Evaluating the Usability of Innovation Hub Website
Provide a feasable website recommendation plan.
Project Role
UX Consultant
UX Consultant
Tool
Figma, Google Excel
Figma, Google Excel
Timeline
Q1 2025
Q1 2025
Industry
Design & Innovation Consulting
Design & Innovation Consulting
Each year, countless U of T students navigate the Innovation Hub’s website to explore work-study opportunities, request services, and seek collaboration. However, unclear navigation and communication barriers can make completing these tasks challenging, leading to frustration and missed opportunities.
Koyu's goal was to evaluate the website’s usability, accessibility, and overall design to enhance the user experience and ensure that students and partners could connect with the Innovation Hub effortlessly. She developed a strategic project plan with her team and began by following Jakob Nielsen’s Evaluation Guidelines to identify key issues. She then conducted two usability evaluations to test her hypothesis and created high-fidelity wireframes for testing materials.
Koyu took the lead in building wireframes based on tasks and user flows for usability testing materials. She enhanced the website’s navigation, usability, accessibility, and overall appearance to improve user satisfaction, engagement, and collaboration for students and partners.
Responsibilities
Conducted usability studies and tests to analyze user interactions with the Innovation Hub website.
Identified pain points and areas for improvement by assessing user flow and error rates from usability testing.
Developed wireframes and prototypes for usability testing materials to validate design hypotheses and gather user feedback.
Translated user insights into actionable design recommendations and presented findings to senior leadership, driving strategic website improvements.
Team size
2 UX Consultants + 1 UX Lead + 1 Project Manager
5 Pages to Apply, 5 Pages to Request
Students and potential partners rely on the Innovation Hub’s website to explore opportunities, apply for work-study positions, and request services. However, poor navigation and unclear communication create friction in the user experience, making it difficult to complete essential tasks.
Student Opportunities
Request A Service
4 out of 5
students got lost on your website and struggling to find the right information.
75%
of users can't complete their job application on the website.
The issue is…
The Innovation Hub’s website faces unclear navigation, missing call-to-action flow, and ineffective communication that make it difficult for users to complete essential tasks, leading to frustration, lower engagement, and missed collaboration opportunities, ultimately impacting the Hub’s ability to secure funding and support its mission.
The action should be quick, intuitive, and straightforward.
Koyu made key actions easy to find, simplified the application process, and organized information more clearly so users could get things done without feeling lost or overwhelmed.
Student Opportunities
From 5 clicks away to 2-click away. Expandable job info to keep the website short and easy to navigate.
Our Services
From 5 clicks away to 1-click away. A simple, organized section where users can compare services and find key details quickly.
Turning Insights into Impact
Koyu and her teammate, Ashfaaq, quickly mapped out the project, analyzed the site using formal design guidelines, and identified key pain points. Koyu then developed complete usability test materials, conducted evaluations to challenge their design hypothesis, and delivered a strategic recommendation plan to enhance the website experience.
Usability Evaluation 1: Observing from The Real User Experience
Since this is the first test, we conducted a heuristic evaluation with Jakob Nielsen’s Evaluation Guidelines to have an understanding of the problems throughout the website. Once the severe issues were spotted, Koyu and Ashfaaq defined 3 main user flows that covered students and potential partners, they then developed the test plan and invited several students and potential partners to participate in the usability evaluation.
Koyu emphasized that the target user group should primarily consist of people unfamiliar with the Innovation Hub who had never browsed its website, allowing them to gather insights from a fresh perspective.
5
Usability evaluation with students
4
Usability evaluation with potential partners
100+
Data points from the usability evaluation
Koyu realized that both user groups have difficulty completing their tasks.
Pain points from Students
Pain points from Potential partners
Going Beyond A/B Testing: Finding What Really Works
Empowering students and partners to connect with the Innovation Hub starts with a frictionless digital experience. Even though Koyu and Ashfaaq assumed A/B testing would be one of the main research methodologies, Koyu implemented 2 more research methods: a terminology preference test and an information architecture card-sorting activity.
Koyu was reading Usability Testing Essentials by Carol M. Barnum, and she explored various usability evaluation methods. She carefully assessed the key insights needed for the project and strategically incorporated two additional testing methods to enhance the depth and accuracy of the evaluation.
Content prioritization
Information architecture card sorting activity
Top considerations:
Prioritizing information/content within a page
Understand the thought process when looking for information
User's ideal webpage's content order
Feature preferences
Terminology preference testing & A/B testing
Top considerations:
Look for straightforward terminologies
Discover familiar website interactions
Blind comparing the original version and the revised version
Koyu took full responsibility for the wireframes and the gamified testing prototype.
While her teammate Ashfaaq took full responsibility for the card sorting activity, Koyu redesigned all of the screens and prototypes based on areas for improvement. She also took full responsibility for building a 2-in-1 interactive prototype for terminology testing and A/B testing.
Koyu came up with the idea to use a gamified Figma prototype for usability testing, and it worked smoothly, receiving a lot of positive feedback for being enjoyable and engaging.
Koyu has conducted 7 usability tests to validate solutions.
Testing strategies:
Card sorting to improve the content hierarchy/layout.
Terminology test is used to find the most intuitive wording on the site and enhance clarity.
A/B test to validate our designed solutions.
She wants to challenge her hypothesis:
Participants are able to synthesize clear content layouts for key pages that make the most sense to them.
Participants respond to terminologies that work for all.
Participants have a seamless experience with the redesigned prototype.
Better User Satisfaction, Higher Conversion Rates & Engagement
Participant satisfaction significantly increased with the redesigned solutions. Although they were imperfect, participants reported fewer frustrations and a more coherent navigation experience, leading to higher engagement and successful task completion.
Business Needs Matter
After presenting all the recommended solutions to the clients, the feedback Koyu received was completely different from what she had expected. The organization had its own purpose and reasoning behind building the website, and their motivation aligned with the value they wanted to convey to people—one centered around human connection and communication. She took away an important lesson: to be more aware of clients' values and culture in future projects.
Koyu took the lead in building wireframes based on tasks and user flows for usability testing materials. She enhanced the website’s navigation, usability, accessibility, and overall appearance to improve user satisfaction, engagement, and collaboration for students and partners.
Responsibilities
Conducted usability studies and tests to analyze user interactions with the Innovation Hub website.
Identified pain points and areas for improvement by assessing user flow and error rates from usability testing.
Developed wireframes and prototypes for usability testing materials to validate design hypotheses and gather user feedback.
Translated user insights into actionable design recommendations and presented findings to senior leadership, driving strategic website improvements.
Team size
2 UX Consultants + 1 UX Lead + 1 Project Manager
5 Pages to Apply, 5 Pages to Request
Students and potential partners rely on the Innovation Hub’s website to explore opportunities, apply for work-study positions, and request services. However, poor navigation and unclear communication create friction in the user experience, making it difficult to complete essential tasks.
Student Opportunities
Request A Service
4 out of 5
students got lost on your website and struggling to find the right information.
75%
of users can't complete their job application on the website.
The issue is…
The Innovation Hub’s website faces unclear navigation, missing call-to-action flow, and ineffective communication that make it difficult for users to complete essential tasks, leading to frustration, lower engagement, and missed collaboration opportunities, ultimately impacting the Hub’s ability to secure funding and support its mission.
The action should be quick, intuitive, and straightforward.
Koyu made key actions easy to find, simplified the application process, and organized information more clearly so users could get things done without feeling lost or overwhelmed.
Student Opportunities
From 5 clicks away to 2-click away. Expandable job info to keep the website short and easy to navigate.
Our Services
From 5 clicks away to 1-click away. A simple, organized section where users can compare services and find key details quickly.
Turning Insights into Impact
Koyu and her teammate, Ashfaaq, quickly mapped out the project, analyzed the site using formal design guidelines, and identified key pain points. Koyu then developed complete usability test materials, conducted evaluations to challenge their design hypothesis, and delivered a strategic recommendation plan to enhance the website experience.
Usability Evaluation 1: Observing from The Real User Experience
Since this is the first test, we conducted a heuristic evaluation with Jakob Nielsen’s Evaluation Guidelines to have an understanding of the problems throughout the website. Once the severe issues were spotted, Koyu and Ashfaaq defined 3 main user flows that covered students and potential partners, they then developed the test plan and invited several students and potential partners to participate in the usability evaluation.
Koyu emphasized that the target user group should primarily consist of people unfamiliar with the Innovation Hub who had never browsed its website, allowing them to gather insights from a fresh perspective.
5
Usability evaluation with students
4
Usability evaluation with potential partners
100+
Data points from the usability evaluation
Koyu realized that both user groups have difficulty completing their tasks.
Pain points from Students
Pain points from Potential partners
Going Beyond A/B Testing: Finding What Really Works
Empowering students and partners to connect with the Innovation Hub starts with a frictionless digital experience. Even though Koyu and Ashfaaq assumed A/B testing would be one of the main research methodologies, Koyu implemented 2 more research methods: a terminology preference test and an information architecture card-sorting activity.
Koyu was reading Usability Testing Essentials by Carol M. Barnum, and she explored various usability evaluation methods. She carefully assessed the key insights needed for the project and strategically incorporated two additional testing methods to enhance the depth and accuracy of the evaluation.
Content prioritization
Information architecture card sorting activity
Top considerations:
Prioritizing information/content within a page
Understand the thought process when looking for information
User's ideal webpage's content order
Feature preferences
Terminology preference testing & A/B testing
Top considerations:
Look for straightforward terminologies
Discover familiar website interactions
Blind comparing the original version and the revised version
Koyu took full responsibility for the wireframes and the gamified testing prototype.
While her teammate Ashfaaq took full responsibility for the card sorting activity, Koyu redesigned all of the screens and prototypes based on areas for improvement. She also took full responsibility for building a 2-in-1 interactive prototype for terminology testing and A/B testing.
Koyu came up with the idea to use a gamified Figma prototype for usability testing, and it worked smoothly, receiving a lot of positive feedback for being enjoyable and engaging.
Koyu has conducted 7 usability tests to validate solutions.
Testing strategies:
Card sorting to improve the content hierarchy/layout.
Terminology test is used to find the most intuitive wording on the site and enhance clarity.
A/B test to validate our designed solutions.
She wants to challenge her hypothesis:
Participants are able to synthesize clear content layouts for key pages that make the most sense to them.
Participants respond to terminologies that work for all.
Participants have a seamless experience with the redesigned prototype.
Better User Satisfaction, Higher Conversion Rates & Engagement
Participant satisfaction significantly increased with the redesigned solutions. Although they were imperfect, participants reported fewer frustrations and a more coherent navigation experience, leading to higher engagement and successful task completion.
Business Needs Matter
After presenting all the recommended solutions to the clients, the feedback Koyu received was completely different from what she had expected. The organization had its own purpose and reasoning behind building the website, and their motivation aligned with the value they wanted to convey to people—one centered around human connection and communication. She took away an important lesson: to be more aware of clients' values and culture in future projects.
Koyu took the lead in building wireframes based on tasks and user flows for usability testing materials. She enhanced the website’s navigation, usability, accessibility, and overall appearance to improve user satisfaction, engagement, and collaboration for students and partners.
Responsibilities
Conducted usability studies and tests to analyze user interactions with the Innovation Hub website.
Identified pain points and areas for improvement by assessing user flow and error rates from usability testing.
Developed wireframes and prototypes for usability testing materials to validate design hypotheses and gather user feedback.
Translated user insights into actionable design recommendations and presented findings to senior leadership, driving strategic website improvements.
Team size
2 UX Consultants + 1 UX Lead + 1 Project Manager
5 Pages to Apply, 5 Pages to Request
Students and potential partners rely on the Innovation Hub’s website to explore opportunities, apply for work-study positions, and request services. However, poor navigation and unclear communication create friction in the user experience, making it difficult to complete essential tasks.
Student Opportunities
Request A Service
4 out of 5
students got lost on your website and struggling to find the right information.
75%
of users can't complete their job application on the website.
The issue is…
The Innovation Hub’s website faces unclear navigation, missing call-to-action flow, and ineffective communication that make it difficult for users to complete essential tasks, leading to frustration, lower engagement, and missed collaboration opportunities, ultimately impacting the Hub’s ability to secure funding and support its mission.
The action should be quick, intuitive, and straightforward.
Koyu made key actions easy to find, simplified the application process, and organized information more clearly so users could get things done without feeling lost or overwhelmed.
Student Opportunities
From 5 clicks away to 2-click away. Expandable job info to keep the website short and easy to navigate.
Our Services
From 5 clicks away to 1-click away. A simple, organized section where users can compare services and find key details quickly.
Turning Insights into Impact
Koyu and her teammate, Ashfaaq, quickly mapped out the project, analyzed the site using formal design guidelines, and identified key pain points. Koyu then developed complete usability test materials, conducted evaluations to challenge their design hypothesis, and delivered a strategic recommendation plan to enhance the website experience.
Usability Evaluation 1: Observing from The Real User Experience
Since this is the first test, we conducted a heuristic evaluation with Jakob Nielsen’s Evaluation Guidelines to have an understanding of the problems throughout the website. Once the severe issues were spotted, Koyu and Ashfaaq defined 3 main user flows that covered students and potential partners, they then developed the test plan and invited several students and potential partners to participate in the usability evaluation.
Koyu emphasized that the target user group should primarily consist of people unfamiliar with the Innovation Hub who had never browsed its website, allowing them to gather insights from a fresh perspective.
5
Usability evaluation with students
4
Usability evaluation with potential partners
100+
Data points from the usability evaluation
Koyu realized that both user groups have difficulty completing their tasks.
Pain points from Students
Pain points from Potential partners
Going Beyond A/B Testing: Finding What Really Works
Empowering students and partners to connect with the Innovation Hub starts with a frictionless digital experience. Even though Koyu and Ashfaaq assumed A/B testing would be one of the main research methodologies, Koyu implemented 2 more research methods: a terminology preference test and an information architecture card-sorting activity.
Koyu was reading Usability Testing Essentials by Carol M. Barnum, and she explored various usability evaluation methods. She carefully assessed the key insights needed for the project and strategically incorporated two additional testing methods to enhance the depth and accuracy of the evaluation.
Content prioritization
Information architecture card sorting activity
Top considerations:
Prioritizing information/content within a page
Understand the thought process when looking for information
User's ideal webpage's content order
Feature preferences
Terminology preference testing & A/B testing
Top considerations:
Look for straightforward terminologies
Discover familiar website interactions
Blind comparing the original version and the revised version
Koyu took full responsibility for the wireframes and the gamified testing prototype.
While her teammate Ashfaaq took full responsibility for the card sorting activity, Koyu redesigned all of the screens and prototypes based on areas for improvement. She also took full responsibility for building a 2-in-1 interactive prototype for terminology testing and A/B testing.
Koyu came up with the idea to use a gamified Figma prototype for usability testing, and it worked smoothly, receiving a lot of positive feedback for being enjoyable and engaging.
Koyu has conducted 7 usability tests to validate solutions.
Testing strategies:
Card sorting to improve the content hierarchy/layout.
Terminology test is used to find the most intuitive wording on the site and enhance clarity.
A/B test to validate our designed solutions.
She wants to challenge her hypothesis:
Participants are able to synthesize clear content layouts for key pages that make the most sense to them.
Participants respond to terminologies that work for all.
Participants have a seamless experience with the redesigned prototype.
Better User Satisfaction, Higher Conversion Rates & Engagement
Participant satisfaction significantly increased with the redesigned solutions. Although they were imperfect, participants reported fewer frustrations and a more coherent navigation experience, leading to higher engagement and successful task completion.
Business Needs Matter
After presenting all the recommended solutions to the clients, the feedback Koyu received was completely different from what she had expected. The organization had its own purpose and reasoning behind building the website, and their motivation aligned with the value they wanted to convey to people—one centered around human connection and communication. She took away an important lesson: to be more aware of clients' values and culture in future projects.