Redesigning Robert H. Jackson Website
A historical center dedicated to the life and legacy of Robert H. Jackson, former US Supreme Court Justice and Chief of Council of the Nuremberg Trial following World War II.
Objective
Improve the Overall Usability and discoverability of the site. Focused on improving the searching experience within the site. And encouraging visitors to attend the center's events
My Role
Research
Data Analysis
Information Architecture
Prototype
[ Specifically worked on the search function and results ]
Tools
Figma
Miro
Google Form
Invision
Optimal Workshop
Team
Shubhangi Singh
Tanisha Razdan
Brooke Shapiro
Duration
3 months
Process
The Challenge
Currently, visitors of Jackson's website are:
DEEP USER
Lovers & followers of Jackson's work who are incredibly familiar with his work
SHALLOW USER
Curious and want to learn more about Jackson's work, or wish to visit the center
Moreover, the Center's website holds an extensive archive of Jackson's letters, speeches, Trial information, etc. intuitive navigation through this information is key to a good user experience.
Target Audience
Professors
Students
Persona 1
Persona 2
Qualitative & Quantitative
Research
Surveys were done using Google Forms and circulated to educational institutions (select institutions had partnerships with the Jackson Center). Additionally, we conducted interviews and observational studies with eight users from our target audience to understand their motives, how they search for information, and navigate the site.
To better understand the issue, we started by getting to know the user’s context within the current process.
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Did the users enjoy using the site?
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What were the key pain points?
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What are some important factors when learning about scholarly topics?
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Is the user able to find information within the site?
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If not, why? How can we improve it?
Research Findings
The majority of users conduct their research online vs. the physical space
1
The user’s preferred learning style was reading/writing followed by visual learning
3
The search function was the most important form of information extraction and discoverability
2
When researching online users found it difficult to read long articles
4
User Journey
Information Architecture
Our group collected data using two methods within Optimal Workshop; Card Sorting and Tree-testing. The test contained results from 8 participants within our target demographic.
Findings
After testing our IA, we realized that some labels were misleading. Such wording was revised to ensure proper and immediate interpretation.
"Community" ---> "Get Involved"
"Support Us" ---> "Donate."
"Teacher Fellow Week" ---> "Programs for Educators"
THE SOLUTION
Inviting Homepage Page
The easy-to-navigate and straightforward homepage allows users to get acquainted with the site's purpose quickly and be updated on current programs.
Intuitive Search Experience
Unifying the search experience across the website and adding Autosuggestion, and options for advanced search, refining results, ability to share an article, and short synopsis. Furthermore, add tags for the search results to suggest the location within the site where information is extracted.
Break Down of Long-form Articles
Breaking down the articles into easily readable and scannable chunks with clear subheadings and visuals to increase the retention of information. Adding a table of content to help users navigate through the article
Increase Event Attending
Having the opportunity to attend an virtual event or exhibition has been part of our norm in the past years. Therefore it's important to allow users to distinguish these events. Improving the visiting flow would bring more users to be involved and invested in the center.
Reflection
What went well?
Through a lot of iterations, and research I think we were able to design an intuitive search flow. Conducting a competitive analysis definitely did help the process.
What could be improved on?
More consistency in design is one area I need to work on, Specially, with the style guide. In terms of spacing, I hope that I can spend less time manually spacing and adopt a more systematic way of doing crafts.
Key Lessons Learned!
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Communicating effectively and productively with teammates
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Manage time wisely - not spend too long on one task
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Constantly iterate and reiterate ideas and designs!