Design: BMG Music Services
Summary: An online music retail club which presents customized editorial and database-driven content to a diverse range of users, allowing them to join the club, browse for music, and purchase product in an intuitive and aesthetically pleasing environment.
Problem context: BMG Music Services, the largest mail-order music club in the country, wanted to expand its range of member services and entice new members to join the club with an online presence. To that end, Art Technology Group designed an Internet application which customizes its content to BMG's wide range of listener groups while accommodating existing mail-club members and new Internet-based members equally well.
Project goal: Build an environment allowing members to respond to club requirements as well as locating and purchasing CDs, cassettes, and other products. Other objectives included: an easy and intuitive club-enrollment process to recruit new club members; ability to search entire music catalog as well as browse by genre; an interface that would accommodate a mixture of database-driven and editorial content; give club members listening-preference-specific content.
Target audience: Pre-existing club members, anyone that purchases music (BMG's listening preferences run from rock to classical to Christian).
My role: Participated in the creative team which identified and specified business and user requirements; led development of all functionality and UI design. Led implementation of UI code using ATG Dynamo JHTML with engineers and designers.
View screen shots:
Note: This site launched in December 1997, and has since been largely redesigned. The screen shots below give an indication as to the ATG design.
Umbrella Page
The topmost page a user first sees when coming to the BMG site.
Enrollment Start
BMG required an easy way for users to join the club by selecting seven free CDs and entering personal information. This screen introduced users to the enrollment process. Also, note the enrollment-specific left-side navigation on all enrollment screens.
Enrollment Editors' Picks
BMG needed a way to promote particular CDs during the enrollment process. ATG designed this screen to call out CDs by genre.
Enrollment Editors' Picks w/ Items
This page shows the "persistent shopping cart" at the top, which helps users remember how many free CDs they've selected so far.
Enrollment Product Info
This screen illustrates the information display for a particular CD, as well as the persistent shopping cart.
Enrollment Shopping Cart
This screen shows users what free CDs they've selected, and allows them do delete some or to finalize the enrollment process.
Classical Club Home, Guest
BMG required an appropriate look and feel for each of their music clubs. This is the homepage for the Classical club. For guests, the left-hand navigation offers more limited options.
Jazz Club Home, Guest
The homepage for the Jazz club.
Jazz Club Clearance, Guest
For each club, BMG needed a way to promote and move clearance merchandise. ATG developed this screen that would show art for three clearance items, and titles and prices for the rest.
Jazz Collection, Guest
BMG also needed a way to present certain record collections with a bit more context. This display shows album art and a description along with other information.
Pop Club Home, Guest
The homepage for the Pop club.
Pop Club Bestsellers, Guest
This screen enables BMG to promote the best-selling items in the Pop club.
Pop Club Highlights, Guest
This screen enables BMG present certain record collections with a bit more context. This display shows album art and a description along with other information.
Browse Step 1, Member
The first screen of the hierarchical browse experience. Also, note on this and all remaining screens the member-specific left-side navigation.
Browse Step 2, Member
A step down into the hierarchical browse experience. Note the navigation along the top which allows users to move back up in the hierarchy.
Browse Step 3, Member
This screen is an example of the browse interface when users start viewing individual CDs in a category.
Browse Step 4, Member
When users select an album to view in the browse process, they see both the album information as well as the browse hierarchy they followed.
Shopping Cart, Member
The shopping cart displays particulars of items the user is about to purchase. The user may also remove items or save items in the cart for a future purchase.
Christian Club Home, Member (Secular)
The Christian Club homepage.
Christian Club Home, Member (Non-Secular)
BMG needed to be able to prevent members of its Christian club from seeing secular content. This screen shows the non-secular navigation for a Christian Club member (no ability to see the Pop, Jazz or Classical clubs). If a Christian club member elected to see secular information, they would get the standard member navigation.
Christian Club What's New, Member
This screen allows BMG to promote newly available CDs.
Christian Club Store, Member
This screen displays non-CD merchandise available through the Christian Club.
Classical Club Home, Member
The Classical club homepage.
Classical Club Highlights, Member
This screen enables BMG present certain record collections with a bit more context. This display shows album art and a description along with other information.
Classical Club Store, Member
This screen displays non-CD merchandise available through the Classical Club.
Pop Club Home, Member
The Pop Club homepage.
Product Display w/ "You Have Added..." Message, Member
This page shows the information display for a particular CD. Also, when users add items to their shopping cart, the page reloads with a message confirming the action a user just took.
Search, Member
The basic search interface.
Search Results, Member
Search results display.