Mobile/Projects/Dynamic Snippets

Overview & Goals

Firefox for Android currently features a hard-coded set of rotating snippets in a banner on the home screen (Example).

We want to stop hard-coding that content and make it much (much) easier for us to add, remove, and change the snippets included in that rotation. This will allow us to utilize that space and engage with Firefox users much more effectively.

Additionally, we want to give partners the opportunity to add a limited number of their own snippets to that banner rotation -- all strictly within Mozilla's branding and content policies -- so they can also take advantage of this space to communicate with and better engage their customers.

Tracking (Phase 1)

• bug 786334
• others? Add full bugzilla query here when available.

Phase 1 (MVP)

Requirements

• Develop initial version of Dynamic Snippets infrastructure
• Create initial version of Dynamic Snippets upload toolset
• Develop initial version of Dynamic Snippets metrics reporting tool
• Write initial version of Dynamic Snippets branding & content policy guidelines
• Develop initial process for Dynamic Snippets content submission and approval

User stories

User

• As a user, I want to be clearly informed of any data being collected through or about the Dynamic Snippets banner. Opting-in and out should be part of the general data collection pane, as used for other features, and the default (opted in or out) should be the same as other existing defaults.
• As a user, I expect that Firefox will continue to protect my security and privacy when developing the content and infrastructure for the Dynamic Snippets banner.

Partner

• As a partner, I want the ability to include a single custom promotional banner in the Dynamic Snippet rotation.
• As a partner, I want the promotional material in the Dynamic Snippets banner to be refreshed at least once per day, so if I want to replace the snippet we have in the banner rotation, it will appear no more than 24 hours after it has been added, subject to content distribution and policy review restrictions.
• As a partner, I want to be able to specify both the start date and end date for when my custom banner appears in the Dynamic Snippets banner rotation. If I do not specify a start date, that should be assumed to mean "as soon as possible". If I do not specify an end date, that should be assumed to mean "indefinitely" or "until I ask that it be removed or replaced". Banner will stop being served some time before its end date.
• As a partner, I want to be able to customize the background colour, text content, link target, and image/icon for each Dynamic Snippet I submit to Mozilla, within branding parameters. I also want to be able to include images for HiDPI and other form factors, so the image displayed on the banner is high-quality regardless of device.
• As a partner, I want my submitted content to be reviewed and either approved or sent back for revisions within a previously agreed-upon range of time. Any potential delays should be communicated by Mozilla in a timely manner, including estimations for when those delays will be resolved. (Basically we need a well-managed approval queue.)
• As a partner, I want submitting content to be included in the Dynamic Snippet banner rotation to be as simple as possible. Ideally, I won't have to learn any new tools or systems, and a real human will be involved in the process so any issues that arise can be resolved quickly and easily.

Marketing

• As a member of Mozilla Marketing, I want to be able to see up-to-date, real-time stats about the efficacy of the various promotional pieces currently in rotation on the Dynamic Snippets banner. I want to be able to slice that data in a number of ways -- by region, by partner, by locale, etc. (Need a complete list here.)
• As a member of Mozilla Marketing, I must be able to review and approve any content submitted by partners to be included in the Dynamic Snippets banner rotation. No content will be displayed in the banner rotation that has not been reviewed and approved by at least one full-time member of the Mozilla Marketing team.
• As a member of the Mozilla Marketing team, I want a quick and easy way to input approved materials for inclusion in the Dynamic Snippets banner. The fewer bottlenecks there are in this system, the better.

Product

• As a Mozilla product manager, I want there to be no more than 4 Dynamic Snippets in rotation at any one time, so we have some assurance that users will see the snippets in a timely fashion.
• As a Mozilla product manager, I want to continue having Mozilla's promotional materials to be included in the Firefox Promotional Banner rotation, alongside any partners' promotional material.
• As a Mozilla product manager, I want the ability to quickly remove partners' promotional materials from the Firefox Promotional Banner rotation should any problems or conflicts arise. (For some to-be-determined definition of "quickly".)
• As a Mozilla product manager, I want to be assured that dynamic banner materials are not causing -- and do not have the potential to cause -- any security or privacy issues for our users.
• As a Mozilla product manager, I expect partners' content and assets in the Firefox Promotional Banner to comply with a clear set of branding and legal policies and guidelines that we will provide and enforce.

Phase 2 (v2)

Requirements

• Allow users to turn the Dynamic Snippets banner off and on again.
• Improve overall user experience by removing snippets they have already interacted with and do not have any reason to see again
• Enable Dynamic Snippet targeting so it's possible to target snippets to certain subsets of the userbase
• Expand metrics reporting tool to account for targeting & make any other improvements that have emerged from v1 usage and testing
• Make the metrics reporting tool available to partners so they can evaluate the impact of their snippets without having to go through their Marketing contact

User stories

User

• As a user, I want the ability to quickly and permanently hide the Dynamic Snippets banner so I never have to see that content again.
• As a user, I want to be able to re-enable the Dynamic Snippets banner later, even if I have shut off and removed the banner from my home screen.
• As a user, when I tap on a snippet, I (do/don't)? expect to see it again when I go back to the home screen. (Final behaviour TBD in consultation with UX.)

Partner

• As a partner, I want to be able to access or receive regular reports about the efficacy of the promotional materials I have included in the Dynamic Snippet banner rotation.
• As a partner, I want to be able to slice the available metrics data by region, language, locale, device, Firefox version, Android version...(final list TBD)
• As a partner, I want to be able to target Dynamic Snippets by region, language, locale, device, Firefox version, Android version...(final list TBD)

Marketing

• As a member of the Mozilla Marketing team, I want to be able to target Dynamic Snippets by region, language, locale, device, Firefox version, Android version...(final list TBD)

TBD

• Deb - Schedule privacy review of proposed functionality
• Erin - Schedule legal review of proposed functionality
• Deb - Discuss with marketing to get a list of initial metrics they would like around Dynamic Snippets (region, partner, locale, etc...)
• Deb & Ian - Overall UX design needed, including...
  • UX for turning banner off and on
  • If a user taps on a snippet, what happens when they go back to the home screen?
  • Uploading tool

Team

• Deb Richardson (dria) - Product
• Erin Lancaster (elancaster) - Project management
• Ian Barlow (ibarlow) - UX & design
• Your name here...

References

• Original working doc for user stories (ask Deb for permission if you need it)
• Dynamic snippets etherpad

Change history

• 2013/04/10 - Initial draft created by Deb, based on original doc and engineering review/discussion