Creating Buzz for Urban Bees

Our research focused on what we could do to improve accessibility, increase member engagement, and satisfy organizational needs. I was the point person on conducting the heuristic and accessibility analysis while my teammates conducted research on the target audience and met with a representative of the organization.

Heuristic Analysis

The primary problems I identified with the original website were a lack of cohesive styling and issues with readability against their choice of a large photo background. The specific points I identified were:

• Unstyled links are difficult to read.
• Lack of consistent spacing on the logo.
• Highlighted photos blend into the photo background.
• Some site architecture is hidden under a drop down menu.
• Header fonts are used inconsistently.
• Overall cluttered feeling, too much information for the homepage.

Target Audience Surveys

We wanted to find out what the average urban beekeeper wanted out of a local beekeeping organization. My team members developed a survey and found amateur and professional beekeepers to participate through social media. We found they valued:

• Ease of accessibility to educational resources.
• Community events and organizing.
• A place to sell their products and buy beekeeping gear.

Stakeholder Insight

Talking to the PMBA communicator revealed that they were more concerned about current member experience than gaining new members, contrary to our assumptions. They noted interest in a public online storefront and member forum, both elements of interest by survey respondents as well. They reported that their member base is older and may struggle with technology, but wants to encourage digital engagement. We used this information to then determine what our design priorities would be.

The end goal of this project was a fully functional high-fidelity prototype of the website redesign. We built the prototype with our design goals and standard practice for modern responsive websites in mind. My primary responsibilities were building the navigation structure and the educational resources pages of the prototype.

Navigation

First Iteration

Final Iteration

My intention in building the website navigation was to create a structure that was clear and easy-to-use. We wanted to highlight the group’s “Swarm Hotline” service that connects beekeepers with the general public to remove swarms, so I added a colored dot to be able to easily tell whether the service is currently available. I used a honeycomb pattern over the header and footer to keep the intention of the original site’s photo background but prevent the design from looking overcrowded.

Expanding Honeycombs

First Iteration

Final Iteration

We wanted to create an interactive graphic to display organization information to promote engagement instead of simply listing out the organization’s priorities. I created this graphic using honeycomb imagery to maintain the theme of the website, so each hexagon could be clicked and expanded to display information. We started simple and then built the graphic into a working prototype that saved page space and made the information fun to interact with!

We performed user testing to validate that the design we created achieved our initial redesign goals. Each of our team members conducted one-on-one usability testing interviews and I helped create an AB testing survey to gain further insight on our design choices.

Final Thoughts

Although I would not go about redesigning a site this way again, I like what we came up with and am proud of the work I produced. This was a good experience for me in terms of having realistic development expectations and learning to prioritize organizational needs over aesthetics or user needs. If I were to work on this project again, I would:

• Consult with the website developer and find out what changes are realistic.
• Look into the organization’s other branding materials and stay true to their existing aesthetics.
• Perform user research and testing directly with organization members.
• Develop further accessibility materials.

Of everything I worked on, I am most proud of the logo design I created for this project. I think it captures meaning in a simple design and would scale well on merchandise. I am thankful for the wonderful team I worked with and hope to find helpful, curious, and courteous team members like them again in the future.