking and voting to digital sketching.
This allowed all business units to share their voice, helping to;
• Align on and work towards a shared goal
• Uncover potential risks and considerations early
• Connect department leads and specialists who might not otherwise collaborate
• Rapidly progress the proof of concept into something tangible for feedback
• Align on and work towards a shared goal
• Uncover potential risks and considerations early
• Connect department leads and specialists who might not otherwise collaborate
• Rapidly progress the proof of concept into something tangible for feedback
Goal setting and journey mapping
Day 1 required lots of upfront planning to make the best use of time. This included creating some context setting slides, a draft customer journey map and organising subject matter experts (SMES).
SME interviews covered; brand, CRM and technical considerations. This triggered deep discussions, informing; our goal for the week (and beyond), how we measure success, and risks we’d need to navigate such as profanities and accessibility.
The team decided to target Superfans for feedback at the end of the sprint, honing in on translation customisation options as the target moment. The group assumption was that by creating a fun, usable experience that leveraged core show elements, we would win over even notoriously stringent superfans! This provided a strong value proposition compared to unofficial tools in market.
Co-designing the solution
Day 2 began with the team sharing inspiring solutions from other industries. A fan joined to demo a tool they’d created which had been used in the latest series. It provided lots of insights and a solid foundation for our translator.
These demos helped the team to consider; tool onboarding, interface controls and positioning, input formats, how to present multiple symbols on small screens, accessibility, outputs, sharing and more.
I then took the team through several rounds of solo sketching as we started to draft potential interface features. Ideas were anonymously shared, voted on and merged as a concept began to take shape.
I then took the team through several rounds of solo sketching as we started to draft potential interface features. Ideas were anonymously shared, voted on and merged as a concept began to take shape.
This highly collaborative, visual, democratic format was a first for many attendees and cited as sprint highlight in the post-sprint wrap-up.
Day 2 outcome: a high-level storyboard of the core flow, with just enough detail to set us up for prototyping.
Building the POC and interactive prototype
To fast-track our MVP release, two days were dedicated to prototyping rather than the usual one. This allowed the team more time to craft a closer representation of our vision, ready for user feedback on day 5.
The team broke into different focus areas to cover; content writing, requirements, recruitment and script writing, proof of concept (POC) build, UI design and prototyping.
The POC was built in Create React App with the goal to translate text into symbols in real-time, alongside offering basic customisation if time permitted.
The clickable prototype in Figma was more visually finessed, showcasing more complex features to illicit feedback on desirability. These included; uploading background images, scanning Gallifreyan, voice to symbol and various output formats.
Day 4 outcome #2: Our prototype reflected the end-to-end flow captured in the storyboard
User testing
At the end of the first 4 days we had;
• A functioning POC of core features
• A clickable prototype emulating some of the more complex functionality
• A loose script ready for user testing
• A functioning POC of core features
• A clickable prototype emulating some of the more complex functionality
• A loose script ready for user testing
On day 5, 4x superfans were interviewed in 30 min remote sessions. We set the scene and asked questions to gauge expectations before revealing the tool concepts. Scenario driven tasks were then undertaken using the POC or prototype, receiving high completion rate and unanimously positive feedback.
The findings were very revealing, providing confidence to invest further in the tool development and offering tangible qualitative insights to help shape it.
Research summary deck: shared with the wider stakeholder group after the sprint, helping to build a business case for further development and show the value of design sprints.
Prioritising requirements post-sprint
After the success of the design sprint, we were given the green light and resources for further development.
I ran feature prioritisation workshops with stakeholder, user and engineering representatives to get a better gauge of effort required for features we’d explored.
The Phase 1 (MVP) feature set was captured and translated into requirements, with some less impactful, resource intense items (such as uploading image backgrounds) penned for future phases.
Features requiring more validation to warrant the effort (such as translating symbols back to text) were parked or shelved entirely.
Detailed design and MVP build
Work then began to tighten up designs in Figma. I provided creative direction and oversaw the MVP feature set rollout across responsive breakpoints. This included ensuring user feedback such as download and share preferences had been addressed.
During this stage, we further investigated compliance requirements, which led to a pivot from real-time translation to the introduction of a ‘Translate’ button and warning dialogue triggered by a profanity list. Despite impacting the experience, it mitigated the risk of misuse, allowing for profanity checking prior to output display.
Launch, impact, next steps and learnings
Launch
The MVP was launched in October 2024 to extremely positive fan reception, becoming the 3rd most visited page on the website (just behind the homepage) in month one, with average session duration and average time on page engagement metrics surpassing benchmarks.
The MVP was launched in October 2024 to extremely positive fan reception, becoming the 3rd most visited page on the website (just behind the homepage) in month one, with average session duration and average time on page engagement metrics surpassing benchmarks.
Next steps
All metrics are under close observation for future optimisation. There's a host of new features and enhancements are already in the development backlog. Come and watch it evolve doctorwho.tv/gallifreyan-translator
All metrics are under close observation for future optimisation. There's a host of new features and enhancements are already in the development backlog. Come and watch it evolve doctorwho.tv/gallifreyan-translator
Learnings
• Tailored design sprints can be extremely effective, but require even more planning and coordination than the standard format
• When interviewing superfans, knowing your way around the show’s canon helps immensely with deciphering domain specific feedback
• Profanity compliance is a painful, but important step for such an iconic, public-facing brand
• Gallifreyan symbols are pretty beautiful
• Tailored design sprints can be extremely effective, but require even more planning and coordination than the standard format
• When interviewing superfans, knowing your way around the show’s canon helps immensely with deciphering domain specific feedback
• Profanity compliance is a painful, but important step for such an iconic, public-facing brand
• Gallifreyan symbols are pretty beautiful
Huge thanks to...
Devon, the design sprint squad, engineering team, our SMEs and everyone else involved for making this possible.
Devon, the design sprint squad, engineering team, our SMEs and everyone else involved for making this possible.
