Crafting loyalty and retention for Amazon Music
2024
Winning team 🏆
Product Design
During a particularly competitive Product Design Challenge, I worked in a team of four and produced two elegant solutions. Our team bagged the "Fine Tuned Award" for well-thought out solutions to the retention question. I am extremely grateful for the chance to present the solution at Amazon's headquarters in NYC. It was the opportunity of a lifetime. Read on to learn more.
Amazon Music, A background
1998: Amazon came to life when a shift in business model marked their transformation from a bookstore to an online everything store selling music CDs and videos.
2007: launch of the first iPhone, and digital streaming became the norm
2008: Amazon launches MP3
2014: integrates music into Echo and Alexa
The third phase of growth was when Audible was introduced to the public as part of Amazon Music offering. Today, Amazon partners with artists to sell merch directly to customers and hold live concerts, too. The product also utilises Gen AI features to quickly generates playlists that match “a vibe”🎶
What they expected from us?
Listening habits are emotional, but current music platforms treat loyalty passively. To address this, we first need to understand how and why people stream music today. In a competitive space where users hop music apps often, Amazon asked us:
Curious?! Skip Ahead [Link to prototype]
Before proceeding, we aligned on our team’s philosophy: Solve the problem and give value to the user, the rest will follow.
*and the grind begins*
What music apps do people use? Why?
We set out to find answers by asking general questions about which apps users pay for and how they use it. We also wanted to understand what they like/dislike about the experience. 28 responses and some also agreed to a coffee chat ☕️. Insights from conversations were noted here.
App users love supporting artists and appreciate good recommendations, they avoid apps that take away control and feels impersonal
Based on responses received from interviewees, details were transcribed from the interview and information categorised.
Our problem statement now becomes….
Powerful levers we focused on
Following the themes that emerged, we were able to reframe the problem statement, bringing the spotlight on people ❤
Feature 1- Rewards and Loyalty
Amazon Music could activate loyalty by tapping into something Amazon does best: e-commerce rewards. It also encourages the connect to the app by showing tangible benefits
🔹 A Gamified Rewards System where users earn “Listening Points” based on their activity: streaming music, curating playlists, and discovering artists.
🔹 Redeem points for exclusive artist merch, concert tickets, and VIP experiences connecting music fandom and platform loyalty.
Suggestion Mode
Users crave better control over recommendations — but current algorithms are black boxes. The lack of satisfaction with song suggestions is a major trigger to switch to other apps.
🔹 Suggestion Modes:
Let users choose how the next song is picked:
- What’s Trending — based on the tastes of similar listeners
- Sound Match — based on genre, style, and sonic similarity
- Smart Suggest — a blend of both
Outcome
Among 62 teams, we were selected finalist team at Amazon Music HQ, Hudson Yards.
Presented to the VP of Design, Director of Product and a large live audience
Awarded the “Fine-Tuned” Award, for the excellence of both concept and execution.
With more time…
I would explore the following features through early testing in small groups to see how it impacts the way people perceive Amazon music.
Secondly, we also received feedback to consider non-monetary rewards and benefits in the loyalty program.
This can reduce the burden on Amazon’s e-commerce and increase emotional connection with social badges like “Designated DJ” etc. (Just an example 😉)
Closing thoughts and thanks 💙
Music is an emotion, and platforms that honor that will own the future. With Rewards fueling joy and Suggestion Mode empowering discovery, we designed an Amazon Music experience that wasn’t just used — it was loved.
Se One Park and Michelle Kim for being such gracious hosts, and to our stellar mentors, Christina Ferrada and Elaine Ji who were in this with us.
Also thanks to
Prof. Craig MacDonald for orchestrating this powerful collaboration between Pratt Institute and Amazon Music.
🔒 Entire Design Process
I discuss the juicy details of the design process and many iterations in interviews and 1:1 chats. Feel free to reach out if you would like to know more. Excited to talk soon 👋