Viasat
Redesigning Viasat’s home internet page for rural customers
Project Overview
Our team was tasked to redesign Viasat’s internet homepage to establish a deeper relationship with customers from rural communities that facilitated increased understanding and a more intuitive user flow.
I focused on research by conducting a competitive analysis and contributed to designing a high-fidelity redesign.
Role
UX Designer, UX Researcher
Team
Research: Hanna Clemente, Jocelyn Horng, Samuel Do, Jennifer Hofilena, Donna Kim, Sophia Lui, Steven Molotnikov, Krishiv Vora, Hannah Yick, Jonathan Zhang
Design: Steven Molotnikov, Jocelyn Horng, Samuel Do, Krishiv Vora
Timeline
Apr - June 2021
Company Background
Viasat is a global communications company based in Carlsbad, San Diego. Viasat’s mission centers on delivering quality and high-speed satellite services to harder to reach sectors, such as military, aviation, and rural communities.
our design processThe timeline
I worked alongside a team of 10 students under the guidance of Professor Michael Meyer and Neil McIver, Viasat’s Design Director. We performed and synthesized our research, but split off into separate teams to deliver two redesigns to the Viasat team.
user researchAnalyzing the current user experience
Limitations
Due to the company’s privacy policies, we were unable to access customer contact information or their website analytics. Furthermore, Viasat’s target audience of older, rural homeowners was also not easily accessible to us to conduct usability tests and user interviews.
Viasat provided us with user personas to help us clearly understand and identify the needs and wants of the target user population.
Unclear Information
Viasat should focus on highlighting its unique services and constraints to demonstrate its specialization for those outside the cable internet line.
The website also should be more upfront with pricing and plans. Currently, it takes 2+ clicks and a requirement to input an address to view all the plans and their pricings.
Problem 2: Wordiness inhibits effective skimming and the development of a clear mental model
Heuristic Analysis
In order to work around these limitations, our solution was to employ a heuristic analysis of the website. We also interviewed the Viasat team to identify common pain points customers have communicated in the past.
Problem 1: Lack of focus on what makes Viasat unique from other satellite internet providers
Visual Communication
The visual communication does not clearly specify that Viasat specializes in delivering satellite internet. This could be improved with more satellite and space-related imagery.
Highlighting Viasat’s differentiating factor
Competitive Analysis
We conducted a competitive analysis of similar internet and communication companies to identify common themes to find design strengths and weaknesses. My partner Jocelyn and I focused on this area of research, and our competitive analysis can be found here.
StarLink and HughesNet immediately prompt customers to take a look at their internet plans upon arriving the website.
Clearly guide the user to take the desired action
StarLink’s 1-page scroll website identifies the key factors that make them unique through minimal text and relevant images.
Minimize text and use imagery to concisely capture Viasat’s strengths
our problem statementHow can we redesign the Viasat Home Satellite page for better brand and content understanding?
design specificationsDefining the residential experience
Our team’s design separates the residential page from the commercial page to establish a deeper connection with rural audiences that fosters understanding and accessibility.
New User Flow
Our design should…
Eliminate confusion about what Viasat provides
Condense information to only present what is necessary and applicable
Differentiate commercial and residential interests and statistics
the final designA new Viasat customer experience
Our redesign directly engages customers from rural communities through a simplified user flow, bringing users towards a better understanding of Viasat’s business and increasing transparency of Viasat’s internet plans.
Survey to immediately address the customer’s needs
This new layout immediately signals to customers Viasat specializes in satellite internet plans, specifically for those in rural communities.
Increased transparency to internet plan pricing and information
Users not only can see their most suitable plan, but can compare it directly with others to give them full control over their decision.
1-page scroll to effectively market Viasat’s strengths
Employing informative visuals and minimal text, this 1-page scroll clearly and straightforwardly communicates Viasat’s alignment with customers outside the cable internet line.
Reflections
This was my first time working alongside a company, and working on a complete case study outside of school projects! I was introduced to industry tools such as Miro, and new design processes such as creating user flows and affinity mapping. This was also my first time being exposed to the importance of market research when conducting design for companies, which I was able to conduct in my competitive analysis.
I worked alongside a larger team than I have before, so I also was able to learn how to better operate in a team dynamic and communicate effectively with team members. Under the guidance of Director Neil and our design mentor, Professor Meyer, I also learned how to adapt and work around constraints on design projects.