ISA – International Seabed Authority, Jamaica

ISA is an intergovernmental organization established by the United Nations to organize and control all mineral-related activities in the seabed area which covers 70 percent of the world’s surface and where portions of which contain mineral deposits in richer concentrations than those available on land.

What was done:

UX Research through an individual consultation contract.

Our work was done remotely; our meetings on Skype and documentation on google docs.

Check ISA’s website here.

Client Brief

ISA’s Strategic Plan: ISA was to release a new strategic plan draft in 2019-2023. It is a landmark document and a key tool for the transparent and accountable governance and leadership of the Authority.

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ISA’s Website: The site is one big part of their document in which it is a key element in accenting the role of the authority in controlling the globe’s seabed and enhancing transparency of their governance.

Scope

The project was completed in July 2019 after almost a month of UX research work. We did a deep UX research (Phase 1), then defined our personas, design problems and suggested solutions (Phase 2).

Deliverables

UX-Brief
Benchmarking report
Heuristics report
Personas report
UX-Blueprint (A holistic UX report gathering all research insights)

Phase 1: Explore Phase 2: Define

Phase 1: Explore

Benchmarking | Heuristics

Benchmarking Analysis

The analysis was done for 5 international organizations: World Wildlife Fund – WWF , Greenpeace, International Maritime Organization – IMO, International Union for Conservation of Nature – IUCN, United Nations – UN.

Use-cases

An individual analysis was done for the above mentioned organizations over each of the following use-cases:

Hunt mode: Find specific technical information, tools & resources.

Explore mode: Explore the authority’s structure, strategic directions and work activities.

Research mode: Search for general / scientific information.

Usability Metrics

The benchmarking procedure was done by comparing processes and performance metrics in relation to measurable UX metrics, including:

Look & Feel, Information quantity & relevance, Information structure & layout, Ease of access, Ease of use, Familiar terminology, Mobile friendliness.

Benchmarking Insights

We were able to get many insights when researching the websites of the above mentioned organizations, below are the most important.

Navigation menus for large sites

Large websites with good navigation menus managed to limit the primary menu to few items which helps the user decide on the starting point.

User’s control over navigation

Using mega-menus, sub-menus and sidebars are good aids for easier navigation. Also, breadcrumbs and sitemaps are essential on large websites.

User’s digestion of information

Displaying large amounts of text and long paragraphs seems to be a common problem in most of the studied websites.

Openness and Closeness

It is important to facilitate openness in their communication in order to keep closeness in the relationship with their audience.

Heuristics Analysis

The analysis was conducted on ISA’s website interface taking into account the ‘user’s perspective’ at its core to identify usability and design problems along the user-interface.

Use-cases

The heuristics analysis is conducted on ISA’s website interface upon the main ‘use cases’, which are the common tasks that the user performs:

Hunt mode: Find specific technical information, tools & resources.

Explore mode: Explore the authority’s structure, strategic directions and work activities.

Research mode: Search for general / scientific information.

Usability Metrics

The heuristics procedure was done identifying usability issues related to the following measurable UX metrics:

Look & Feel, Information quantity & relevance, Information structure & layout, Ease of access, Ease of use, Familiar terminology, Mobile friendliness.

Heuristics Insights

It is noticeable that the Authority, in an attempt to achieve the highest level of transparency, has made sure to make all useful information, tools and resources available on its site. But having this load of information in an unorganized environment makes it almost impossible for users to find their needed information. Below are top usability problems the ISA site has:

Large website navigation

Overload of crammed links in the menu.
Main menu lacks hierarchy of its primary elements.
No use of breadcrumbs on the site.
Footer does not offer a site-map.

Information architecture

Overwhelming homepage.
Illogical classification of information by pages, sub-pages and sections.
Long ‘walls of text’.
Lack of contextual information.

Catering for all users

The use of an unfamiliar terminology.
Lack of a friendly tone of voice, especially in research mode.
Inconsistency in wording.

Look & feel / Aesthetics

Lack of consistency in UI design.
lack of hierarchical classification.
Poor treatment of typography.
Inefficient use of space.
Very little use of images/videos.

Phase 2: Define

Personas | Design Problems | Content Challenges

Personas

The table below displays the different characteristics of seven personas developed for ISA’s website. They are the different types of people who visit their website.

Goals	Frustrations	Opportunity
Personas Table Legend

1. The State Representative

Inquire on colleague representatives \| Fetch useful information on annual sessions \| Read the authority’s news and updates
Time consuming; very tight on schedule \| Hard time finding needed information
Provide them ease of access

2. The Observer

Acquire information on ISA’s activities and ongoing projects with contractors \| Fetch useful documents and check the secretary general’s bulletin
Unpleasant experience \| Hard time fetching specific needed information
Give them the ability to subscribe

3. The Contractor

Inquire on colleague contractors & observers \| Fetch useful information and regulations \| Read the authority’s news and updates
Hard time navigating the site \| Fetching useful information \| Information irrelevance
Give them relevant contextual information

4. The Media Reporter

Understand ISA’s role \| Explore the authority’s activities, projects, news and publications \| Fetch for glitches and hot topics
Gathering pieces of information from different areas of the site \| Contacting ISA through their website
Provide them with a hot topic right-away

5. The Researcher

Get information on ISA’s strategic plan \| Read technical studies and proceedings for different minerals \| Read newsletters and publications
Hard time finding exclusive information \| Searching information is time-consuming
Facilitate fast skimming of information

6. The Student

Discover ISA’s formation and understand its purpose and role \| Learn about the importance of our seabed and the challenges facing humanity
Busy and looking bad \| Hard time comprehending information and terminology
Provide them easy terminology and pleasant look & feel

7. The Job Seeker

Check job vacancies at ISA \| Understand the application process and its time-frame \| Understand the Authority’s foundation, structure, rules and regulations
Sophisticated application form \| Follow-up on their application \| Loosing progress every time the application process is interrupted
Make the application process simple and intermittent

PERSONA’S PERSONAL INFORMATION

The below diagram shows the profile images, personal information and statements for each persona

Tap/hover on a number to see persona’s personal information

PERSONA MATRIX

The below diagram shows the distribution of the personas on a matrix of x, y & z axes, in relation to their mindset when navigating through ISA’s website: Explore (x-axis), Research (y-axis) & Hunt (z-axis)

Tap/hover on a number to see single persona’s mindset

Goals	Frustrations	Opportunity
Personas Table Legend

1. The State Representative	2. The Observer
Inquire on colleague representatives \| Fetch useful information on annual sessions \| Read the authority’s news and updates	Acquire information on ISA’s activities and ongoing projects with contractors \| Fetch useful documents and check the secretary general’s bulletin
Time consuming; very tight on schedule \| Hard time finding needed information	Unpleasant experience \| Hard time fetching specific needed information
Provide them ease of access	Give them the ability to subscribe

3. The Contractor	4. The Media Reporter
Inquire on colleague contractors & observers \| Fetch useful information and regulations \| Read the authority’s news and updates	Understand ISA’s role \| Explore the authority’s activities, projects, news and publications \| Fetch for glitches and hot topics
Hard time navigating the site \| Fetching useful information \| Information irrelevance	Gathering pieces of information from different areas of the site \| Contacting ISA through their website
Give them relevant contextual information	Provide them with a hot topic right-away

5. The Researcher	6. The Student
Get information on ISA’s strategic plan \| Read technical studies and proceedings for different minerals \| Read newsletters and publications	Discover ISA’s formation and understand its purpose and role \| Learn about the importance of our seabed and the challenges facing humanity
Hard time finding exclusive information \| Searching information is time-consuming	Busy and looking bad \| Hard time comprehending information and terminology
Facilitate fast skimming of information	Provide them easy terminology and a pleasant look & feel

7. The Job Seeker
Check job vacancies at ISA \| Understand the application process and its time-frame \| Understand the Authority’s foundation, structure, rules and regulations
Sophisticated application form \| Follow-up on their application \| Loosing progress every time the application process is interrupted
Make the application process simple and intermittent

PERSONA’S PERSONAL INFORMATION

The below diagram shows the profile images, personal information and statements for each persona

Tap/hover on a number to see persona’s personal information

PERSONA MATRIX

Tap/hover on a number to see single persona’s mindset

Design Problems

In the explore phase, our research helped us define our design problems, below are the most critical problem ISA needed to tackle on their website.

1. Navigation Problem

Busy navigation menu

The primary menu is overloaded with primary elements that are not all of high significance. Tap on the image to enlarge

The primary menu is overloaded with primary elements that are not all of high significance.

ISA’s website is relatively big with numerous pages, sub-pages and sections. Limiting the primary menu to few items makes it easier for the user to decide on the starting point. But doing so yields larger lists of sub-pages and deeper levels of categories.

2. Information Architecture Problem

Long ‘walls’ of text

Example of long ‘walls of text’. Tap on the image to enlarge

Example of long ‘walls of text’.

The website presents a huge amount of content which is tricky when it comes to displaying information in an easy-to-read manner. ISA made a common mistake of presenting all available information in long paragraphs which makes it hard to skim and time-consuming.

3. Communication Problem

Unfamiliar terminology

Confusing menu links, especially that they fall under ‘activities’. Tap on the image to enlarge

Confusing menu links, especially that they fall under ‘activities’.

Many page-titles and headings fail to invite the user to read; it is due to the use of technical-oriented terms. Which ends up being a hassle for users to understand and find their wanted information, especially a student researcher.

Content Challenges

ISA produces a large amount of content every day, from news, publications and events to general resources, internal and legal documents. Producing online content comes with heavy challenges they should consider when publishing on their website. I presented those challenges along with good reads and web-articles to educate their team.

1. Content Consumption

Keeping balance between content demand and production.

2. Content Management

Delivering the right content at the right time for the right audience.

3. Content Production

Development, planning, creation and delivery of content.

4. Tone of Voice

Consistent use of a well-thought through voice that resonates.

What they say

A huge amount of excellent work involved and significant efforts Rayan has made to deliver such qualitative reports. The overall results are extremely interesting and will certainly be extremely useful to us.

Marie Bourrel Mckinnon Senior Policy Officer and Special Assistant to the Secretary-General, ISA

ISA – International Seabed Authority, Jamaica

Client Brief

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Scope

Deliverables

Phase 1: Explore

Benchmarking Analysis

Use-cases

Usability Metrics

Benchmarking Insights

Heuristics Analysis

Use-cases

Usability Metrics

Heuristics Insights

Phase 2: Define

Personas

Personas Table Legend

1. The State Representative

2. The Observer

3. The Contractor

4. The Media Reporter

5. The Researcher

6. The Student

7. The Job Seeker

PERSONA’S PERSONAL INFORMATION

PERSONA MATRIX

Personas Table Legend

PERSONA’S PERSONAL INFORMATION

PERSONA MATRIX

Design Problems

1. Navigation Problem

Recommended Solutions:

2. Information Architecture Problem

Recommended Solutions:

3. Communication Problem

Recommended Solutions:

Content Challenges

1. Content Consumption

2. Content Management

3. Content Production

4. Tone of Voice

What they say

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