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About
First Year Advising (FYA) is an arm of the Academic Advising Department at Utah Valley University. FYA was looking to redesign their website to make their services more easily accessible. The main goal of the website was to provide an easy way for first year students to find their First Year Advisor and to access helpful information for their first year of college. I and four other students in my college course were assigned to redesign the website.
The Team
Josh Leigh
UX/UI Designer
Roles
- User Research
- UX Research
- UX/UI Design
- Testing
- Delivery
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Dylan Smith
UX/UI Designer
Roles
- User Research
- UX Research
- UX/UI Design
- Testing
- Delivery
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Rosa Baker
UX/UI Designer
Roles
- User Research
- UX Research
- UX/UI Design
- Testing
- Delivery
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Jordan Hunter
UX/UI Designer
Roles
- User Research
- UX Research
- UX/UI Design
- Testing
- Delivery
Project Challenges
01
Prebuilt Template
All websites built within the Utah Valley University ecosystem used a templated CMS. This means that all web pages were limited on how they could be built.
02
Limited Time
Although this project was for an actual client, because we were in a college course, our time was limited.
03
Team Members
Adjusting to team dynamics can sometimes be hard. Learning how to work with different types of people is crucial to success.
Design Process
Research/Discovery
To build a strong foundation for the project we interviewed the client, completed a design audit of the current website, and researched the target audience.
We began the project by interviewing the client to discover their goals, requirements, restrictions and any information they had on their target audience. We then took that information and expounded on it; becoming extremely familiar with who our target audience was. We then completed a design audit of their current site by observing users interact with it as they completed tasks related to the clients goals. Our purpose was to identify pain points on the website that needed to be addressed as well as areas that already worked. The following activities were completed over the course of the research and discovery phase:
- Client Kickoff and Discovery Meeting
- Target Audience Research
- Design Audit
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Research/Discovery
To build a strong foundation for the project we interviewed the client, completed a design audit of the current website, and researched the target audience.
We began the project by interviewing the client to discover their goals, requirements, restrictions and any information they had on their target audience. We then took that information and expounded on it; becoming extremely familiar with who our target audience was. We then completed a design audit of their current site by observing users interact with it as they completed tasks related to the clients goals. Our purpose was to identify pain points on the website that needed to be addressed as well as areas that already worked. The following activities were completed over the course of the research and discovery phase:
- Client Kickoff and Discovery Meeting
- Target Audience Research
- Design Audit
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Design
In the design phase we determined our site structure, established the website user experience, incorporated the university style guide in the user interface, and built a simple prototype.
Laying out the site structure was the first thing we did when starting the design phase. We built a site map to determine each page that would be included in our redesign and how they would interact with each other. We then broke up the site into sections and assigned them to each team member. While each designer was responsible for the bulk of their own section, the team came together at least twice a week to collaborate on designs and give feedback. We then harmonized our designs and prepared them for testing. The following activities were completed as a team in the design phase:
- Site Mapping
- Sketching
- Wireframing
- High Fidelity Prototyping
Design
In the design phase we determined our site structure, established the website user experience, incorporated the university style guide in the user interface, and built a simple prototype.
Laying out the site structure was the first thing we did when starting the design phase. We built a site map to determine each page that would be included in our redesign and how they would interact with each other. We then broke up the site into sections and assigned them to each team member. While each designer was responsible for the bulk of their own section, the team came together at least twice a week to collaborate on designs and give feedback. We then harmonized our designs and prepared them for testing. The following activities were completed as a team in the design phase:
- Site Mapping
- Sketching
- Wireframing
- High Fidelity Prototyping
Design
In the design phase we determined our site structure, established the website user experience, incorporated the university style guide in the user interface, and built a simple prototype.
Laying out the site structure was the first thing we did when starting the design phase. We built a site map to determine each page that would be included in our redesign and how they would interact with each other. We then broke up the site into sections and assigned them to each team member. While each designer was responsible for the bulk of their own section, the team came together at least twice a week to collaborate on designs and give feedback. We then harmonized our designs and prepared them for testing. The following activities were completed as a team in the design phase:
- Site Mapping
- Sketching
- Wireframing
- High Fidelity Prototyping
Testing
During testing we set out to determine if our designs met the needs of our target audience and accomplished the goals of the client.
Our team utilized a mix of guerrilla testing and observations testing. We began by sending out a survey to our social networks to gather a pool of individuals who were willing to participate in our testing process but who were also within our target demographic. We also reached out to people individually. We then conducted testing with those qualified individuals, recorded the results, and applied edits to the designs where necessary. The following activities were conducted in the testing phase:
- User Survey
- Guerrilla Testing
- Observation Testing
- Design Edits
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Testing
During testing we set out to determine if our designs met the needs of our target audience and accomplished the goals of the client.
Our team utilized a mix of guerrilla testing and observations testing. We began by sending out a survey to our social networks to gather a pool of individuals who were willing to participate in our testing process but who were also within our target demographic. We also reached out to people individually. We then conducted testing with those qualified individuals, recorded the results, and applied edits to the designs where necessary. The following activities were conducted in the testing phase:
- User Survey
- Guerrilla Testing
- Observation Testing
- Design Edits
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Problems & Solutions
Team Member MIA
A couple weeks into the project, one of our team members stopped showing up to meetings.
Designers Block
On multiple occasions, I and other team members became stuck on design problems.
Low Survey Response Rate
The survey that we sent out initially had a low response rate.
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The Show Must Go On
We eventually dispersed the lost team members' work amongst the remaining team members.
Brainstorming
We utilized multiple design brainstorming activities such as Crazy 8’s and sketching.
Color Theory
We reached out to people individually and approached individuals as they walked to class or sat studying.
Team Member MIA
A couple weeks into the project, one of our team members stopped showing up to meetings.
Designers Block
On multiple occasions, I and other team members became stuck on design problems.
Low Survey Response Rate
The survey that we sent out initially had a low response rate.
The Show Must Go On
We eventually dispersed the lost team members' work amongst the remaining team members.
Brainstorming
We utilized multiple design brainstorming activities such as Crazy 8’s and sketching.
Color Theory
We reached out to people individually and approached individuals as they walked to class or sat studying.
Team Member MIA
A couple weeks into the project, one of our team members stopped showing up to meetings.
Designers Block
On multiple occasions, I and other team members became stuck on design problems.
Low Survey Response Rate
The survey that we sent out initially had a low response rate.
The Show Must Go On
We eventually dispersed the lost team members' work amongst the remaining team members.
Brainstorming
We utilized multiple design brainstorming activities such as Crazy 8’s and sketching.
Color Theory
We reached out to people individually and approached individuals as they walked to class or sat studying.
Lessons Learned
Compromise
Sometimes it can be hard to take criticism but when you can learn to compromise as a team some of the best solutions can be born from meshed ideas.
Correct Audience
When testing, ensure you use a qualified audience. Sometimes, you can test with whoever is available during the design process, but other times, a more specific audience is required.
Prioritize
Ideally, a team would have unlimited time for research, design, and testing. In reality, you must prioritize activities that give the best results. Be efficient.
The Take Away
Working with a team is usually more effective than working alone. Teamwork brings diverse perspectives, reduces biases, and speeds up idea generation, making it a better choice for better results.
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Lets Work Together!
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