C O L L E C T I V E
C O L L E C T I V E
C O L L E C T I V E
reimagining how we connect—with each other and with content online
reimagining how we connect—with each other and with content online
Problem
Problem
Kristin Thomas, founder of Marble Collective, approached us with a problem: she had built a beautiful site and platform to highlight the remarkable careers of female and non-binary leaders. But while the profile pages of leaders looked polished and visually pleasing, something was off. Web analytics and data showed users created accounts but didn't return. People seemed interested in the concept, but weren't engaging with the content.
Our Challenge
How might we redesign Marble Collective members' profile page to increase user adoption and retention?
Solution
Solution
Our redesign encompassed five main changes to the profile page:
Redesigned information architecture to enhance discoverability
AI that prompts conversation without replacing authenticity
Q&A addition that facilitates conversation within a leader's time constraints
Revised layout to quickly search and browse featured and recommended content
Intuitive and accessible editing
Our Results
“Incredible work.
I'm blown away by your team.”
Kristin Thomas
CEO and Founder, Marble Collective
My Role
My Role
UX Designer and Researcher
Timeline
Timeline
3 Week Sprint
Design Tools
Design Tools
Figma, Figjam, Pen and Paper
Our Approach
Research
Research
We knew our design brief was prescribing a problem we needed more data to understand. We conducted 9 user interviews and 3 usability tests on the current website to investigate the journey of finding and following content online.
Ideate
Ideate
Once we explored the problem space, we did multiple rounds of collaborative ideation, including a team card sorting exercise, two iterations of sketching and low-fidelity mock ups, and feature prioritization based on scope and user needs.
Design & Test
Design & Test
Within the constraint of our 3 week timeline, we embraced an iterative cycle of testing stages of mid and high-fidelity prototypes with users. While this allowed us to rapidly incorporate feedback, emerging insights reflected the lack of consistency across tests.
My Contributions
My Contributions
Our team collaborated closely across all stages of the project, as a practice to ensure we maximized diversity of thought and delivered a cohesive design.
While I touched each stage of the design, my direct contributions include the following research, strategy, and design work:
Competitive Analysis
3/9 User Interviews
3/6 Usability Tests (on Current Design and Redesign)
Affinity Map & Persona for 1/2 User Groups (with Soojung Choi)
3/5 Mid and Hi-Fidelity Screens
Our Research
User Groups
User Groups
It was evident that there were two distinct user groups we needed to speak to:
Featured Members: Successful female and nonbinary leaders with prolific careers.
Currently on the site these members are called Mavens. We recommended a title change as part of a content design review, driven by user and client insights.
Audience Members: Anyone outside this umbrella.
Currently on the site these members are called Patrons.
Research Goals
On the surface, we were tasked with a UI challenge. Our client wanted to add new features to the profile page and tighten the layout of information. We received two primary requests:
Add a Q&A feature on the page, where Featured Members can answer questions about their professional and personal journey.
Add an AI Avatar representing Featured Members that Audience Members can interact with for more tailored questions and advice.
We quickly realized we needed to work towards two goals:
Test how users were navigating and responding to the current profile page.
Dig deeper to understand what was drawing them to the site.
Thus, we decided to probe into the following questions.
For Audience Members
Research Question 1 —> What content do you follow, and why?
Research Question 2 —> How do you seek out and find content?
Research Question 3 —> How do you feel about generative AI, and how do you currently use it?
Research Question 4 —> Where and how do you seek career advice?
For Featured Members
Research Question 1 —> Where do you share content and why? What doesn't work about the current method?
Research Question 2 —> How do you connect with other influential female and nonbinary leaders?
Competitive Analysis
To start exploring these questions, we mapped out current platforms Featured Members share and Audience Members interact with content. As we conducted interviews, user responses defined primary competitors.
Quick to find relevant, popular content
Recommendations for content discovery
Varied text and visual content
Curated and reflects personal brand and style
Often not inclusive of full breadth of work, or not up to date
Content may not be relevant at the time of receipt
Curated, up to date information without having to search
Limited search features for finding specific, tailored content
Hard to find older content
Content is limited to the scope of search query
Largely text based content
Google,
Chat GPT,
and Other Search Engines
LinkedIn, Instagram,
and Other Social Media Sites
Personal Websites
Personal Newsletters
User Interviews and Insights
Audience Member
We spoke to 6 people in their 20s and 30s, five identifying as cis-women and one as nonbinary.
Finding
Vetting
Finding Content
I find people to follow through first discovering and consuming their work
I find and follow my favourite creators across multiple platforms
I struggle to search and find the information I’m seeking in an efficient manner on social media apps
Following Content
I regularly monitor the career work of influential people I follow online VS. I follow specific topics of content rather than specific individuals
I need to be able to curate the content I see online and just see the features that are relevant to me.
Monitoring
Curating
Authentic
Relatable
Inspiring Content
I gravitate towards content that feels authentic and genuine
I gravitate towards content that relates to my lived experiences
I prefer talking to an actual person over an AI representation of them
Gender
I don’t consciously think about gender when seeking out content BUT I tend to relate more with women and nonbinary people
I feel encouraged and represented when I see women and nonbinary people in fields that are traditionally male-dominated
Encouraged
Unconscious Bias
Two personas emerged from these insights, primarily distinguished by their motivations and habits towards content.
Lei Wei, The Regular, needs a better way to find, follow, and connect with influential leaders because it’s challenging to find authentic and relevant information and know who to connect with on current career and social media platforms.
Eden, The Explorer, needs a better way to find information on educational topics of interest because it’s inefficient to find authentic and relevant information on the websites and social media platforms they frequent.
User Interviews and Insights
Featured Member
We spoke to 3 remarkable leaders, CEOs in the fields of consulting, coaching, and marketing. Two of whom are current members of Marble Collective.
Authentic
Engagement
Empowerment
Effortless
Needs & Motivations
Desires genuine interactions, including open conversations about challenges.
Prefers following topics over individual personalities.
Committed to supporting women in leadership roles.
Values discovering mutual connections.
Welcomes AI assistance to enhance her profile experience.
Enjoys curated videos without time-intensive creation.
Frustrations
Finds it difficult to keep up with too many connections.
Lacks trust in AI’s ability represent her in fully authentic ways.
Frustrated by the upkeep required for personal websites.
Overwhelmed
Maintenance
Dr. Andrea Martinez needs a centralized, intuitive way to effortlessly manage and showcase her body of work online, enabling authentic engagement with her audience. Her current fragmented media presence and limited time make it difficult to maintain a consistent, impactful online presence that inspires, informs and connects.
Usability Testing—Current Site
Audience Member
I think navigation could be more intuitive. It’s hard for me to decipher the distinction between different pages.
At this point, I probably wouldn’t interact with an AI avatar of someone I follow if I know it’s not actually them.
I’d like to be able to interact or follow the members somehow.
Featured Member
The profile should be concise and impactful, with the most relevant details easily accessible at top
Category confusion: e.g. “Collection” title is not intuitive.
If someone were to ask me questions on my profile, I'd be happy to answer publicly.
I want followers and following under my photo. It helps to see people you have in common.
I don’t think it’s a priority to have “nominated by” at the top. It publicly links a person to you and relationships can change over time.
Our Ideation
Defined Goals and Constraints
With an understanding of user needs, we outlined the key priorities we sought to address:
Deliver Greater Value to All Personas: Ensure each persona, particularly Featured Members and The Regular, derives increased benefits tailored to their specific needs and expectations.
Boost User Engagement: Enhance user interaction and participation with the product through intuitive design changes.
We also worked around and navigated constraints:
Limited Time
Limited number of users and stakeholders to interview
Not having the opportunity to do usability testing on the full user journey
Multiple Versions of the Newsfeed
Design Scope and Prioritization
Must Have
Redesigned Profile Page for Featured Members
Addition of a Q&A Section
Redesigned Edit Section
Nice to Have
Content Review and Design
Timeline page highlighting professional and personal journey
Cohesion with Newsfeed Design
Out of Scope
—> Design for Mobile
—> Redesigned Profile Page for Audience Members
—> Redesigned Landing Page
Navigation and Sitemapping
Our Design
Audience Member View
Most important information visible in profile header
Navigation bar on left for easy switching and browsing
Clear description of each page
Access to Main Header while in Profile viewing
Featured Member View
Embedded edit buttons throughout profile for more seamless access to editing capabilities
Encourages updates as members view their profile
Reflection and Future Steps
Future Design Opportunities to Explore
Use of AI Notifications
AI Notifications to recommend updates for Featured Members from recognized web content that they can accept or edit.
Notifications for Audience Members when someone they follow posts new content
Redesigned About Page for Subscribed Members
Subscribed Members will enjoy certain features and DM capabilities between each other
Mobile App
A mobile version for those who prefer their content on the go
Further Research
Limited data from users of different gender identities. This would be an area to explore in the next steps
Usability tests with final stage of Profile Redesign
Landing Page Redesign
Shortening the page
Clearer ‘Call to Actions’
See More Design Work
Comparative and Competitive Examination
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Client: Marble Collective
Profile Page Redesign
Current Website
Redesigned Prototype
My Role
UX Designer and Researcher
Timeline
3 Week Sprint
Team Members
Ola Pater
Shamima Khan
Soojung Choi
Design Tools
Figma, Figjam, Pen and Paper
Problem
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Solution
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