About Verizon Messages /

Verizon Messages (Message+) is a cross-platform text messaging application that synchronizes all conversations across multiple devices, including SMS text messages, MMS group messages, and OTT group messages, allowing up to 250 participants in a single conversation. This app also lets you personalize conversations with a variety of backgrounds, bubble styles, fonts, and more.

My role

I led the UX/UI design and mentored another designer, guiding the rebrand and add-on features from initial concept to beta and through various upgrades and feature enhancements in the official integration. I set and executed the vision for the product experience on Android, iOS, and desktop platforms, collaborating closely with product managers, engineers, researchers, content strategists, and QA.

The project: Verizon Message+ message organizer

The Message Organizer is a feature we want to build into Verizon Message+, designed to enhance user experience by categorizing and sorting messages into different sections, such as personal and business. This intelligent organization system aims to help users quickly locate important messages, declutter their inbox, and streamline communication. The goal is to create a more organized and efficient messaging experience, allowing users to focus on what matters most.

Problems

Objective

Target Audience

General users
Everyday users who wish to declutter their inbox and easily find important messages.

Professionals
Individuals who need to manage and organize their business and personal communications to stay productive.

Power users
Users seeking advanced features to customize their messaging experience.

Research

Competitor research was conducted to evaluate other apps offering similar features and support for RCS messaging. Detailed investigation into RCS messaging specifics was integral to the second phase of feature enhancement research.

Ideate

During the ideation stage, I collaborated with the PM and another designer to define user needs. We employed the HMW (How Might We) method to generate a focused set of questions, then brainstormed solutions to address them. Given the tight timeline, I took the initiative to create low-fidelity mockups after the meeting to visualize the ideas and facilitate further discussion.

Personalize the message organization experience?
Enable users to set custom filters and alert messages?
Create an intuitive interface that makes organizing messages effortless?

Prototype research objective

The goal of this research effort was to evaluate the usability and usefulness of a labeling message organizer feature for the Verizon Messages app. A remote, mobile-focused usability study was conducted with 7 participants. Using video conferencing, a researcher observed participants interacting with a mobile prototype of the message organizer feature. The researcher took notes and probed for deeper insights to understand their experience.

Key takeaway
1. Labels were generally easy to understand and easy to use.
2. The company label, managing labels, and whether contacts or conversations are labeled confused participants.
3. Customers suggested making adding and managing labels more visible and adding shortcuts for these actions.
4. Most customers see the utility of the labels feature and would be likely to use it.

Solutions

Initial Concept
We aimed to have multiple tabs to categorize different types of conversations. The team decided on the minimum viable product (MVP) by defining how many types of labels to include. Eventually, "Personal" and "Business" alerts were chosen as the initial categories.

Business Alerts Definition
Business alerts encompass all messages from short code numbers and the Verizon chatbot, automatically categorized under the "Business" label.

Custom label (Post-MVP)
Allow users to create and manage their own labels, providing greater flexibility and organization. Custom label was one of the ideas we discussed within the team that got put into Post-MVP.

Message organizer (beta) design examples

Multiple use cases were built out for the message organizer feature, as shown in the examples below. Each workflow addresses a specific user case and was put together in InVision for user testing. The workflows were presented in slides for weekly sync up with developers. Then, it was also shared with testers for feedback and understanding of the use cases.

Enable message organizer in beta

One of the technical challenge was how long it takes to organize all the conversations. So, we used a snackbar to info users "Organizing conversations in progress." When it's complete, a modal is shown with the number of conversations organized into each label.

Move conversation to another label

Giving users easy access to move conversation between labels. We came up with three different ways to move conversation.
1. Long Press on Single Conversation: Select Option menu > Move to [label].
2. Multi-select: Select multiple conversations, then choose Option menu > Move to [label].
3. Inside the Conversation: Navigate to Profile > Options menu > Move to [label].

User feebacks

Users primarily requested custom labels:
"This is awesome. It would be great to be able to default to a specific category every time you open the app."
"I like it, and wish there was an option to have more categories (like family, friends, work, etc.)."
"I like the concept, but I would like to be able to customize groups that my messages are organized into. I have separate jobs/clients that have many messages & conversations going at any given time. If I could have tabs for up to 5 groups to organize these specific conversations, that would help so much."
"I wish it would have a default view or remember what view I was on when I closed the app. (Example: If I was on Personal, then if I close and reopen Messenger, it should go back to Personal and not All.)"
"It might be useful if I could custom the options other than all personal business."

Key takeaway from the beta release of the feature

During beta testing, the message organizer feature attracted a significant 130,913 users who activated it. Positive customer feedback highlighted what features they'd love to see next.

Feature update

The Message Organizer feature in Verizon Message+ aims to enhance user experience by providing a structured way to manage conversations. Initial beta testing with "Personal" and "Business" labels has shown promising results, and future updates will include customizable labels based on user feedback. This iterative approach ensures that the feature meets user needs and expectations before the official release.

Feature update examples

The outcome

Through a collaborative effort, as the lead designer with another designer, we worked closely with our amazing Product Managers, Developers, Researchers, Content Strategist, and stakeholders to develop the Message Organizer feature. Beta testing initially offered "Personal" and "Business" labels as a starting point for categorizing messages.

While user testing with these labels showed promise, valuable feedback from our researcher revealed a strong desire for further customization. This highlighted the importance of user-centered design, ensuring the feature truly addressed user needs. A huge shoutout to my team for their dedication and expertise throughout this process! Their willingness to iterate based on user feedback was instrumental, and I'm incredibly grateful for the opportunity to have worked alongside such a talented group.

This was the last feature added to Verizon Message+ before discussions began about sunsetting the product. I transitioned to work on Verizon Cloud.