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g2x

G2Xchange delivers community-driven solutions and insight intended to meet the needs of the busy Federal executive charged with growth. G2X platforms provide comprehensive and timely news and intelligence, organized by agencies and capabilities.

G2Xchange delivers community-driven solutions and insight intended to meet the needs of the busy Federal executive charged with growth. G2X platforms provide comprehensive and timely news and intelligence, organized by agencies and capabilities.

User Research | Usability Testing | Interaction DesignInformation Architecture | Design System 

Made using Figma, Miro, Dovetail, and Illustrator.

about

This project is the first of many changes to happen at G2X, which wants to move in the direction of becoming a SaaS product, instead of a blog-style information source. G2X has been an important source of knowledge of all things GovCon and wants to propel itself into the future while providing its users with the best technology and intelligence it can.

This project is the first of many changes to happen at G2X, which wants to move in the direction of becoming a SaaS product, instead of a blog-style information source. G2X has been an important source of knowledge of all things GovCon and wants to propel itself into the future while providing its users with the best technology and intelligence it can.

my role

As a part of a team of 5, consisting of 4 designers and 1 researcher, we all had to work together to work effectively and as efficiently as possible. Besides working with my design team, we worked hand in hand with a product manager and the product owner. We also had weekly meetings with the developers to make sure our designs could be implemented. My work mainly consisted of research, designing, and prototyping.

As a part of a team of 5, consisting of 4 designers and 1 researcher, we all had to work together to work effectively and as efficiently as possible. Besides working with my design team, we worked hand in hand with a product manager and the product owner. We also had weekly meetings with the developers to make sure our designs could be implemented. My work mainly consisted of research, designing, and prototyping.

design challenges

A big challenge for this project was not having complete creative control. Because this was just step one in a long journey that included a rebrand in the future, we didn't have much creative freedom when it came to our designs. Also, in order not to shock and deter current users, we had to design with them in mind - so as much as we wanted to pivot from the 2004-style blog in place, we had to remind ourselves that we were just giving G2X a slight makeover.

A big challenge for this project was not having complete creative control. Because this was just step one in a long journey that included a rebrand in the future, we didn't have much creative freedom when it came to our designs. Also, in order not to shock and deter current users, we had to design with them in mind - so as much as we wanted to pivot from the 2004-style blog in place, we had to remind ourselves that we were just giving G2X a slight makeover.

the problem

For years, prospective G2X users had to rely on word-of-mouth marketing to find out what a platform like G2X could offer them. It was especially hard for small businesses and newcomers to learn about the platform because no landing page existed. With the world of government contracting being so complicated and inaccessible, we didn't want our users to experience the same while using our platform. We had to find a way to display all the things that G2X offered in an easy-to-digest way. We also had to find a way to make setting up a free trial or new account frictionless.

the problem

For years, prospective G2X users had to rely on word-of-mouth marketing to find out what a platform like G2X could offer them. It was especially hard for small businesses and newcomers to learn about the platform because no landing page existed. With the world of government contracting being so complicated and inaccessible, we didn't want our users to experience the same while using our platform. We had to find a way to display all the things that G2X offered in an easy-to-digest way. We also had to find a way to make setting up a free trial or new account frictionless.

G2X's original landing page - just a page that led to either of our platforms.

user personas

These personas were built after a 2-week research sprint where we interviewed current G2X users spanning different job descriptions including C-Level Executives, Business Developers, and Capture Professionals. We also completed a thorough competitive analysis, combing through our direct and indirect competitors. Additionally, we held numerous stakeholder interviews to ensure that our designs were aligned with user needs as well as business needs. 

As newcomers in the field of Government Contracting, our team also used G2X's invaluable insights to learn all that goes into making a proposal and then bidding for a government contract. We learned that it is a highly competitive industry, where knowing every facet of an RFI or RFP is crucial - hundreds of thousands of dollars (even millions!) - could be at stake. 

Bringing this information to the forefront and making it accessible to our users is a driving force behind our design decisions. Browsing and navigating through government websites like Sam.gov is like pulling teeth - it takes hours if you don't know what you're looking for and it's just painful.

ideation

Our research consisted of user interviews and user testing. We also had our users participate in card sorting activities. It was through those card sorting activities that we were able to get amazing insights into how exactly our users use G2X on a daily basis.

​​These insights were able to inform our design decisions and let us know what our users actually want and use, and in turn, use that to design for prospective users. 

Priority matrix completed by a G2X user

Card sorting exercise

wireframes

Various iterations of the landing page were tested among current users and stakeholders. Each testing session resulted in numerous ideas and things to change, keep, or get rid of. One thing that I love about designing is that it always keeps you on your toes. Your design can look one way today and look totally different tomorrow. In total, we had at least 20 different iterations of the landing page in total. The final landing page is a culmination of that collaborative effort.

responsive design

Through user testing, we discovered that a good percentage of our users access G2X through mobile devices such as tablets and smartphones. As the main product page is not yet fully optimized for responsive design, we decided to start with the landing page. ​

My teammates and I led the effort for responsive design. To ensure that we were designing for the correct screens, we utilized the Figma Mirror app to mirror our designs. I love to see a live preview of my design at all times so using the Figma Mirror app was a lifesaver.​

Our responsive designs were then tested amongst our users.

Through user testing, we discovered that a good percentage of our users access G2X through mobile devices such as tablets and smartphones. As the main product page is not yet fully optimized for responsive design, we decided to start with the landing page. ​

My teammates and I led the effort for responsive design. To ensure that we were designing for the correct screens, we utilized the Figma Mirror app to mirror our designs. I love to see a live preview of my design at all times so using the Figma Mirror app was a lifesaver.​

Our responsive designs were then tested amongst our users.

final product

aligning the team

While working concurrently with our landing page project, I spearheaded getting our design system into place and documented. Since we were the first design team at G2X, no other design system was in place so we had to make sure that we had one for the future. 

Having a design system in place makes everyone on the design team's lives easier because everything is documented and implemented within our Figma library. This design system will also make onboarding new designers easier because our design system answers a ton of questions.

​A pet peeve of mine is a messy Figma file. Setting up a clean and functional Figma file from the get-go definitely avoids headaches down the road. 

next steps

The next phase of our project was to take the legacy platform and to convert it into a fully customizable and user-friendly dashboard. Each dashboard would be tailored to each of our users through an initial onboarding session and would populate with widgets according to their use case. 

To come up with these initial designs, we spent about a 2 week sprint researching and interviewing users. While these are preliminary designs, they showcase a culmination of about 3 months of work.

Many exciting things are in the works for our users at G2X! I'm so excited to see where this journey takes us.

thank you!

Thank you for reading this case study. I feel really proud of the work that I accomplished at G2X! 

Feedback and comments are always welcome so please feel free to get in touch!

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© 2024 melissa neira