Adlish
Redesigning the MVP
Summary
TEAM
CEO/Founder 2 Engineers 1 Product Designer
TIMELINE
Sept 22’ - Feb ’23
CONTEXT
Adlish is a startup that aims to provide ads personalized to the user in a centralized location. The purpose of this project is to redesign the existing MVP to align with the mission statement, which emphasizes creating a user-friendly, transparent, and entertaining app.
TOOLS
Figma Notion
MY ROLE
As the sole Product designer on this project, I:
Conducted 15 user interviews and 15 rounds of usability testing
Codified data to analyze and find main pain points
Created wireframes and mid/hi-fi prototypes
Produced final UI/visual design
Collaborated cross-functionally with stakeholders and team
Background
Let’s just say, I had my doubts about this product…
After launching their MVP in 2020, Adlish faced limited traction, recognizing the need for a redesign. The initial MVP, primarily developer-designed, lacked thoughtful research and consideration in design decisions.
Despite my skepticism about using an app solely for scrolling through personalized ads, I approached the opportunity with an open mind, acknowledging that there might be a user base with different preferences than my own.
Driven by motivation and curiosity, I took a risk and joined the team, and asked: "How might we improve the user experience of Adlish to better support user engagement and user retention?"
Solution
Sufficient Product Information
User is able to swipe through multiple images and is given a short description of the product so they can make a quick decision about whether they want to click and learn more.
Simplified Onboarding
The onboarding screens are few and concise. Users are prompted to select their preferences so that when they begin using the app, the already have a personalized feed (instead of having to manually select preferences later).
The icon of the screen the user is on is bolded to remind the user where they are as they navigate the app.
Personalized Content
The categories the user selects in their preferences will align with the posts that show up. The user is made aware of this because the selected icons shows up next to each post that pops up in their feed.
Nav Bar Improved
Navigation icons are clear and easy to understand. Discover & Search screens merged for a more seamless experience.
Process
1. Research
1.1 Evaluating the Product
I conducted an evaluation of the current experience. This allowed me to understand the app layout as well as any errors that were present.
The Current user flow has several errors, a few of which are:
at certain points, the user cannot go back if they need to
The onboarding is unnecessarily long
Setting preferences for the feed is not part of the initial sign on - users have to go in and manually select preferences
Pop ups come up at inappropriate times
1.2 Competitive Analysis
To better understand the market, I analyzed apps that have similar concepts to Adlish to see what features they incorporated and what needs to improve in Adlish to be up to par to these popular apps. Specifically, I looked into the visual design and the ease of use when navigating the app.
Key Takeaways:
these apps allowed users to conveniently save certain posts in an organized manner
clean user interfaces, focusing more on visuals than on text
can share within app to encourage staying on it
1.3 Usability Testing & User Interviews
Despite it being difficult to recruit individuals who matched the target audience, I was able to conduct 13 (1 hour long), in depth interviews. I first had them download the app and complete a series of tasks, followed by interviewing them about their experience. All of the notes were collected on a notion page. Click here to view.
Usability Testing Goals
Understand gaps in user flow
Identify pain points users are facing
User Interview Goals
Identify what prompts a user to go on an app like Adlish
Identify what users like about competitor apps
Discover what keeps users coming back
Some Questions that Produced Insight
2. Research Synthesis
2.1 Codifying the Data
After collecting all the data, I organized it in charts and codified it based on recurring themes I was finding. This gave me a good idea of the number of times a particular theme came up. Click here to view full analysis.
2.2 Extracting Key Insights
Distrust due to Outdated UI
Users feel an aversion and lack of trust towards the app because the UI gives off a very outdated feel, making them not inclined to return to it.
"Buttons are too small - giant link is so ugly".
"I didn't feel like staying on the app for too long, the visuals seemed dated; not sure what it is supposed to do for me".
Users feel frustrated and a lack of trust in the app because they do not feel their feed is personalized despite that being the the main purpose of Adlish.
"I set my preferences however the ads I am getting are not my style".
"I updated my ad preferences, but ketchup still shows up".
Lack of Personalization of Ads
Unintuitive User Flow
Several points of confusion repeatedly came up, indicating that layout of the screens is not intuitive for the users and needs to be altered.
For example, “Ad Preferences” are not required to be chosen when signing up for the app, so the initial feed is random.
"What is the difference between my feed and my ads, instead of my ads, maybe it should be called "saved".
Users wanted more information about the product instantly at first glance. They didn’t have the patience to watch a 10 second video if they were not sure they are interested in the product or not.
"It is hard to tell what is interesting because I don't know what the product is; “weiner stampede - hot dog?” There is no title of the product - just says name of video".
Insufficient Amount of Initial Information
Design Solution
Starting with Wireframe Sketches
During the brainstorming and sketching phase, I identified all the steps the user would need to take in the onboarding stage in order to have a feed catered to them specifically.
First Design Iteration & Addressing Key Insights
After creating the initial wireframes, I created the hi-fidelity mockups, addressing the insights I derived from the research phase.
Key Insight 1 : Distrust Due to Outdated UI
From the interviews, it was clear that the outdated look of the app built an aversion within users to return to it. Many mentioned that the colors were off-putting and the overall look was very "boxy".
Analyzing New User Insights
After our first high fidelity iteration, I conducted a round of usability testing with 5 potential users. The usability testing produced the following key findings, from which I identified opportunity areas for design improvements.
Key Findings:
Users were not sure of what page they were on at times
Users still felt like they didn’t know enough about the product despite the short description and brand name.
Many users tried clicking on elements with drop shadows
Blue font was slightly hard to read
Final Hi-Fidelity Designs
The following are iterations that were made on the final designs:
Depending on which page the user is on, the corresponding icon is highlighted in the navigation bar to clarify to the user what page they are on
Font color changed to black
The user has the option to swipe through multiple pictures/even videos of the product on their feed to give them more information to decide whether they want to click on it
Usage of drop shadows was reduced to only when a user is able to click on element.
Solution:
Create icons that are associated with each category in "Preferences". All ad posts are associated with one of those icons so that when users see a post, they see that the ad is related to the preferences they selected. Ads also get saved in categories based on these icons.
Key Insight 2 : Lack of Personalization
Adlish is advertised as an app that provides ads personalized to each user. Considering this, many users were disappointed when they found posts showing up on their feed that didn't seem interesting to them at all.
Solution:
New color palette: The stakeholders wanted the redesign of the app to look professional, clean, and welcoming. Blue gives off a sense of tech and innovation, makes the product seem trustworthy, and is liked unanimously.
The overall look is very minimal and everything has rounded corners so that it is softer on the eyes.
The design of the sharing icon was made to reflect what users are used to across apps and icons were synchronized.
Solution:
Adlish now requires users to select preferences when they are signing up so that their feed reflects that right off the bat. This allows them to start their Adlish experience viewing they prefer, so that their interest is peaked right away. The search and discover tabs have been merged because they intuitively go together.
Key Insight 3 : Unintuitive User Flow
When conducting usability testing, many users would express frustration about certain hindrances in the UX, for example: too many onboarding screens that were confusing, having to look for ad preferences yourself once logged in, the pop-up about enjoying the app.
Solution:
Provide the name of the brand and the name of the product, as well as a short but clear description of the item.
Key Insight 3 : Insufficient Amount of Initial Information
Many users felt that there was an insufficient amount of information given at first glance. They didn't know what exactly the product was and really did not want to watch the 10 minute long video. This created frustration within them and discourages them from returning to the app. Users are used to being given instant information, and Adlish did not reflect that.
Project Takeaways
Ultimately, after delivering my work to the team, the conclusion was reached that there was no product-market fit, and the project ended.
Here is what I learned during this process:
Trust my gut. Although it openness and curiosity are driving factors of innovation, sometimes, it is important to trust your intuition when you have doubts about a product.
If a product is not solving a crucial problem or need, it will not succeed no matter how amazing the user experience is.
Several iterations of usability testing need to occur before building an MVP - this startup did not do this.
Conducting thorough research to make well informed design decisions is crucial
An unsuccessful project doesn’t mean it was a waste of time, it was an opportunity for learning.