Redesigning a Background Check Website for Faster Task Completion
With 95% of employers conducting background checks, the market is set to reach $9 billion by 2030. As CROSS-CHECKS grew globally, it faced navigation issues from industry-wide UX/UI shortcomings and its transition. Through research and optimization, I improved the website. Achieved a 9x faster task completion time and reduced the abandonment rate from 20% to 0%.
My Roles
UX/UI designer
Tools
Figma, Procreate
Duration
Sep 2024 (4wks)
Project Focus
Website redesign
My Responsibility
- User interviews and usability testing
- Developed content and visual hierarchies
Problem
CROSS-CHECKS faces website navigation issues. Cluttered design, unclear information, unclear business identity, broken links, inconsistent design elements, typos, irrelevant content, and distracting animations collectively hinder user experience. Users had difficulty finding the services they needed due to these issues.
Solution
Enhanced visual hierarchy & providing intuitive navigation clues
Prioritized information based on both business goals and user needs
Eliminated distractions and created concise package service cards
Introduced intuitive navigation clues, backed by research on visual hierarchy and cognitive design principles
Scroll down to see my process
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Client Testimonial
Eliza M. CEO of CROSS-CHECKS
“Her thoughtful approach, asking the right questions, and doing deep research to truly understand my business, resulted in a website design that exceeded my expectations.“
A lack of transparency, unintuitive navigation, and cluttered design are key industry-wide shortcomings
Competitive analysis
I identified key global background check companies by leveraging research and client insights. My goal was to understand their business structures, service offerings, and information organization strategies to inform CROSS-CHECKS' transition to a global provider.
I aim to learn:
Pros and cons of their websites structure?
What kind of services do they offer?
Key findings:
Lack of transparency
Industry-wide issues include lack of transparency and disorganized content.
Inconsistent services
Companies offer dramatically inconsistent and varied services.
Testimonials needed
Global background check websites often use testimonials to build trust in these lesser-known services.
Personas
Both small business owners and busy corporate HRs need easy and efficient solutions
By combining user interviews and secondary research regarding background check service reviews and articles, I was able to create detailed personas which informed my design decisions: intuitive and efficient are keys.
Audit and 1st Usability Test
Moderated tests confirmed audit findings, revealing that navigation challenges led to user frustration. To ensure a diverse range of participants, I included 2 occasional users and 3 novice users from Canada, the UK, and the U.S. Lack of prominence on search function also hindered others from discovering it, causing some participants to abandon their tasks when asked to complete “drug test” navigation.
Hidden services & disorganized content resulted in a 20% user navigation task abandonment rate
I aim to learn:
Task completion time?
Current site feedback?
Navigation strategies?
Key findings:
Users rely on navigation menu for easy access to desired services and understand site functionality.
Users typically give up after 180 sec, with an average task completion time of 103 sec.
Users felt overwhelmed by cluttered content, irrelevant information, and excessive animations.
Next Steps:
Introduced navigation dropdowns
Built up visual hierarchy and eliminated distractions
Emphasized the service overview and testimonial to establish user trust for unfamiliar services
Added site-wide navigation for different countries
UI Kit Design
I preserved the original brand standards to maintain brand consistency, incorporated additional font sizes, weights, neutral colors to enhance content hierarchy and improve readability, and highlighted CTA with brand color.
Redesign Updates
1. Introduced navigation dropdowns, more prominent search bar, bolder CTA / hero session
Primary research found that users prefer dropdowns menu for finding desired items and learn the site functionality. This user-centric layout improves accessibility and efficiency in locating services.
Before
After
I redesigned the homepage featuring a service overview, followed by prominent testimonials, to foster user trust and confidence for unfamiliar services. This strategy ensures potential customers can efficiently explore the services and gain confidence through the positive experiences of other users.
2. Eliminated distractions
Before
After
3. Restructured homepage, featuring service overview and establish user trust for unfamiliar services
I removed unnecessary distractions, animations, and irrelevant information. I also created concise package service cards that allow users to quickly find and understand the most essential information without going to another page.
Starting with the process overview
Adding testimonials
Site-wide country switcher
4. Added site-wide navigation for different countries
Site-wide navigation for various countries enabling quick access to information based on location-specific needs.
Before
After
5. Site-wide country switcher vs. filters: options for future adaptation
Due to technical constraints, a site-wide switcher wasn’t feasible during the project, so the developer and I opted to implement filters on service pages as a temporary solution.
Before
Filters
2nd Usability Test
I conducted a comparative user evaluation with 5 users. By measuring task completion times and gathering feedback on website design and navigation, I gauged the effectiveness of the implemented changes and identified any remaining areas for improvement.
😃
5/5 users complete the “finding drug test screening” task within 6 sec, 9 times faster, compared to 20% abandonment rate.
5/5 of users think the visual design is improved with comfortable spacing and proper information hierarchy.
😃
5/5 users think it’s easier to navigate with a much more intuitive navigation, clear instructions, and a concise service overview.
😃
1/5 of the users think the new design still lacks enough information and a clear CTA.
😠
Prototype
Final Thoughts
Post-implementation UX metrics recommendations
I recommended the following criteria for future iterations after design implementation:
Task completion time and rate: Track task completion rates and times for key actions, such as plan purchases and specific information searches, to identify potential navigation or clarity issues affecting user success.
Bounce rate: Track the percentage of users who leave the site after viewing only one page, which could signal confusion or irrelevant content.
User satisfaction scores: Collect user feedback through surveys or questionnaires to gauge overall satisfaction with the website experience.
Conversion rate: Measure the percentage of users who complete a desired action, such as signing up for a plan or making a purchase.
What I accomplished
Identified critical areas for improvement on the website including cluttered design, unclear information, inconsistent design elements, irrelevant content, and distracting animations to improve user navigation.
Revitalized brand visuals by transitioning from a traditional to a contemporary design, focusing on optimizing information hierarchy, enhancing spatial layout, and curating impactful imagery.
Optimized the website, resulting in a 9x faster task completion time and reducing the abandonment rate from 20% to 0% during the drug test navigation task (based on results from 5 users).
Improvement and Reflection
From this experience, I learned the importance of proactively identifying clients' unspoken needs and leveraging tools like AI and competitor analysis to gain a deeper understanding of their industry standing earlier in the process. Moving forward, I aim to explore the ethical implications of AI in the background check industry, ensuring the responsible and ethical use of technology. Additionally, I recognize the need for clearer primary calls-to-action (CTAs) and a more defined business direction to enhance strategic decision-making. Balancing CROSS-CHECKS' global expansion with a seamless transition remains a priority as I continue refining processes and fostering sustainable growth.
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