Quantitative Research for Unmet and Unspoken User Needs
Uncovering user pain points with Hotjar and Google Analytics empowers business leaders to make data driven decisions with confidence
Capricorn Society Limited
Perth, Western Australia – February 2024
Capricorn, founded in 1974 operates as a member-based organization primarily supporting businesses in the automotive sector.
Members manage business purchases through Capricorn and simplify their financial credit through one account.
Members manage business purchases through Capricorn and simplify their financial credit through one account.
Business Problem
After almost 50 years of business, Capricorn is undergoing a transition with the technology and processes that drive its products and services.
The current website for Capricorn's primary business model was not delivering as the central destination for users to self-serve their financial account via desktop and mobile devices.
Reliance on staffing and customer call centers to handle member requests during business hours was no longer viable and sustainable to Capricorn's business model moving into the next 50 years of success.
The current website for Capricorn's primary business model was not delivering as the central destination for users to self-serve their financial account via desktop and mobile devices.
Reliance on staffing and customer call centers to handle member requests during business hours was no longer viable and sustainable to Capricorn's business model moving into the next 50 years of success.
Constraints
No Qualitative Research Data
Although an abundance of quantitive data was available to inform my design decisions, I had little to no access to end users directly. No user interviews and no moderated usability testing was conducted as part of the upcoming website redesign. Anecdotal evidence from the Customer Support team was valuable as they were the frontline of the organization and interacted with end users on a daily basis.
To limit risks in shipping an unintuitive user experience, I made a conscious decision to adhere to "tried and true" or solved design patterns for the user interface, i.e., information architecture, site-wide navigation, text labels/calls to action, typography sizes/weights, etc.
To limit risks in shipping an unintuitive user experience, I made a conscious decision to adhere to "tried and true" or solved design patterns for the user interface, i.e., information architecture, site-wide navigation, text labels/calls to action, typography sizes/weights, etc.
Hotjar heatmaps of user clicks overlayed on top of the old Homepage to be replaced by the new website redesign
User Insight
Insights into the old Homepage User Behavior
- 1Current StateHeatmaps from Hotjar and engagement time reports from Google Analytics suggested the majority of users that land on the homepage after log in find the marketing & static content of little value, as users immediately navigate to sub pages to review thier transactions and download account statements.
- 2Future StateA desired outcome from the business for the website redesign was to fill a vital feature gap of the old website and show the user's current account balance, credit limit, and pay now balance. Redesigning the homepage to include this missing feature set would not only satisfy business requirements but deliver a valuable and highly desired feature for the end user immediately after logging into the website.
- 3Mobile Pain PointsThe old website was not optimal for users accessing the site on mobile devices as they are forced to scroll horizontally to view tabular data that is not visible and is positioned off-screen. A “mobile-first” design approach was adopted for all site features to ensure users accessing the redesigned website would have the same optimal and intuitive experience as desktop users.
Video from Hotjar of a user on the old website using a mobile device, scrolling horizontally back and forth to view tabular data that is not easily visible and is positioned off-screen.
Getting Buy-IN
Determining Feature Hierarchy & User Value
Hotjar click heatmaps and Google Analytics user traffic data provided further insight into the old website's sub pages and allowed me to compare features side by side to begin to understand what was utilized and under utilized by users.
I summarized the Hotjar and Google Analytics quantitive data in simple reports to share with stakeholders and decision makers to empower them to make data-driven decisions.
Special care was needed to address internal Capricorn biases or arguments against the de-emphasis or dropping of under-utilized features by teams or individuals directly affected by a website redesign or change.
Once quantitive data was accepted as evidence and a strong argument was made to execute on user-centered design decisions, I was able to synthesize the quantitive data into a redesigned user interface with a higher level of confidence.
I summarized the Hotjar and Google Analytics quantitive data in simple reports to share with stakeholders and decision makers to empower them to make data-driven decisions.
Special care was needed to address internal Capricorn biases or arguments against the de-emphasis or dropping of under-utilized features by teams or individuals directly affected by a website redesign or change.
Once quantitive data was accepted as evidence and a strong argument was made to execute on user-centered design decisions, I was able to synthesize the quantitive data into a redesigned user interface with a higher level of confidence.
User behavior reports of the old website using Hotjar click heat maps and feature comparison charts using Google Analytics traffic data. User behavior reports were also supplemented with anecdotal user quotes from Customer Support requests.
The new website redesign in various states of wireframes and lo-fidilety prototypes.
Visual Design
Updated Visual Styling
Working closely with the Visual Designer, I updated the user interface post-launch to align with the updated brand & style guidelines while still adhering to WC3 accessibility standards.