CONTEXT

a comprehensive online tool to assist patients through direct support services

The company began as a direct services organization started by a fierce and dedicated mom who was intent on finding secure and dedicated services for her son with special needs. From 2016 - 2021, the company provided a wide array of services across New York City and had a major impact on the local level, but it was clear that seismic shifts were necessary to create systemic change.

With that goal in mind, the company began conceptualizing and developing a series of digital products that would empower patients with the resources and information needed to get the best care in the most efficient manner.

MEET THE TEAM!

USABILITY TESTING - ROUND 1

the 1st round of usability testing targeted the existing design

how users feel, what users need

The 1st round of usability testing informed us of design validations that we should maintain, as well as pain points that we should improve. We learned about what information that users found important, as well as icons and flows that caused confusion and frustration. Understanding the parents’ needs and current market trends helped us realize that the website resource guide still needed a lot more fine-tuning to improve the overall experience of the product.

Although some insights were less than majority of users, I observed through research on competitors’ websites and noticed that these features were implemented. This solidified the decision for us to find solutions for these insights.

IDEATE - ROUND 1

creative problem-solving and applying the solutions

With the research and test findings on hand, we began making design iterations.

Since there was an existing branding style and color scheme, we utilized the design system and stayed within the guidelines, while adding new features and screens. As changes were later made based on research findings, the design system was updated accordingly.

To adhere to accessibility guidelines, I ensured that elements were checked with contrast checkers, texts were the appropriate line height and spacing, buttons required focus ring states, and more.

While iterating on the designs, we also partnered with the content team to provide feedback on the wording. We continued to make iterations following their suggestions, which were left as comments in our collaborative Figma file.

IDEATE - ROUND 2

3..2..1…pivot!

During the iteration phase, we received new direction from stakeholders to incorporate new features, including a new appointment scheduling feature, into our designs, that were to be presented at a pitch later in the month. The whole team was able to pivot and incorporate these features into the flow and designs under my guidance in a span of only ~1 week.

USABILITY TESTING - ROUND 2

testing our solutions and new ideas

Once the 2nd round of iterations were completed, the prototype was handed off to the research team to conduct a 2nd round of usability testing and card sorting. Testing our solutions to the previous user feedback would validate that we made the correct design solutions, while testing new features would provide us with more user insights on how to enhance them. Card sorting would also help us to understand and prioritize the importance of certain categories over others, which would improve the hierarchy of content categories. We scheduled a quick hand-off meeting with them to go over the prototype, communicate what we wanted to be tested and what insights we wanted to understand. 

Overall, testing results validated our design decisions and showed an increase in user satisfaction and ease of navigation.

IDEATE - ROUND 3

applying solutions to the designs

The designs and prototype underwent significant revision since the 1st version. The 1st version incorporated desirable features from competitors, but lacked ease of search, particularly in the landing page and results page. This resulted in user confusion due to not knowing the purpose of certain displayed features (tabs, bookmark) and having to click on too many things before finding what they need (filters).

In the updated version, user flow was improved, and priorities and hierarchy were re-evaluated. The landing page now provides the user easy access to resources and allows the user to search for resources based on their insurance/payment information. The results page now provides the user an easier search experience with a single filter modal and map view.

Below are some, but not all, improvements made to the screens, under my guidance.

HAND-OFF

final version: handing off to the engineer

With the deadline nearing, we finally reached the stage to hand the product off to the engineering team. We set up a meeting with the head engineer and went through each annotated screen to ensure we were on the same page with functions and designs.

We worked remotely with our Chilean engineer and communicated through Figma, Slack and Google Meets. Once designs were finalized, we went through the screens and flow together to make sure designs and features were well-communicated and feasible on his end.