APP Development, UI, CRM, Customer Experience, Web Development
White Feather Designs were approached by Stack to produce a music APP - the Stack Radio APP and website. Unlike all other music APPs, The Stack Radio APP is uniquely designed to do all the work for you. Content is curated into predefined categories so that users can simply select the mood they're in and click.
Achieving the expectations of the customer was a very important factor in how this project evolved. The UI needed to be very simple and easy to use. There were also challenges with overcoming licence restrictions.
Every music service that plays to the public requires a Performing Rights Society licence. This comes in various levels, each allowing for different features which determine how the music is delivered to the end user.
Licence restrictions meant we had to ensure that no song information was displayed until after the song had started playing- even if there was a silent intro.
Stack Music APP is a unique listening experience. No two visits should play the same songs and there should be no order to the way songs are played in any category.
A bespoke CMS to allow an unlimited number of uploads and cataloging correctly is an essential part of the APP. Stack required a unique and bespoke music library.
The concept of the Stack Radio APP is a simple to use no frills music APP. It's curated so it takes away all the work needed to create playlists by sorting through 1000's of songs. Everything is in predefined categories, so you literally click and go. Its founder describes it as "the Mike Tyson of APPs. What you see is what you get".
The interface is designed to reflect the overall concept - bold, daring, but overall extremely simple. It is made up of six category squares which users can click and let play according to their mood.
WFDL developed a number of features for users to experience once in a category. Each song's details are displayed on the screen as they play: artist name, song title and playing time. We also created a facility to mute or skip songs as and when you want, and to Airplay to external speakers.
The APP is managed by an API development to allow for rapid updates and enhancements without the need for continuously uploading new builds to APP Store and Google Play. This means users can experience new features quickly and without new downloads.
The Stack Radio APPs content is managed by a bespoke CRM specifically developed for them. An upload area allows for admin staff to upload multiple songs in any format. There is a built-in conversion process to ensure all songs are in the correct format to play, and also a duplicate check to ensure no song is uploaded twice. Songs can then be distributed to one or many categories. Category names, descriptions and colours are all managed through the CRM and updated instantly via the API.
The Library contains all the songs uploaded to the system. They can be searched by category, artist and song title - and are individually managed.
A customer area manages all customers in their appropriate subscription types - Annual, Monthly and Free Monthly Trials. An automated process runs each day to ensure the Free Monthly Trials are correctly converted to either Annual or Monthly subscriptions once the free trial period has expired.
The Stack Radio APP is quick, easy to use with a simple and intuitive user interface. It has been sympathetically designed to give the end users a new but rewarding music experience.
The Stack Radio APP is all about great music, so we made it easy to share any screens showing all of a song's details via social media. A gift option allows existing subscribers to gift subscriptions to friends.
The architecture and build was carefully discussed so that the CMS which drives the APP is integrated with an API to ensure that new content is uploaded and delivered instantly.
The Guest Mixtapes section of the Stack Radio APP is a huge part of its success and new Mixtapes are created weekly via the CMS.
The integration with Mailchimp means that subscription groups are automatically updated ensuring users are constantly informed about new updates and features.
WFDL have been instrumental in developing Stack over the last couple of years. They have provided invaluable assistance to Stack Radio App's growth. Always on call, friendly and patient. A pleasure to work with." 
