Product Design, UI/UX Design, Secondary Research, User Interviews, Art Direction, Design Workshops
The Collaboratory tool that provides AI-powered search capabilities that make research easier, faster, and more efficient. The Collaboratory CEO, Nick Lilovich approached me to revamp the existing product and update the marketing landing page to support Collaboratory’s business growth. The powerful search capabilities of the tool allow companies to easily search for files stored in their ELN, Sharepoint, Box.com, network storage, and more. The tool reduces the need for complex and costly integrations across platforms. The product enables teams to quickly locate specific figures, images, and diagrams within internal and public documents. It reduces time spent scrolling, searching, and hunting for specific visuals. Collaboratory also offers a literature review feature that will consider the parameters provided, leverage existing content, and generate a highly curated list of articles, so that the team can get straight to the information they need. This project required me to understand the value provided by the AI-powered tool and redesign the website to communicate that value to Collaboratory’s customers.
One of the core features that we improved was the Private Search tool. The Collaboratorywanted to provide their customers with a solution to reduce time spent searching throughinternal documentation that might be stored across several platforms. The Private Search toolallows customers to retrieve internal information, including graphics and data and reduces thetime spent sorting through vast storages of information. I wanted to make this feature moreprominent and easier to navigate. I identified a use case where customers would need toalternate between searching private and public documents to curate content. To solve the userproblem here, I designed an easy switcher functionality that made alternating from Public toPrivate Search more intuitive. We also implemented conversational UX, utilizing a smoother,more natural language-based interface that would assist the user in easily navigating the PrivateSearch tool.
Through initial discovery phase and user research process, I identified a feature thatcould be improved that would have a high impact The Collaboratory’s users. The Refine Searchfeature allows users to enter a search term and provide feedback on the results with a simpleclick that gathers sentiment. The product is able to use this feedback and AI to filter results forcustomers, providing more personalized content to suit the user’s needs. When I started thisproject, the feature was rarely used to the full extent of its capabilities. This left a core feature ofthe product unused. We were able to identify the problems with this feature and redesign the UIto improve visibility and usability. Redesign led to an increase in usage of the tool and ahigher rate of users completing the flow. This solution benefited The Collaboratory by reducingbounce rates, increasing engagement and conversion rates, and providing them with valuableinsights into their users’ behaviors and preferences.
I partnered with The Collaboratory team to ensure our process was transparent and ourgoals were aligned. I know that thoroughly evaluating the existing product is critical to achieving a successful redesign that will improve the user experience and drive the product’s growth. We conducted a comprehensive analysis of the product’s current state, reviewing the existing features, functionality, and user journey. The Collaboratory provided me with all the context needed, including web analytics data, user interview feedback, and stakeholder insights. This level of coordination between teams set us up for success.
We initialized the wireframing phase to validate that all team members involved were inalignment and understood the goals of this redesign. Creating this low fidelity vision of theinterface allowed for early identification and correction of design flaws and usability issues,reducing the need for costly redesigns and development changes down the road. Once I hada clear understanding of the project requirements, we transitioned to the UI design phase ofour journey. Primed with user research and a clear vision for the product, I was ready to use product thinking skills and design talent to create an aesthetically appealing, intuitive, and user-friendly interface.
