top of page
I used the UX Design process to create a LinkedIn creative feature.This is a full length UX research project.
Role and Team
3 Members
My Role - Research Lead
Skills
Heuristic evaluations, Competitive and Comparative analysis, User Interviews, Affinity Mapping, Key findings, User Personas, Journey Map, A/B Testing, User flows, Wireflows, Wireframes, prototyping, Usability Testing.
Tools
Figma, Figjam, JIRA
The Challenge
Within 2 weeks we had to come up with a feature that enables makers to effectively showcase their work, incorporating projects, retaining their personal branding and other relevant content, all within the LinkedIn platform, and without the need for external portfolio platforms.
Design Process
Objective
The aim is to draw attention to the shortcomings of Linkedin as a job search platform for those in creative, technical and craft-based fields, and to suggest the need for a feature that enables users to display their projects more visually engaging and showcase their work on their terms.
Additionally the goal is to accommodate the younger generation of job seekers who are keen on presenting themselves beyond traditional resumes such as projects, rich media and personal branding.
Impact
-
Improved User Experience
-
Enhanced Functionality
-
Improved Visibility
-
Increased Engagement and Interaction
-
Privacy
Solution
Our decision was to create a portfolio feature that was driven by the desire to allow users to seamlessly integrate their portfolio on LinkedIn in an aesthetically pleasing manner, while also providing the opportunity to showcase their personal branding.
We aimed to enhance the feature's functionality by incorporating interactivity through the addition of teammates and comment sections. In addition, we prioritized the user's privacy by offering them the choice to selectively share their portfolio with specific group of people.
Research Phase
Understanding Existing LinkedIn Features
Heuristic Evaluation
To evaluate the pluses and deficiencies of existing LinkedIn features, we conducted heuristic evaluations. For easier identification we color-coded violations using green for good, lavender for memorability, orange for satisfaction, yellow for learnability and red for efficiency.
Key takeaway -
-
There are numerous features on LinkedIn that are either hidden or difficult to locate, leading to poor learnability and memorability.
Understanding Market
Competitive & Comparative Analysis
Competitive Analysis
To identify similar capability of the competitors we choose -
-
Upwork and Indeed.
Comparative Analysis
Key takeaway -
-
Even though LinkedIn offers a comprehensive set of features, we discovered that Upwork’s portfolio feature is particularly valuable for freelancers as it enables them to showcase their work directly.
-
Indeed is more like a large database of job listings
Key takeaway -
As these applications share several similar features such as the ability to create a user profile, establish personal branding and produce interactive content, we choose -
-
TikTok and Instagram
-
Instagram and TikTok allow users to be more creative and have a broader audience reach as a result of their algorithm.
We proceeded with performing a thorough Element Analysis,Task Analysis, Pluses and Deltas and Feature Inventory. Through this we gained valuable insights that include -
-
LinkedIn already has most of the features users require, so any new features should be targeted towards specific user groups without disrupting the experience for users.
-
Sometimes portfolios may have password protected projects due to non-disclosure agreements, and it’s essential to include these passwords in the application along with the project.
Understanding the Users
After gaining a better understanding of the market, now we want to gain a better understanding of LinkedIn users.
We conducted User Interviews across three categories: Portfolio, LinkedIn and Recruitment.
Following the user interviews, we conducted affinity mapping to identify common pain points and key findings.
Key Findings
-
Users in creative fields prioritize their personal branding and aesthetics, carefully curating their online presence to stand out and reinforce their credibility.
-
Users prefer the grid format of Instagram and TikTok for showcasing portfolios because it offers an easy and quick way to browse through content.
-
Users prefer to include just enough information on their LinkedIn profiles for recruiters to understand their background while linking to their portfolio URL on their profile or resume.
During our user interview process we came across several intriguing quotes by the users that provided valuable insights. Here are a few -
Define Phase
User Personas
Primary & Secondary Personas
Screen Shot 2023-07-31 at 2.51.30 PM
Screen Shot 2023-07-31 at 2.51.23 PM
Screen Shot 2023-07-31 at 2.51.30 PM
1/2
In addition to our primary persona, we also developed a secondary persona whose primary objectives align with or are similar to our primary persona that is enhancing visibility and discoverability.
The main difference between our primary and secondary personas is that our secondary persona is passively open to job opportunities and requires a means to showcase their skills and experience. Additionally, they seek greater control over the information displayed on their user profile.
Empathize
To empathize and gain deeper understanding of the needs of our users, we developed a journey map that allowed us to walk in user’s shoes and experience the range of emotions users feel as they go through this process.
Problem Space and Opportunity
After thorough research and synthesizing our research information I want to further emphasize on our problem statement at hand -
Ezra needs a way to showcase his current portfolio and highlight his design skills on Linkedin because he wants to demonstrate his expertise to potential recruiters and his network.
Ideate
Moving into the process we created How Might We statements to ideate and with the help of divergent thinking come up with as many solutions as we can as a team.
-
How might we make it easy for Ezra to integrate his current portfolio website layouts into his LinkedIn profile?
-
How might we allow Ezra to customize his LinkedIn to align with his personality, personal branding, and aesthetics?
-
How might we help Ezra build meaningful connections with those who share his interests and offer him insights and advice?
We created almost 40 How Might We questions as a team and tried to brainstorm ideas next to each How Might We.
Design Phase
New Feature Description -
We created a portfolio feature on LinkedIn to help users showcase their personal branding in a visually appealing way. The feature includes interactivity through teammates and comments, and users can control and choose who to share their portfolio with.
After having defined the features we created the initial task flows -
User Flows
Wireflows & Wireframes
A/B testing
During our A/B testing, we aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of different placements for the "Add Featured Portfolio" option and determine the level of user convenience in utilizing this feature compared to the current design.
Version A
Version B
A/B Test Results -
Our findings revealed that Version B was the preferred option among all users due to its efficiency, simplicity, and ease of navigation. As opposed to the existing add featured option which is tucked away and hard to learn.
Prototype
-
LinkedIn Creative now allows users to integrate their portfolio onto their profile
-
Users can add a link, brief description, and images to their portfolio
-
Tags can be included to increase discoverability
-
Users can control the visibility of their portfolio
-
Appearance customization options are available, including the ability to change the background color
-
Multiple projects can be added to the portfolio.
-
By adding a teammates feature and a comment section, we can enhance project collaboration and increase overall interaction.
-
Once integrated onto the user's LinkedIn profile, alongside other featured items, this is how the feature will appear with the portfolio and projects fully incorporated.
Test
Usability Testing
After the high-fidelity prototype was finalized, I wrote a usability test guide. I then recruited participants who are current users of LinkedIn.
Test Goal -
-
Discover the user's process in the decision-making phase of adding the portfolio feature.
-
Discover how the user uses the customization options that are available in the portfolio feature.
Key Finding of the test -
-
The “Customize Appearance” option was overlooked.
-
Users click on the “Add profile section” before seeing the plus icon
-
Users who didn’t have a creative portfolio weren’t sure if they could use this feature to showcase their projects.
Next Steps
-
Add a color indicator next to the “customize appearance” button to indicate selected color.
-
Adding a prompt to notify users that they have this new feature to add a portfolio while making the plus icon more obvious by changing its color.
-
Allowing users to add their portfolio via the “Add profile section” button as well.
-
Creating more informative graphics and copy in the featured section to show different content that can be added.
Conclusion
While working on this project I learned to really trust the research and discovery process.
Through this new feature we hope to make it easier for creative people to integrate and showcase their work while retaining their personal branding and aesthetics.
bottom of page