U.S. Department of Interior Website Redesign
The Problem: Website usability doesn’t appeal to the general public looking to easily find more info about what the DOI does
The Solution: Add more info about the mission and priorities to the homepage, work on information architecture to reduce the amount of pages the user has to scan through in the nav
My Role: UX Researcher, Info Architect, UI Designer
Tools: Figjam, Figma, Invision
Time Frame: 3 weeks
Background
The Department of Interior plays a central role in how the United States stewards its public lands and national parks, increases environmental protections, pursues environmental justice, and works to build nation-to-nation relationships with Native Tribes.
Research
I started with a proto persona and then conducted a heuristics evaluation of the homepage and navigation. Then I conducted 7 usability tests, with the objective of learning if the user was able to easily navigate to information to learn more about what the DOI does and its current initiatives.
“Nothing immediately tells me what the DOI does today, even though some of it is covered in the news section of the homepage.”
“Maybe for a lobbyist, not a website for the average Joe”
“I wouldn’t think to click on the tab as a button, if the dropdown menu shows up”
Very hard to find info about what the department does
The Problem
Complex and confusing navigation
Doesn’t feel like a website geared toward the general public
The DOI website usability doesn’t appeal to the general public looking to easily find more info about what the Department of Interior does or its initiatives. The navigation is robust and there seems to be a lack of organizing principles. Right now, the website seems geared towards internal department use instead of the American public.
Iterations
Mobile Iterations
I wireframed the mobile version of the website first and built a mid-fi prototype from there. I conducted 7 5-second tests to see what information people were able to retain from a quick glance at the site. Users seemed to have an overall understanding of some of the DOI initiatives. I made a hi-fi prototype from there.
Web Iterations
After wireframing and creating a mid-fi prototype, I ran 5 user tests and had to make a few design tweaks to make buttons responsive and rearrange the hierarchy of a few sections.
The Result
My first priority was to add sections for the mission and priorities to the homepage, so users would be able to immediately learn what the Department works on and what its current initiatives are. Then I worked on information architecture to reduce the number of pages the user has to scan through while looking at the navigation. With accessible information, the American public can quickly and easily learn what the Department of Interior does by visiting the website leading to a little more government transparency and trust.