Role: UX/UI Designer
Span: 5 weeks
Tools:
- Figma
- Figjam
Skills:
- User Journey Map
- Mind Map
- Storyboard
- Information Architecture
- Content Inventory
- Sitemap
- Wireframing
- Prototyping
- A/B Testing
- Visual Design
Role: UX/UI Designer
Span: 5 weeks
Tools:
Skills:
Filing for unemployment benefits can be a taxing process in itself. The last thing anyone wants while going through this already challenging time is to deal with a cluttered website interface, adding unnecessary frustration to an already difficult experience.
This case study is a redesign for the New Mexico Department of Workforces site in order to simplify and expedite the process of filing for unemployment benefits in New Mexico.
The current website interface is overwhelmed with text, links, and buttons, making it difficult for users to navigate through in order to file for unemployment benefits. Moreover, the site contains unnecessarily repetitive information and lacks an organized structure.
We aimed to improve the website UI by creating a more thoughtfully organized layout and implementing small changes whilst accommodating accessibility issues. This includes creating a more visible and accessible button on the landing page leading to the “File a Claim” page and a progress bar to indicate where the user is at in the process of filing their claim.
In order to identify and decide on the changes to implement into the redesign, we used a mind map based around the main user group: unemployed individuals.
Creating a user journey map and storyboard allowed us to flesh out the different phases of a potential user filing for unemployment benefits, and their thought process from start-to-end.
In our low-fidelity wireframes we started to develop the proposed solutions we ideated during our mind mapping session, which included a clear button and section for filing a claim, as well as a progress bar to indicate where the user is at in the process of filing their claim.
During our process of redesigning the information architecture and navigation systems, we made a decision to include an additional section to the primary nav bar, titled “Unemployment Information.” This should include two subsections for unemployment information related to individuals, and unemployment information for businesses. Our site map hierarchy is also listed from most important searched subjects to least important, which is why - in this case - unemployment information for individuals comes first. For the same reason, this section is also the very first item in the primary nav bar.
To assist with iterating our prototype, we utilized the 12 column grid to fix the alignment of the main content, as well as some of the nav bar elements. More specifically, we used a combination of the principles of alignment, emphasis, and proportion to separate information into sections and create a clearer information hierarchy. For example, the headers are bolded and in a larger font size, while the information below it is indented and in a smaller font size, to indicate a contrast in their levels of importance.
We also considered adding a login modal to the landing page in order to expedite the process of users eventually needing to login in order to accomplish the task of filing their claim. To test the effectiveness of this feature, we conducted an A/B test with the following hypothesis statement:
“If we add a login/sign-up modal to our landing page, then more people will login/sign-up in order to proceed with filing their unemployment benefit claims quicker.”
Test Group A: Users felt confused because our prototype lacked content and they were not sure about the context for where to start. The overall design looked flat. Users started out by clicking on the multiple tabs first which took longer to complete the login task.
Test Group B: Some users were able to immediately proceed with the task of logging in first because of the modal. Others did not understand why they had to login first in order to perform the task.
Our test results did not exactly support our hypothesis as well as we anticipated since users were still confused and questioned why they needed to log-in regardless if it made the task quicker or not. With that being said, we came up with some solutions to improve the webpage based on the feedback we received from the user testing.
The process of filing for unemployment benefits involves a lengthy sequence of tasks. Being able to effectively simplify this process while retaining important content requires a strong understanding of the website’s existing content and how the user interacts with it. It was a difficult, but fun challenge to redesign the UI of such an important, yet complex site.
If I had more time, I would consider conducting further tests on a wider range of users who are filing for benefits.
