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Notebook and Pen

Santa Cruz Website Redesign

2023

Role: UX Designer

Overview:

A government website redesign focusing on heuristic evaluation to identify potential usability challenges and propose solutions for users during the sign-up process for water services.

Design Process

User Research

Problem/ Solution

Proto Persona
Storyboard

Problem Definition

User Task Flow

User Flow Diagram
Heuristic Analysis

Prototyping

Plugin icon - 1.png

Lo-Fidelity

Mid-Fidelity

UI Style Guide

High-Fidelity

Design Principles:

  1. User-Centered Approach: The redesign process focuses on understanding the needs and pain points of the target user, Eren, a business consultant new to the area, to ensure a seamless and intuitive user experience.

  2. Streamlining User Journey: The goal is to enhance the user journey, connect disjointed pages, and reduce visual overload, leading to a more cohesive and efficient experience for users.

  3. Minimalistic & Aesthetic Design: The redesign emphasizes a clean and modern aesthetic, with attention to consistent layouts, color schemes, and information formatting to improve readability and visual appeal.

  4. Prioritization and Simplification: Multiple navigation bars and redundant options are condensed, and categories are prioritized to guide users efficiently through the website and reduce unnecessary complexity.

  5. Consistency & Standards: The redesign focuses on maintaining consistency across the site and adhering to industry standards to create a more familiar and user-friendly experience.

Design Constraints:

  1. Usability Challenges: The redesign process centers on identifying potential usability challenges during the sign-up process for water services on the Santa Cruz government website.

  2. User Flow Analysis: The approach relies on user flow analysis to identify key heuristics and derive actionable solutions, with the aim of improving the overall user experience.

  3. Focus on Water Services Sign-Up: The redesign is specifically targeted at addressing usability issues related to users signing up for water services, ensuring a smooth and efficient registration process.

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Overall, the Junior UX Designer uses a combination of design principles and constraints to create a more user-centric and visually appealing experience, addressing pain points and enhancing usability for users like Eren.

Problem

I want to gain insights into the user experience and registration process for water services on the Santa Cruz government website, aiming to uncover valuable insights and potential areas for improvement."

Solution

Using user flow analysis to identify key heuristics and derive actionable solutions for improving the user experience.

Hello

Meet Eren, 27

Goals & Needs

Eren's priority is to settle into moving to her new place her first task she decides is to complete her need to set up her resident utilities. 

She wants to organize and design her new place with a modern clean aesthetic.

Pain Points/ Potential Solutions

Eren hates complicated and outdated websites. 

New to the area she's reliant on websites to complete a majority of her tasks. 

She doesn't like to waste time on complicated procedures for simple tasks. 

About

Eren is Business Consultant that recently moved to the Bay Area. She works in a hybrid setting and chose Santa Cruz because she loves beaches and found this location a reasonable distance from her company. She loves to go to the beach to surf and relax while reading true crime novels. She loves nature and wants to explore Santa Cruz's hiking trails. 

Protopersonaimage.png

Storyboard

User Centered Problem Statement

Our top priority is to identify and address usability issues specifically related to users who are looking to sign up for water services on the Santa Cruz government website. By enhancing and streamlining the user journey, we will connect disjointed and visually overwhelming webpages, ensuring a more cohesive and intuitive experience. Our ultimate goal is to provide these users with the necessary information in a seamless manner, guiding them effortlessly through the interface. We are committed to keeping users well-informed and empowering them with easy access to additional information, enabling them to find the resources they need with ease.

User Task Flow to Setting up Water Utilities 

Enter Homepage

​

Hover over Services

​

Select Utilities

​

Taken to Utilities Page

​

Select Start Service 

​

Tab Pop-up of Water-Refuse-Sewer Service Page

​

Select Single Family Residential Form

​

Complete Form

​

Submit Form 

User Flow Diagram

userflow.png

Heuristic Evalution

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Homepage

H1_edited.jpg

ISSUE:

Multiple navigation bars

Multiple options for users to complete the same task

 

SOLUTION:

Condensed multiple navigation bars

Prioritize Categories for Users to choose from in order for users’s clarity and confidence in completing their task.

 

Combined News + Meetings & Events to one Section in Homepage with Calender view

 

Deleted Search Bar in front page and Replaced with a "Discover Santa Cru" Button

 

Deleted "How Do I Section" on Navigation Bar and Replaced with "I Want To.." tool on Homepage

Utility Page

Module 8 Challenge-3.png

Issue:

Multiple navigation bars

Multiple options for users to complete the same task

 

SOLUTION:

Condensed multiple navigation bars

Prioritize Categories for Users to choose from in order for users’s clarity and confidence in completing their task.

 

Combined News + Meetings & Events to one Section in Homepage with Calender view

 

Deleted Search Bar in front page and Replaced with a "Discover Santa Cru" Button

 

Deleted "How Do I Section" on Navigation Bar and Replaced with "I Want To.." tool on Homepage

SCMU.png

Service Page

Module 8 Challenge-2.png

ISSUE:

Minimalistic & Aesthetic Design:

Layout of picture does not seem consistent to page.

Yellow highlighted cell.

 

Help and Documentation

Formatting of Information with Table and separate cells are confusing to users.

Aesthetic and Minimalistic

 

SOLUTION:

Create Drop Down Menu for Inside and Outside City Forms

Create buttons for other services

Included "Terminating Utility Service" prominent without highlight

Placed picture on top rather on the side floating

Service.png
Inside City Forms - Single family residential _ City of Santa Cruz 1.png

Form Page

ISSUE:

Consistency & Standards

No direct back button to pervious page of forms

One column throughout with one line having 2 columns.

Aesthetic and Minimalistic Design

Some aesterics add an aditional line

Match between Real World

Edited words which may seem confusing for users.

 

SOLUTION:

Create 2 Column rather One to eliminate white space and utilize whole page

Define Cart Refuse Size

Form.png
UI Style Guide_edited.png

Key-Takeaways

Formatted categories to help users understand different services offered

Information Formatting
Upgraded Features
Update

Included drop down lists to reduce cognitive overload for users when searching for desired information.

Updated forms to industry standard

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