Adding Movie Showtimes to Ads on IMDb
Lead Designer
Increased CTR
110%
Increased Sell Rate
20x
Problem
Over a span of two years, I led the product design to introduce live movie showtimes into our advertising products. The challenge? Make the experience usable in tight ad spaces, customizable for every client, and efficient for developers to build. I prioritized:
Usability optimized for limited space
Customization via design tokens for scalability
Operational efficiency to meet high volumes with limited resources
As a quick disclaimer, I won’t disclose the exact performance data of these campaigns to comply with my NDA. All information in this case study is my own and does not necessarily reflect the views of the employer or it’s partners.
The Design Sprint
This project kicked off during a company-wide design sprint aimed at uncovering new revenue opportunities. My group worked closely with our sales partners and zeroed in on theatrical clients—studios with movies in theaters. Plenty of ideas floated around, but one kept rising to the top:
What if you could see showtimes in the ad itself, right when you’re interested in buying tickets?
We had a lot of open questions on the technical side, but we didn’t wait for perfect clarity. We moved fast to define core functionality and start sketching early mocks.
Wearing Extra Hats
In the early days, our team didn’t have a dedicated product manager. So I stepped in to fill the gap—drafting early strategy docs, identifying feature priorities, and creating lightweight roadmaps to socialize with stakeholders.
It wasn’t always smooth, but those efforts built momentum. They got people talking and opened the door to support. About a year in, we finally brought on a PM who helped polish our direction and unlock key technical and business decisions.
With more clarity around our API’s capabilities, we locked in the core experience—balancing user value with what was technically feasible across desktop, mobile, and app environments.
Location based results
With permission, we use the user’s location or ask for a ZIP code to find and sort nearby theaters.
Date Picker
Our research showed people rarely book same-day, so we added scrolling to let users browse upcoming days.
Real Time Data
Showtimes automatically refresh at set intervals, ensuring actionable info is always accurate.
Showtimes &
Theater Details
Each theater displays individual showtimes and includes format options like Standard, IMAX, and 3D.
As an ad product, customization is non-negotiable. Every brand wants their look and feel—and rightly so. But building from scratch each time wasn’t scalable.
Introducing Design Tokens
I created variable-based theming to make it possible to customize brand colors and themes without needing custom builds. This also made it easier to maintain accessibility, with color contrast checks baked into our process.
The experience adapts to fit different screen sizes with purpose-built layouts for desktop, mobile, and app. At larger sizes, we even enable trailer video—a fan favorite with clients.
