Problem context
Users are trying to find a needle in a haystack
Research studies need participants. Honeybee is a web platform and app that lets people discover and sign up for research studies. But currently, people are having trouble finding eligible research studies. They visit the site and see a bunch of studies that they aren't eligible for.
Scrappy research due to limited resources
This was a small company focussed on moving quickly with limited resources. We focussed on maximizing
Problem scope
People can't find what they want
I reviewed our past surveys and analyzed them for pain points.
49% of users struggled
Out of the users that were unsatisfied, 49% of them said it was because they struggled to find the right research studies.
Research
Research studies are very picky for participants
Research studies often want a specific type of person, so users aren't always eligible for the studies they see.
Insight
Users see a bunch of studies that they are ineligible for
Research
Other websites asked questions
I looked at other websites on how they collected information to give a personalized experience. I then presented these findings to the CEO and developers on the team.
Insights
These services asked questions to personalize results
Sensitive questions were better asked during onboarding
Asking questions during onboarding also fit our developer needs better
Examples of online research
Design
A set of questions that was accurate but not overwhelming
I went through multiple iterations and design reviews with the CEO to decide on the final set of questions to ask. It needed to be accurate enough to capture the depth of what research studies needed, but also not too overwhelming.
First iteration
4 sections
Included sensitive questions regarding children
Final iteration
3 sections
Removed sensitive questions regarding children
Design
Encouraging users to not rush
I visited other platforms that offered health, research, or entertainment content to see how they personalized the experience
What a multiple selection question looks like
Key design decisions
Bigger answer options with icons to gather more visual interest
Prototypical icons and text to help convey meaning
Vibrant colors to elicit more positive affect when you select an option
Design
A progress bar that includes 3 different sections
The form has 3 sections and multiple questions within each section. How can we keep track of progress while encouraging the good feeling of progress?
Progress bar in section 1
Progress bar in section 3
Key design decisions
3 separate progress bars to represent 3 separate sections
The current section's progress bar is enlarged and shows the current question progress
Place the progress bar near the Next button, so users are more likely to see the progress bar fill as they click, "next"
Design
Addressing sensitive questions
We anticipated users to be reluctanct to answer sensitive, health related questions. So we introduced the following to address this.
A general privacy statement
A general HIPAA, PIPEDA, PHIPA/PIPA statement at the beginning of the health section
Specific tooltips
Specifically addressing why we need the information
Create excitement about potential studies
Key design choice
Introduce both a general privacy statement and specific tooltips to address different kinds of worries.
Results
Users completed this onboarding survey reliably
With this project, we knew we were adding lots of friction to the onboarding experience. We relied on testing and reviews with the internal team and external advisors as we were limited with the research data we had.
87% completion rate
Bonus: Devs were more willing to ask me questions after this project
