MY ROLE
Product Designer
TEAM
Chief Operating Officer | Lead Engineer
MY SERVICES
01
Design Thinking Leadership
Led and championed a design thinking redesign of MPACT for an enhanced user experience.
02
User Experience Design
Led user research and design to create a user-friendly and impactful MPACT platform.
03
User Interface Design
Designed the user interface to enhance the visual appeal and user experience of MPACT.
BACKGROUND
Citizen MPACT is a mobile platform empowering users to learn about social causes, take action, and create positive change. We initially launched a beta version packed with content, but user feedback revealed challenges in converting user interest into concrete action. The beta, while informative, lacked a cohesive design experience, hindering user engagement.
Empathize
During the beta phase of the MPACT platform, positive user feedback on the content validated its core purpose. However, I identified the need for significant design improvements to enhance user engagement and optimize usability. To address this challenge, I led a design thinking process focused on understanding user needs and pain points. To validate my initial hypotheses about these needs, I conducted a series of user research activities, including analyzing our pilot program results and conducting stakeholder interviews.
Initial MPACT beta launch garnered positive content reception, however, design flaws were evident. Subsequent company pivot to white-label solutions delayed necessary redesign.
Seizing the opportunity upon MPACT's renewed focus, I spearheaded a UX/UI overhaul to rectify design deficiencies, boost user engagement, and optimize platform usability.
MPACT Beta Phase
Beta Phase Process
Rapid Research
Informed by stakeholder insights, rapid research swiftly captured key perspectives of users and prospective partners
Define & Iterate
Through brainstorming, our team chose features aligning stakeholder input and user and partner expectations.
Design & Iterate
Adopting a dynamic process, we initiated weekly reviews to shape and refine the beta version and keep aligned.
Initial Hypotheses & Goal
User Hypothesis
The current design of MPACT is hindering user navigation, engagement, and understanding of their impact on social causes.
Content Hypothesis
Better organized and personalized content might increase user engagement and completion rates.
Impact Hypothesis
Visualizing and quantifying a user's impact on social causes might increase motivation and satisfaction.
Project Goal
Enhance MPACT user experience, engagement, and impact awareness through a redesigned app platform.
Understanding user attitudes, interests, and preferences
While not extensive, our pilot program done during the beta phase gave us some insight into user attitudes and data on their interests and preferences.
PILOT PROGRAM RESULTS
Top Channels
-
The Natural World
-
Mysteries of Science
-
Exploring Technology
-
Design & Innovation
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A Better You
Top Causes
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Climate Action
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Quality Education
-
Gender Equity
-
Clean Energy
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Sustainable Cities
User Attitudes
" I know what to do and eat to be healthy"
" I like meeting diverse people from different backgrounds"
"If I see a problem, I can fix it"
"I care about what goes on in the world"
THE OPPORTUNITY
How might we develop a user-friendly platform that not only encourages exploration and seamless discovery but also equips users with essential tools and unwavering motivation, empowering them to actively and meaningfully contribute to various social causes?
Define
The Define stage focused on understanding the root causes of low engagement with the Citizen MPACT beta. During this stage, I defined project goals, identified target users, and laid the groundwork for redesign by analyzing and synthesizing the research done in the discovery phase.
Insights & Goals
KEY INSIGHTS
01 Balance user engagement & measurable impact
Users crave a fun and engaging experience on MPACT, with elements like gamification and personalized content.
02 Improve UX for discovery & progress
Users struggle to find activities matching their interests and resume incomplete activities.
03 Enhance user perception of impact
Users want a more integrated user experience that fosters a sense of connection between activities, organizations, partners, and their overall impact.
BUSINESS GOALS
01 Secure partnerships
Demonstrate how MPACT can help brands authentically engage with consumers in a sustained and relevant way, fostering positive measurable impacts on the partner brands and companies.
(Note: The impact results is provided in a separate app)
02 Develop an engaging app
Create a dynamic and user-centric mobile platform by incorporating captivating features, intuitive design, and immersive content that attracts and retains users.
Design Objectives
01
Discover & navigation
Enhance navigation system, incorporating search functionality, personalized content, and discoverability.
02
Progress & growth
Implement features for easy resumption of activities cohesively showcasing contributions and progress.
03
Empower small actions
Elevate user engagement by showcasing their individual contributions while providing gloval perspective on impact.
04
Unified relationships
Offer users a unified and interconnected view by tying together activities, causes, organizations, and donations.
Target User Profile
USER PERSONA
Melissa Rodrigo
The Green Newbie
"I'm driven to create positive change and make a meaningful impact on the world. I want to discover how I can use my skills to contribute to a better and more sustainable future."
18 years old
New York City, NY
College Student
Sociology
Unsure of personal impact
Make informed choices
Create a positive impact
Learn about social causes
EMPATHY MAP
Thinks
"I want something easy"
"There's so much info out there!"
"I don't want to make any huge decisions"
"I want to fit in with my new friends"
"I'm not sure where to go from here"
"The planet and society needs our help"
Says
"How do I help at my age?"
"Should I be recycling this?"
" Not sure what sources to listen to or follow."
"Where should I start in being sustainable?"
"Why is it bad to buy fast fashion?"
"I want to feel good about my actions"
Does
Volunteers at animal shelter
Uses a tumbler for her water
Brings reusable bag everywhere
Eats vegan when its convenient
Shops at her local thrift stores
Follows her eco-friendly friends actions
Feels
Not sure if she is doing enough good things
Excited to try new things
Overwhelmed by amount of information
Concerned about global impact
Positive about being able to create change
Excited about starting college
Ideate
To fuel the MPACT redesign, I spearheaded an ideation session with the COO and Engineering team. Through collaborative brainstorming, we explored innovative solutions that effectively addressed the identified user needs while aligning with the project's overall goals.
High Impact
Update UI
Enhance navigation experience
Enhance search functions
Show contributions
Improve discovery
Low Effort
High Effort
Incorporate education within causes
Badges
In-App donations
Progress bars
Peer Challenges
AI recommendations
Low Impact
Prototype & Test
To translate design ideas into a tangible user experience, I created high-level wireframes and prototypes. These wireframes focused on core functionalities and user flows, allowing us to test and iterate rapidly. This "dogfooding" approach swift feedback and alignment with project goals before finalizing the design.
WIREFRAME FLOWCHART
Deliver
In the delivery stage, I brought the MPACT project to fruition by translating refined prototypes into a cohesive and polished final design. This final design directly addresses the initial challenges of limited activity discovery, lack of connection to the broader impact, and a disconnect between user actions and measurable results. To tackle these issues, the design focused on three key areas (our initial design objectives): discovery & navigation, progress & growth, empowering small actions, and unified relationships.
Addressing our design objectives
FINAL SCREENS
Find activities by followed organization
Recommended activities
Personalized recommendations
Find activities by interest
FINAL SCREENS
Reflect
Navigating the MPACT project posed its share of challenges, including a reliance on design assumptions and shifting business priorities. Despite these hurdles, as the product designer, I embraced the dynamic nature of the journey. While research and insights were scant, a successful outcome emerged and a really good start to implementing a thoughtful and deliberate approach to our design and development process. In essence, the MPACT project underscored the iterative nature of design, reminding me of the constant need to adapt, innovate, and harmonize design with dynamic project landscapes.
CHALLENGES
01 Shifting business priorities
Due to a shift in priorities, focus diverted from the MPACT redesign and its goals, with resources being redirected to other initiatives. This hindered the development and implementation of the new MPACT redesign.
02 Limited user testing
While we had some high-level feedback from the team, inadequate testing led to many design assumptions, risking potential user dissatisfaction, suboptimal usability, and an overall diminished user experience.
SUCCESSES