📋 Overview
The Library of Congress (LOC) is embarking on a multi-year project in collaboration with the UMD iConsultancy to replace its integrated library system, which includes the main page (loc.gov), the catalog, and Stacks. LOC would like to better understand the user experience that patrons have with the existing ILS, specifically the discovery layer, and develop design concepts based on this research.
Challenge Create clear and visually-appealing layouts for Loc.gov to show activities/services,
differentiate search systems, and explain available resources to users in a non-intrusive way.
As Lead UXUI Designer, my role involved storyboarding and implementing a prototype that aligned with the proposed objectives. I ensured the design was user-friendly and single handedly incorporated necessary revisions based on the research team's findings to meet our target audience's needs and preferences.
⚔️ Competitive Analysis
We did a competitive analysis with 4 direct and 1 direct competitor to understand more about the industry and requirements for the platforms. This analysis was done for all LOC platforms and is used across all five sprints.
→ Direct Competitors: JSTOR, NASA, EBSCO, British Library
→ Indirect Competitor: Wikipedia
🎨 Style Guide and Component Library
We have established a style guide that outlines specific fonts and colors to ensure consistency across all of our designs. Additionally, we have developed a component library, which allows us to streamline the design process and maintain a high level of consistency throughout all of our projects. By implementing these tools, we are able to create designs that not only look professional, but are also efficient and effective in achieving our goals.
❓ How Might We
How might we create a visually appealing layout for the activities displayed on the homepage without
overwhelming the users with the information
➡️ Pain Points, Blocks, and Overlaps
→ Users to try to search for an item, service, or event on the LOC and instead go
directly to external search engines such as Google, Google Scholar, or Amazon Books to search for their keywords along with "LOC" to get the expected results. These users may feel satisfied with the external
search results and may not return to our platform
⚔️ Solution Sketches
💡 Stakeholder Highlights
→ Balancing the visual with the textual data to make it easy to use
→ Highlighting the breadth of events happening
→ Gridded calendar for events (currently there is no grid view since there are too many elements to
incorporate on the page.)
📖 Storyboard
I took on the task of designing the Loc.gov homepage, using the first storyboard we created as a foundation. Keeping in mind the importance of consistency and cohesiveness across the platform, I incorporated design elements from the Stacks and Catalog pages into the Loc.gov homepage. This ensured that users could easily recognize and navigate through the different pages of the platform, without any confusion.
A highlighted significant challenge in designing the homepage was the Events section. To create a dynamic and engaging user experience, I brainstormed and developed an interactive grid and list that allowed users to toggle between dates to view relevant events. I ensured that the design was intuitive and user-friendly so that users could quickly and easily browse through the events and find the ones that suited their interests.
Incorporating interactive elements into the design was crucial to me, as I believe that user engagement
is an essential aspect of a successful platform. By creating an interactive and dynamic Events section, I
aimed to make the user experience more engaging and encourage users to explore more of the
platform.
🗒 Mid Fidelity Prototype
📝 Contextual Findings
Visually with screenshots from the prototype, testing with general users and CRS specialist
All Users:
→ All users liked the general layout of the current loc.gov homepage
→ All users them scrolled past the Event Section when asked to find events happening in the later
weeks → no title
→ All users expect to see information related to a Library of Congress visit at the top ( eg. hours,
location, booking passes, reading rooms availability)
→ All users preferred that the navigation bar was located above the image carousel
General
→ Overall navigation and discoverability is weak → not friendly to the general public
→ The LOC address and hours were expected to be displayed in the page footer
📝 Before and After
📝 Prototype