The Problem
Veronica hasn’t had a lot of traffic on her website and would like to update the site and start selling her art. The website itself doesn’t have clear user flows or branding.
After our initial meeting the client provided their main goals for the website redesign:
Rebrand her business
Add E-commerce to the website
Customers can reach out for commissions
Showcase her travels and mural art.
Client’s Goals
1
2
3
Determine what customers want to see when they are purchasing art online.
Work with the client to come up with new branding.
Understand what kind of details customers want to know about the art and the artists themselves.
Research Goals & Objectives
Compared other artists’ websites to discern successful design elements, user-friendly features, and innovative functionalities. This analysis helps with understanding the expectations and preferences of users within the art community, allowing us to align the redesigned website with current trends and standards.
Needs quality photos of the art
Provide descriptions of each piece
Encourage direct communication with users for commissions
Tell their story and their process when creating art
Strong social media presence
Cite publications or exhibitions the artist has been featured in
Strong but minimal branding
Clear user flows
Opportunities
The Art of Standing Out Online
Conducted 5 remote interviews to get a better understanding of the customer’s experiences with shopping for art online. Everyone interviewed had experience with purchasing art online.
User Interviews
100%
Customers want to know more about the artists themselves, what inspires them, and are curious about their creative process.
Interest in Background
“I like the idea of clicking on a piece and selecting a size and being recommended frame sizes to go along with it if I can’t buy a frame with the print.” - Participant 4
60%
Like having the option to purchase a frame with the print, or at least know which size frame is suggested for the print.
Framing Options
100%
In order for customers to feel comfortable purchasing art online, the websites needs to establish credibility in some way.
Establish Credibility
80%
Social Media Presence
Discover artists on Instagram or TikTok, which is also how they stay updated on their work and it establishes a connection to the artist.
Needs
Connor the Collector
Good customer service, wants to be able to ask questions about the art.
Wants to order prints from an artist that can also provide frames, or suggest frame sizes for their prints
UNIQUE
RESPONSIVE
CONVENIENCE
Personas
After reviewing the interview findings and affinity map, two distinct types of users revealed themselves.
Needs
Devin the Decorator
The artist to be active on social media to build credibility or have customer testimonials to feel comfortable buying something on their website.
Wants to be able to read about the artist and each piece of artwork to feel connected.
TRENDY
CONNECTION
HISTORY
Passionate art enthusiast who views their home as a canvas for self-expression. Seeks art to decorate their home or as gifts to loved ones.
Interested in original works of art created by talented artists. Likes to make a connection with the artist.
Design Objectives and Key Features
Based on the research findings and the goals of the client, I identified several key features that should be prioritized on the website including features that can come in the next update.
Must-Haves
Can Come Later
The artist introduces themselves on a more personal level to explain their journey with art and what inspires them.
Connecting the customers and the artist. If someone has questions, or want to commission a piece they can reach out to the artist directly.
Ability for customers to browse and purchase prints and original works from the artists website directly.
Provides customer with the option to purchase a frame with the print.
Showcasing past murals the artist has worked on, and explaining the process and how they got those opportunities.
Section for publications and exhibitions the artist is featured in as well as in person events if they are selling their work at fairs.
An interactive map showing where the artist has murals around the world.
E-Commerce
Frame Options
Murals
Exhibitions
Map
About Page
Contact
The main task flow the client wanted to focus on was how customers would be able to view and purchase their art. The flow below represents the task of browsing the collection of prints for sale, selecting a piece to purchase, and proceeding to buy the item.
User Journey
Create a new logo. The client didn’t feel like their current logo best encapsulated their brand, and it was also very long.
Review and update photos. My client needed updated photos on their website. While we couldn’t retake photos of the murals and my client still wanted to showcase them, we decided to update the photos of the artists prints to a higher quality image.
Create visual elements for the website. Add visual elements but let the art speak for itself. Let the art play the part.
Create a color palette. My client didn’t have a color palette and agreed that having one would help add to her new brand.
Brand Development
In our first few meetings my client and I discussed their rebranding. Since the old website lacked branding, we needed a start fresh. In order to do this we set clear goals:
Aa
Aa
Raleway
Plus Jakarta Sans
Header 1 - Raleway Bold
Body Text - Plus Jakarta Sans - Regular
Sub-header - Plus Jakarta Sans - SemiBold
Header 2- Plus Jakarta Sans - Bold- spacing 10%
UI Kit
Logo
Color Palette
Visual Design
Components
Typography
tux
#232324
pine
#383F31
sky
#86A5A8
sun
#B3600E
sandy
#F0E4D8
Worth the cut
Small 5” x 7”
$24.00
Small Frame - Oak
Qty 1
Remove
Monarch
$200.00
Qty 1
Remove
Original Piece
PRIMARY BUTTON
Secondary button
Shop ORIGINALS
1
+
_
Small 5” x 7” - $12.00
Large 11” x 15” - $35.00
Large 11” x 15” - $35.00
Small 5” x 7” - $12.00
Logo
New Photos
Visual Elements
Color Palette
New Logo
Old Logo
Old Prints
New Prints
Visual Design
The client’s older work had a printed a heart with wings on the back of every postcard. My client felt it represented her current brand and artwork.
My client was able to scan her prints so we could update the website with better quality photos.
Needing to find ways to make the website as unique as my client’s art without competing with it. I wanted to find playful ways to add texture and show artistry so the website didn’t fall flat. I created paint strokes in procreate, and added texture to the background color of the website. I also got grabbed elements from the artists favorite pieces to use throughout the design.
After viewing artists websites, I noticed the color palettes they used for their branding were typically the same colors most often used in their work leaving the entire site feeling cohesive. While my client uses a variety of colors, I found she uses a lot of blues and greens in almost every piece. She also likes to contrast those colors with a warm orange or pink. I extracted color themes from her work and selected the colors that showed up the most and then muted them to create the color palette. We only wanted four colors max to make sure they wouldn’t compete with the art on the website, but rather enhance it instead.
Summary of Task Flows
Conducted an unmoderated usability study with 4 participants. Each participant was asked to complete 6 task flows followed by questions to get additional feedback.
Within majority of the task flows there were a several different ways to complete the task. It was interesting seeing which way each participant chose which also provided helpful insights of the sites navigation.
All participants were able to complete each task.
Task number 4 had the highest misclick rate of 37.5% so it was worth looking to see if there was anything thing confusing or if the prototype itself wasn’t working properly. I realized that a few of my navigation buttons were delayed or needed another tap.
Usability Testing
Where would you go if you wanted to learn more about the artist?
Where would you go if you wanted to shop prints?
Add an item to the cart and select a size and a frame. Then navigate to the shopping cart.
Continue shopping and browse the artists original work.
Add another item to the shopping cart and complete checkout.
After completing the order, contact the artist directly about commissioning a piece.
"It all looked great to me! Perhaps this was already on the site and I didn't notice because I didn't spend much time on it, but it might be worth considering adding a tab that would show where where Veronica may be exhibiting or selling her work, or where her murals are located if I wanted to see the work in real life. Or links to social media sites like IG to view more work and activities."
"The whole experience was very smooth and easy to navigate. Highly enjoyed looking at the art, and the website."
Prioritized Iterations
Made the top navigation touch zone bigger to avoid confusion or frustration.
Veronica and I already discussed adding a section on the website to list exhibitions she’s been featured in, as well as publications. Veronica is currently making a list and once we have this information it will be featured on the About page of her website.
Prototype
Next Steps & Future Considerations
Conclusion
Add reviews as they come so show customer testimonials and increase the sites credibility.
Add publications, exhibitions, and where the artist is selling her work.
Creating a SquareSpace website and adding Shopify.
Monitoring the analytics to refine the user experience further and ensure that the website continues to meet the evolving needs of both the artist and their audience.
My client was very happy with the test results and the final product. Our primary goal was to showcase and sell her work but also engage and captivate the audience. Through careful research, iterative design processes, and collaboration with the artist, we achieved a user-friendly website that truly reflects the artist’s new brand. Throughout this project I learned the importance of empathy-driven design, and the necessity of maintaining a cohesive brand identity.
Veronica Rose is a painter that graduated from the University of Redlands with a degree in Art & Activism. Her art reflects her search for truth, beauty, and freedom which is strongly influenced by women and their connection with nature. She originally created her website in 2015, and would now like a web redesign.
The Client
Veronica Rose
Bringing it All Together
Homepage: we kept this screen relatively simple in terms of content. Here Veronica introduces herself and talks about what inspires her work.
Product Details: after selecting a piece the customer will be directed to the product details which includes additional photos, a description of the artwork, and sizing and framing options to choose from.
Contact: this page allows the customer to reach out to the artist directly if they have any questions or if they’d like to commission a piece.
Homepage: from the homepage users will see glimpses of Veronica’s artwork along with option to shop available prints and originals.
About: when users navigate to the about tab, they will be able to read about the artist and their process. They will also be able to view sustainable pieces that she’s created but are not for sale.
veronicarose.com
Veronica Rose
veronicarose.com
Veronica Rose
veronicarose.com
Veronica Rose
veronicarose.com
veronicarose
Veronica Rose
veronicarose.com
Veronica Rose
