Empowering editors in crafting good user experiences

My name is Katrine, and I am a User Experience Designer at Adapt. In a recent meeting with a client, one of their web editors frustratingly pointed at their current product page and said, “I know this page looks messy, but I just have no idea how to make it better!” This frustration is all too common. Editors often find themselves either overwhelmed by endless possibilities or paralyzed by uncertainty, struggling to choose the right design elements to effectively convey their messages. 

So - how do we deal with this? How can we - as designers, guide non-designers to make thoughtful design choices when we hand over a design for their digital presence? It's not enough to merely provide a multitude of components; we need to educate and empower editors and other non-designers to utilize these effectively, ensuring they can create cohesive and engaging user experiences. In this article, I want to introduce you to a concept that bridges the gap between design documentation and web editors who build and manage content pages. A concept I call Experience Zones. 

In short, an Experience Zone is a specific, focused area on a certain page type where the desired user experience or behavior is documented and translated into design and content choices that accommodate this certain experience. 

By defining Experience Zones within a certain page type, editors can make informed decisions on the structure of their content in a way that supports a desired user experience. In other words - the editors get specific guidelines on how to build up their pages based on user research, user data and business goals. 

A client of ours - Jeudan - came to us with a new focus. They were expanding their business by placing a  greater emphasis on shared office spaces, dedicating significant resources into branding each office location. Furthermore, the focus on shared office spaces targets a specific user segment - individuals and groups seeking shared workspaces with a specialised office setup and services tailored to their needs. In collaboration with Jeudan's digital team we developed a new distinct digital experience to support this new concept.

The research was gathered - both the team's existing knowledge and insights obtained from conversations with Jeudan salespeople , who engage daily with  people interested in shared office spaces. With user needs and business goals uncovered, we started documenting this into principles of the new shared office pages. This resulted in a new page type for the shared offices built up by four Experience Zones.

Above is a shortened example of an Experience Zone for the Jeudan shared office spaces.  

The Zone takes input directly from the research and translates it into actions and design choices. For instance, the research highlighted the importance of allowing users to quickly sense the atmosphere and get a glimpse of the feeling and aesthetics in an office space. Furthermore, one of the key aspects Jeudan wanted to display was the exceptional service and the welcoming atmosphere they prioritize at each location. To meet these requirements, we defined the zone as an introductory zone, where the importance of displaying the location is accommodated in the use of a looping video. The video shows the office, people, services and the atmosphere around the office. Thereby it will quickly give the users a sense of the space, and at the same time, show off some of Jeudan’s top services that characterizes each office. 

Having the user needs and business goals translated into specific examples and guidelines is just one way of exploiting the potential of Experience Zones. There are multiple benefits to unlock!