Soca Posting Identity
Engage more users to post on Soca by designing a posting identity customization feature and improving the overall experience for profile page editing.
Type
UX research
Mobile & web design
Time
5 months
(Spring & Summer 2023)
Team
Mianying | Design Lead
Ray | Senior Designer
Yunlan | Product Manager
Heyong | Developer
Chao | Developer
Skills
Qualitative research
Exploratory usability testing
User interview
Competitors audit
Persuasive design
Background
Soca is a social networking platform for all job seekers, especially for those who are impacted by the mass layoffs. As a growing startup, 🎯 Soca's current goal is to encourage more user-generated content on the platform, creating better job-hunting experience for all.
⬇️ However, there is a drop in the number of user-generated posts and our website/app traffic at the end of 2022. We need to do some user research to find out what are the problems and find ways to improve the number of posts.
Overview
Problem
There is a drop in the number of user-generated posts and a decline in website/app traffic
My responsibilities
🎯 As the owner of the project, manage the end-to-end design process
🔎 Identify pain points and usability issues; find patterns and insights
🖌️ Design a new feature and improve existing flow for mobile and web
Design goal
Build trust in users and add incentives to our platform so that users feel more open to sharing on Soca's platform
Success metrics
📱50% adoption rate of the new solution after one month
over 50% of the posts use identities other than pure anonymity
💬130% increase in the number of user-generated posts
from 130 to 300 posts per month on average
The new feature is in Beta testing stage
Result
Hmmm...why don't users want to post?
User Research
Goals
Exploring new product directions
Understand why users don't want to post and discover what motivates them to start posting
Enhancing usability issues
Find out existing usability problems and fix them
Methods
Survey
166 responses
Interview & Usability testing
5 semi-structured interviews, 3 explorative testings
Internal product review
2 sessions
Survey detail
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Another user research intern collaboratively devised a survey
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15-question survey
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Goal#1: explore users' preferences when using competitor platforms
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Goal#2: know the challenges encountered during job hunting
Survey results screenshot
Interview detail
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I took part in 5 semi-structured interviews, alternating between the roles of moderator and note-taker.
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Conducted exploratory usability testing, allowing users 10 minutes to freely explore the Soca website.
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Gather insights about user needs and the current usability issues.
User interview tracking sheet
Insights -> Principles
Hover on the below boxes to turn insights into principles.
PRINCIPLE #1
Enhance user profiles to include verified information and meaningful visuals
PRINCIPLE #2
Create a supportive online community where true sharing is encourages
PRINCIPLE #3
Fix usability problems throughout the design process
(information structure, visual structure, option list, etc.)
Ok, insights gained. Time to brainstorm ideas.
Brainstorm and Trade-off
We brainstormed together coming up with a lot of ideas. I then used a mix of the Weighted Scoring framework and the RICE method to evaluate the three top solutions and presented them to the team. Solution #2, "Posting Identity Customization" score the highest.
Let me contextualize what I had to consider and decide ⬇️
A, B, or C?
Soca is a startup social networking platform aiming to boost user posts. Currently, user engagement is low. Research reveals that users want to see authentic stories rather than the general posts made by anonymous users discussing general information on the platform.
💰 Business Goal
attract more posts
👬 User Needs
want open sharing and authentic stories
💪 Competitiveness
your boss wants to stand out from competitors
🧭 Usability
You have to fix existing problems throughout the design of the new feature
📱 Compatibility
Ensure responsive design for web and mobile (mobile-first)
🕙 Time
Ship the feature in two months (tik tok tik...)
Constraints
Competitors Audit
I then look further into how the competitor's design features related to posting identity customization:
What can I learn from other professional social networking platforms?
Now it is time to polish the designs.
Iterations
CHALLENGE #1
What posting identities do users prefer to use?
Given the insights from user research and competitors' audits, I realized that there are two questions I have to reconfirm with our users: first, what titles/labels do users choose to attach to their anonymous identities so that they have stronger motivations to share? second, in what scenarios do users decide to switch between different identities, and how can I enable smooth switching? I drew low-fi key screens below and conducted quick task-oriented testing with 4 users.
low-fidelity prototype
What posting identities do users prefer?
Anonymous name + company or job title is the most popular combination. There are different levels of concerns regarding posting with a full real name or disposing of identities too much by using an anonymous name plus a company name and job title.
Use at what scenarios?
CHALLENGE #2
How to enable smooth switching between different identities?
After deciding what identity options could appear on the option list, I quickly assembled elements using Soca's design system and discussed my ideas about how to enable smooth switching between different posting identities within the design team.
mid-fidelity prototype
Using feedback from users, I created a flowchart to show how to guide users when they first come to Soca's homepage and encourage them to take the action of posting.
CHALLENGE #3
Pushing the pixels to ensure effortless navigation
I also iterated the UI based on my team's feedback to make the information hierarchy clearer.
The feedback I received from the team through design audit.
#1 Consistency and layout
#2 Call-To-Action button and phrases
#3 Empty state and default selection
Final Solutions
Phew...I am almost there!
Solution Brief
STEP#1
Nudge new users to add experience
From usability testing, I found that there are four possible entries that could lead to the CTA adding a customized identity.
Ideally, if users are attracted by the notification reminder on the top right of the homepage, they will arrive at the profile page and go to edit their profile.
*Click to stop or replay
Users could be also attracted by the strong cue on the profile page—the company badge. This also leads users to add experience.
*Click to stop or replay
During the usability testing, the No.1 first click is the individual posts. While users are trying to comment on the post, an CTA comes up!
*Click to stop or replay
It is also possible that users want to make a post before they edit their profile. I also set a CTA phrase on the post creation page.
*Click to stop or replay
STEP #2
Guide users to select new posting identities
After adding experience to the profile, users are now guided to select a new identity and make a post!
STEP #3
Switch posting identities at any time and make a post!
After adding relevant experience and pre-selecting identity option, when users actually post and comment, they can change to another identity whenever they need it.
Web
Mobile
Now, if you are Soca's first-time user, when you go to the homepage, you will see...
Next Steps
Collaborate with Developers for Implementation
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Collaborate with the development team to ensure that the refined design is accurately and effectively implemented.
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Make necessary adjustments to the design specifications, assets, and other documentation to facilitate the development process. This may require one or two more rounds of iterations.
Continuous Iteration
Observing real-world usage, gathering feedback, and identify any unforeseen issues or opportunities for enhancement. Specifically, answer the below questions:
1. Which identity option is used the most frequently?
2. From which entry point are most commonly used to add experience?
3. Are there any unexpected issues or challenges that users encounter?
Reflections
Detail matters
By considering the placement of buttons, the font size, the clarity of badges, the CTA phrase, and the flow of actions, I realized how these small details collectively shape the delight of the final product. This journey has emphasized the need for ongoing learning and staying updated with design trends to consistently enhance user satisfaction.
UX designer is the one who helps the team to slow down
During this journey, I've learned to navigate feedback from non-design team members who might be quick to jump to solutions (it happens! everyone tends to do that). This experience has reinforced the importance of effective communication, active listening, and the ability to adapt my designs.
Design has limitations
Not all problems are design problems. UX designers cannot solve every problem from a design perspectives. Clearly defining whether a problem is a design-related issue or falls within the expertise of other team members, such as developers, or marketing, is crucial for efficient collaboration and problem-solving.
