Ten first-timers, one app, too many new things

The idea

A game for people who know nothing about racing

A first visit to the races comes with no form knowledge. Pretty Pony was designed for exactly that visitor: pick on looks, names and lucky numbers, and let the app turn it into a bet. Ten people at the races for the first time tried it.

What happened

Between races there was simply too much to do

Between races there was the phone, the paper betting slip, and the hot dog and bathroom breaks to fit in before the next start. For a first-timer each of those is new, and the app was one more new thing on the list.

Nobody cared about the four strategy options. Nobody believed that there was no information that could improve their chances, either. The pull to find an edge was stronger than the evidence that none existed.

2 of 10did not use the app after the first screen

2 of 10were confused that choices were not grouped by horse

0 of 10showed interest in the strategy options

Pick screen with choices grouped by strategy rather than by horse — Choices grouped by strategy. Two testers expected them grouped by horse.

The finding

The stress is the admin, not the choice

Choosing a horse was the easy part. Getting that choice from the app onto a paper slip is what made the day hard. An app that adds information makes that worse.

Two branches from one app

Branch 1

First-timer app

As few screens as possible. Ideally connected to live betting, so the pick becomes the bet without a paper slip.

One choice per race, made on looks
No strategy options
Removes the transfer step that causes the stress

Branch 2

Betting simulator

A place to learn how betting works and where intuition goes wrong, with no money at stake.

See the track's cut at work over many races
Test hunches against a random control
Correct common mistakes about odds, such as thinking a small field gives every horse a better chance when the odds stay uneven

The longer study behind the app is in part one: Is the pretty one any better than random?