Cracking the Code: Transforming Web 3 Tech Hurdles into Engagement Boosters
Problem
The owners of a Web3 platform aimed to boost the number of projects and interactions on their site, catering to startups, innovators, experts, and investors. They sought a radical increase in platform engagement.
Process
I conducted a thorough analysis of the platform’s value propositions and differentiators to attract new users. I helped the team craft alignment personas to capture the key wants and needs of their target user base. We used those personas to look at the current user experiences through fresh eyes, focusing on the end-to-end experience and looking for messaging and UI elements that were likely to cause confusion. Through this analysis, we also identified a critical ‘show stopper’ issue affecting conversions, previously overlooked (or swept under the rug) due to its complexity. Together, we built a compelling argument demonstrating that this system-level, structural issue was a big reason why users weren’t sticking around. This set the foundation for our successful argument that tech resources (and time!) needed to be devoted to solving the issue.
Results
We successfully advocated for the problem and the needed technical solutions to project managers, leads, and engineers who had been resistant. Our "one project, one wallet" solution drastically simplified user interactions, removing significant barriers and enhancing the overall user experience. We also revamped the information architecture, page design, and messaging across the entire user journey, which led to an immediate increase in user engagement. This process not only improved the platform but also elevated the designer's influence and effectiveness in communication.
Highlights
Moving an immovable object Many stakeholders understood that the technical structure of the platform might be impacting user experience, but there were so many other issues that were easier to solve. They avoided the bigger issue, but this project put the real issue into sharp focus and resources were reallocated.
On-the-job communication and impact training The lead designer on this project is extremely talented. Our work together helped him hone his communication skills to build impactful arguments that actually worked on senior stakeholders.
Structured, strategic prioritization Web 3 is a very tech-forward domain and it’s easy to get swept up in the cool things that people might want to do. The things real people actually want and need to do (in this case, when trying to become a startup founder) are much less sexy but often significantly harder to deliver. With a new, shared, user-centric focus, the entire team quickly reprioritized everything they were working on.
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