ESPN Fantasy Playoffs Popeyes Ad Experience Case Study

🚀

Status

Shipped in Sep 2023

🗓️

Timeline

Jul - Oct 2023

🤖

Platform

Mobile App (iOS & Android)

🧰

Tools

Figma, Illustrator, Photoshop

Impact at a Glance

1.88M+

ad revenue increased

78M+

impression for Popeyes

8.33%

YoY user
activity growth

The Ad Experience Problem

Our static banner ads were turning users off 😬, and we had to deliver a three-part sequel in the Playoffs user flow for our top advertiser of the season, Popeyes. Users needed a better experience, and our partner expected results. On top of that, we faced a tight timeline and the challenge of aligning across the advertiser and internal teams.

Turn Disruption
Into Delight

User-Centered Brand Placement

I led the end-to-end Fantasy Playoffs ad design, partnering with cross-functional teams to create Popeyes moments guided by product strategy and user insights. Each was built to feel native to gameplay, spark fun, and drive value for both users and our top advertiser.

Project Lead & Team

👩🏻‍💻 My Role as Project Lead

UX Design, UI Motion Design, UX Research, Stakeholder Interview, Competitor Analysis, Graphic Design

🤝🏻 Our Team

1 Product Designer, 1 UX Writer, 1 Motion Designer, 2 Product Managers, 3 Engineers

I surfaced UX friction in the Playoffs flow and aligned with Product to redesign formats, placements, and interaction.

UX Research

What Our Users
Want From Ads

Data showed users valued ads more when tied to familiar brands and woven into gameplay.

User Interview

Validate Ad Formats
with Users

I tested lo-fi banner ads with 12 users. Skippable formats that didn’t block gameplay came out on top.

Emotional Journey Mapping

Deliver Ad Moments Around User Emotion

I mapped 3 high-impact ad moments in the Playoffs flow based on user emotion. Partnering with Product, we cut the journey from 4 taps to 2 and placed ads where user intent, business goals, and UX all clicked.

Competitor Analysis

Turn Competitor Patterns
to Our Ad Strategy

Direct competitor

Interactive, on-brand visuals with high CTA visibility

Director competitor

Static welcome screen with minimal co-branded placement

Director competitor

Static embedded ad with creative visuals

I spotted ad trends across competitors and shaped a hybrid format that elevated brand impact and our storytelling strategy.

Stakeholders Feedbacks

Popeyes brand recall

Visual hierarchy

Message readability

Playoffs feature clarity

WIP 005

Low

Weak

Low

Unclear

WIP 021

Moderate

Unbalanced

Fair

Clear but need text to be readable

Very Strong ✅

Well-balanced ✅

Strong ✅

Clear flow narrative ✅

I partnered with our UX Writer to align messaging with brand voice and address stakeholder feedback. The final solution used ESPN typography and 3D text effects to spark Playoffs energy from the start.

I framed the animation around Poppy to extend the brand story, using Popeyes’ commercial as creative inspiration. It wasn’t a request, but I pursued it to make the biggest impact.

The Animation Banner
That Hyped the Moment

Stakeholders Feedbacks

Message readability

Best UX practice

Popeyes brand presence

Animation prototype

WIP 006

3D effects reduced legibility

Close button
included

Dominant brand presence

Character entry
too slow

WIP 033

WCAG AAA 7:1 compliant

Close button
included

Shared branding
with Fantasy

Disruptive brand
color transition

WCAG AA 4.5:1 compliant ✅

Close button
included ✅

Popeyes as
primary ✅

CTA timing + animation
pacing optimized ✅

I prototyped the animation with Figma Smart Animate, collaborating with cross-functional teams through multiple critiques. The final design became the emotional peak of our ad sequence and drove home the visual storytelling strategy.

Stakeholders Feedbacks

Celebratory visual design

Best UX practice

WIP 004

Festive but Fantasy
green is clashing

Placement preserves
bracket visibility

WIP 010

Missing visual
energy

Placement preserves
bracket visibility

On-brand & lively 🎉

Placement preserves
bracket visibility ✅

I wrapped the ad story arc with a celebratory graphic banner, refined through team feedback to boost brand recall and keep the bracket clear.

Production-Ready Mock

Ad Experience
Prototype

Key Learning

🤝🏻 From Pushback to Partnership

I learned to bridge the tension between advertiser goals and internal feedback by crafting data-backed, story-driven proposals that aligned both sides. This approach led to a successful Popeyes launch and earned me the lead role on future ad experiences for Miller Lite and Wingstop.

A $1.88M Win:
Ad Experience Design That Drove 8.33% YoY Growth

Impact at a Glance

The Ad Experience Problem

Turn Disruption
Into Delight

Project Lead & Team