Reading International Mobile Apps
iOS + Android
Reading Cinemas is a group of cinema chains operating in the United States, Australia and New Zealand under American parent company Reading International. To sit competitively within the cinema entertainment space, Reading was initially looking to launch 8 mobile apps for all 4 of their affiliated brands, for both iOS and Android. The latest feature to be released was the ability to order food in-app, for delivery or pick-up. 🍔
We uncovered a lot of technical unknowns, dealt with the onset of theater closures and still launched the food ordering feature with modifications for COVID-19 restrictions.
APP(S)Reading Cinemas
Consolidated Theaters
Angelika Theaters
DURATION8 months
ROLEUX/UI Designer
UX Phase
―
The goal was to let movie-goers order food from the Reading mobile app. Depending upon where the user is sitting in a particular movie theater, they will be able to order food delivered to their seat, or for pick-up.
The team had to work within technical limitations of the theater’s outdated POS system. Here are some of those hurdles:
5 minute timer to complete the movie ticketing and food ordering flow.
We had to map the user’s ticket to their food order in a very manual and laborious way for the user for MVP.
To place a food order, the user had to start by entering in the ticketing confirmation number, which is not optimal when you’re inside a dark theater.
Lack of sophisticated systems in the theater kitchen. When users placed their food order, they received an estimated window of time of when to receive their food vs an exact time.
Service Blueprint (first iteration)
This feature was going to involve many relationships across different service components, so I created a series of service blueprints to help visualize the interactions of such relationships.
This document was used to convey the most optimal user experience to our team of developers, to then validate feasibility with our systems. It also provided insight for Reading Cinemas, where they would be needed to fill in frontstage needs.
Visual and Interaction Design
Through interaction, experience, and visual design, the food ordering flow came to life. Attention to detail such as having a quick and accessible Food Ordering icon, persistent in the tab bar, reduced the workload for users, of searching where to go.
A persistent system status that displayed the user’s cart subtotal, and the ability to see the cart items allowed users to look up and down, from movie to phone, and not skip a beat about their progress.
Food Ordering went live in October 2020🚀
The feature had to be slightly modified as COVID-19 struck the film industry. RDI pivoted to offer movie lovers the same menu in-theater for curbside pick-up.