a fired up REdesign
for a local business
a fired up REdesign
for a local business
Many small business owners are specialists and would prefer to spend the majority of their time and energy focused on their area of expertise - not on Squarespace or Wordpress. My client Matthew was no different. In 6 weeks time, Matthew and I rebranded his private voice studio business and built his new responsive website from scratch.
Many small business owners are specialists and would prefer to spend the majority of their time and energy focused on their area of expertise - not on Squarespace or Wordpress. My client Matthew was no different. In 6 weeks time, Matthew and I rebranded his private voice studio business and built his new responsive website from scratch.
some background
Matthew Thompson has been teaching private voice lessons and singing for over 15 years. He recently moved from NYC to LA and came to me for help with a responsive website redesign for his voice studio.
In addition to reworking his existing Squarespace website, we quickly rebranded his small business because Matthew decided to rename the business one week into our time working together - thus MatchVox Voice Studios was born.
some background
Matthew Thompson has been teaching private voice lessons and singing for over 15 years. He recently moved from NYC to LA and came to me for help with a responsive website redesign for his voice studio.
In addition to reworking his existing Squarespace website, we quickly rebranded his small business because Matthew decided to rename the business one week into our time working together - thus MatchVox Voice Studios was born.
the challenge
the challenge
stranger danger
stranger danger
Matthew came to me looking to increase traffic to a website that’s dedicated to converting potential clients into paid voice students for his business, Matthew C. Thompson Voice Studio. A key hurdle arose as dedicated research efforts revealed that most users who are experienced singers would be unlikely to seek out a voice teacher or coach through that potential teacher’s website alone, suggesting that in those cases the teacher could be too unfamiliar for them.
Matthew came to me looking to increase traffic to a website that’s dedicated to converting potential clients into paid voice students for his business, Matthew C. Thompson Voice Studio. A key hurdle arose as dedicated research efforts revealed that most users who are experienced singers would be unlikely to seek out a voice teacher or coach through that potential teacher’s website alone, suggesting that in those cases the teacher could be too unfamiliar for them.
the approach
the approach
a push to connect
a push to connect
Although Matthew’s original website was neatly organized, we saw an opportunity to streamline the layout in ways that increase user retention in ways that encourage them to book a voice lesson with Matthew, even without meeting him in person first.
From the jump we agreed that his website could greatly benefit from a redesign that - through the use of usability heuristics, user research, and light analysis of his competitors - will drive more traffic through to scheduling a voice lesson with Matthew. This push to a contact or schedule action could ultimately increase the size of Matthew’s student roster and the revenue of his voice teaching business.
Although Matthew’s original website was neatly organized, we saw an opportunity to streamline the layout in ways that increase user retention in ways that encourage them to book a voice lesson with Matthew, even without meeting him in person first.
From the jump we agreed that his website could greatly benefit from a redesign that - through the use of usability heuristics, user research, and light analysis of his competitors - will drive more traffic through to scheduling a voice lesson with Matthew. This push to a contact or schedule action could ultimately increase the size of Matthew’s student roster and the revenue of his voice teaching business.
the research
the research
sing out, interviewee
sing out,
interviewee
I used extensive in-person and virtual user interviews to learn what - if any - information users who’ve sought out the services of a private voice teacher in the past could provide about vocal studio websites and how they’ve inspired them to book, or inquire about, booking a session with the studio in question.
Interviewees in this case included 2 Male Singers in their 40’s, 1 Female Singer in her 30’s and 2 Gender Non-Conforming Singers in their 20’s.
I used extensive in-person and virtual user interviews to learn what - if any - information users who’ve sought out the services of a private voice teacher in the past could provide about vocal studio websites and how they’ve inspired them to book, or inquire about, booking a session with the studio in question.
Interviewees in this case included 2 Male Singers in their 40’s, 1 Female Singer in her 30’s and 2 Gender Non-Conforming Singers in their 20’s.
“…you're learning a skill and it's with your own personal voice. It's not like you're learning French. You're learning it through your instrument, and it should be tailored. It's about vibe. It's personal.”
“I think it would be helpful if voice teachers put a little bit more personal detail on how they would actually teach and what their values are and how they could make me feel safe in their studio. Cause I think it can be really vulnerable singing with somebody who's a professional.”
“I want teachers to put things on their site that could help me feel comfortable and I don't want to just read about them from others.”
“…you're learning a skill and it's with your own personal voice. It's not like you're learning French. You're learning it through your instrument, and it should be tailored. It's about vibe. It's personal.”
“I think it would be helpful if voice teachers put a little bit more personal detail on how they would actually teach and what their values are and how they could make me feel safe in their studio. Cause I think it can be really vulnerable singing with somebody who's a professional.”
“I want teachers to put things on their site that could help me feel comfortable and I don't want to just read about them from others.”
the insights
video killed the
who now?
The users interviewed (all of whom have paid for voice lessons in the past) revealed they have found the majority of their voice teachers through referrals or by word of mouth. This observation pointed out an overall need for the final product to implement elements that feel personal in order to encourage users who haven’t met Matthew to schedule a lesson with him.
For example, one user suggested the implementation of a video tour of the studio on a teacher’s website being potentially useful for this purpose. This observation is very interesting when compared with competitor research, as it would appear that this element is not being used by other voice teachers in the greater Los Angeles area.
the requirements
coulda, shoulda
After synthesizing findings from user interviews (and after several rounds of interviews with Matthew himself) I generated a feature map on a matrix of “Could Have”, “Must Have”, “Should Have”, and “Will Not Have” to help us define the ultimate solution.
This proved useful in making arguments to Matthew for the inclusion of a feature that was referenced earlier as an idea from an interviewed user - the implementation of a video that would introduce users to the vocal studio.
the vision
responsive for
responses
We found our primary user is unlikely to book voice lessons with a teacher they weren’t referred to or haven’t met. At the same rate, these users revealed a lack of confidence in their ability to find a voice teacher whose approach aligned with their goals or to find teachers who they feel could allow them to feel safe to make mistakes while working with them.
Matthew and I became determined to explore ways to create a responsive website that conveys his commitment to vocal excellence while communicating his willingness to offer a personalized experience to every singer he works with and while encouraging users who haven’t met Matthew to schedule and pay for a voice lesson or coaching with him.
the framework
sales funnel
for singers
With the intended action of having users contact Matthew directly having led us to a one-page, responsive, scroll-focused design - not unlike successful sales funnel designs that I’ve built in the past with other clients. We worked together to design a site with a video feature at the top to introduce users to Matthew and to encourage them to scroll to the contact form where they can schedule a lesson with Matthew directly.
The branding
match those
values
When Matthew came to me with a new name for his voice studio just one week into our work together on his website redesign, I found myself inspired to work with him on a full-scale rebrand for his studio.
Together we established his core brand values for the studio as being Curious, Playful/Adventurous, Driven, and Patient, and MatchVox Voice Studios was born.
the insights
video killed the who now?
The users interviewed (all of whom have paid for voice lessons in the past) revealed they have found the majority of their voice teachers through referrals or by word of mouth. This observation pointed out an overall need for the final product to implement elements that feel personal in order to encourage users who haven’t met Matthew to schedule a lesson with him.
For example, one user suggested the implementation of a video tour of the studio on a teacher’s website being potentially useful for this purpose. This observation is very interesting when compared with competitor research, as it would appear that this element is not being used by other voice teachers in the greater Los Angeles area.
The vision
responsive for responses
We found our primary user is unlikely to book voice lessons with a teacher they weren’t referred to or haven’t met. At the same rate, these users revealed a lack of confidence in their ability to find a voice teacher whose approach aligned with their goals or to find teachers who they feel could allow them to feel safe to make mistakes while working with them.
Matthew and I became determined to explore ways to create a responsive website that conveys his commitment to vocal excellence while communicating his willingness to offer a personalized experience to every singer he works with and while encouraging users who haven’t met Matthew to schedule and pay for a voice lesson or coaching with him.
the requirements
Coulda, Shoulda
After synthesizing findings from user interviews (and after several rounds of interviews with Matthew himself) I generated a feature map on a matrix of “Could Have”, “Must Have”, “Should Have”, and “Will Not Have” to help us define the ultimate solution.
This proved useful in making arguments to Matthew for the inclusion of a feature that was referenced earlier as an idea from an interviewed user - the implementation of a video that would introduce users to the vocal studio.
© jayson speters design, 2024.
All rights reserved.
© jayson speters design, 2024.
All rights reserved.
The framework
sales funnel for singers
With the intended action of having users contact Matthew directly having led us to a one-page, responsive, scroll-focused design - not unlike successful sales funnel designs that I’ve built in the past with other clients. We worked together to design a site with a video feature at the top to introduce users to Matthew and to encourage them to scroll to the contact form where they can schedule a lesson with Matthew directly.
the design
sketched interfaces
The following sketch is one a few that were developed and tested with the client and revealed that a scrollable product would be the most streamlined approach to both focusing the user where we want to focus them while allowing them to feel empowered to consume the parts of the site they want when they want.
mockups and testing
Building on insights from the testing of the low-fidelity sketches I created the following mid and high-fidelity versions of Matthew’s website with usability testing results being leveraged for changes made with each.
1. Key findings from testing of this first iteration resulted in a reorder of the website's sections so that price wouldn't be front and center like it was here as users said that it was off-putting to go for cost out of the gate. 2. In addition to adjusting the order of the sections, we began experimenting with changes to the UI to better differentiate each. 3. The UI continued to be iterated on into this third iteration as users in testing expressed a want for more variation across the feel of the site.
The design
sketched interfaces
The following sketch is one of a few developed and tested with the client and revealed that a scrollable product would be the most streamlined approach to both focusing the user where we want to focus them while allowing them to feel empowered to consume the parts of the site they want when they want.
Mock-ups and testing
Building on insights from the testing of the low-fidelity sketches I created the following mid and high-fidelity versions of Matthew’s website with usability testing results being leveraged for changes made with each.
1. Key findings from testing of this first iteration resulted in a reorder of the website's sections so that price wouldn't be front and center like it was here as users said that it was off-putting to go for cost out of the gate. 2. In addition to adjusting the order of the sections, we began experimenting with changes to the UI to better differentiate each. 3. The UI continued to be iterated on into this third iteration as users in testing expressed a want for more variation across the feel of the site.
The branding
Match those values
When Matthew came to me with a new name for his voice studio just one week into our work together on his website redesign, I found myself inspired to work with him on a full-scale rebrand for his studio.
Together we established his core brand values for the studio as being Curious, Playful/Adventurous, Driven, and Patient, and MatchVox Voice Studios was born.
the prototype
a matchvox mvp
The high-fidelity prototype brought test users, and in this case my client, closest to the real experience of the ideated solution and (as was expected and celebrated) it revealed some issues though we are very happy with the final solution and look forward to taking it live soon.
the prototype
a matchvox mvp
The high-fidelity prototype brought test users, and in this case my client, closest to the real experience of the ideated solution and (as was expected and celebrated) it revealed some issues though we are very happy with the final solution and look forward to taking it live soon.
The impact
a simple solution
When Matthew and I began working together, I wouldn’t have guessed that our ultimate product would be so simple. Sometimes less really is more and while a streamlined approach can feel lacking in flair or personality - I walked away from this specific project reminded that a clean design can work very well for focusing users toward ideal outcomes.
I feel confident that we did a solid job of bringing my client in on this project for feedback at points in the process where it was most relevant and that this resulted in a product the client is proud to take live.
© jayson speters design, 2024.
All rights reserved.
© jayson speters design, 2024.
All rights reserved.
The impact
a simple solution
When Matthew and I began working together, I wouldn’t have guessed that our ultimate product would be so simple. Sometimes less really is more and while a streamlined approach can feel lacking in flair or personality - I walked away from this specific project reminded that a clean design can work very well for focusing users toward ideal outcomes.
I feel confident that we did a solid job of bringing my client in on this project for feedback at points in the process where it was most relevant and that this resulted in a product the client is proud to take live.
© jayson speters design, 2024.
All rights reserved.