Streamlining an Internal Proofing Tool
Redesigning an internal design and proofing tool to decrease time and effort of fulfilling custom online orders.
FALL '19
MINTED
DESKTOP
Overview
Minted is a marketplace where customers can purchase artwork and designs from independent designers to use for home decor, stationery and invitations for life's many celebrations. Their operations team uses MBO (Minted Back Office), an internal tool, to proof customer orders but the tool is cumbersome, repetitive and unintuitive.
By reducing the number of steps to see relevant information and streamlining the user’s process, we can reduce user error, save time, and result in lower operational costs to the company.
"My main problem is not being able to preview my files as I’m uploading them into MBO. If we could quickly see errors before we send it through to Quality Control or to the customer we could minimize the number of rejected proofs and save time for everyone.” - Kory, Design Consultant
Metrics
On average, one proof round takes a designer 15 minutes to complete. If we could reduce that time by 1 minute for each round, the company could save over $1 million a year. Alternatively, if we can reduce the number of rejected proofs by 20% we could cut costs $3 million a year. Customer recovery is also a costly expenditure for a retail business, some of which can be tied directly to slow proofing times and high error rates.
Average proof time
Proof error rate
Customer Satisfaction Score
Calculations based on team averages.
Average proofs per day = 2000
Average rate of designer = $12/hr
[(number of proofs) x (time per proof)] x [(hourly rate) x (hours worked per day)] = Cost of operations
Minted Back Office (MBO) Original Desktop Interface
Research
I conducted a survey that was sent to members of the Design Operations team and 10 responded. The information it gathered told me how much time was spent using MBO during each proof round, what common mistakes occurred, and highlighted many pain points.
From my data I saw the need to improve the tool's accessibility, reduce friction by eliminating redundancies and creating clear affordances, and cut down on information overload by consolidating and reorganizing the current tool's layout.
Initial Concepts
I focused on minimizing low priorities and placing most important information and actions toward the top of the page to help designers quickly complete their goals of downloading/uploading files, reading any customer annotations and submitting proof rounds. Using the first prototypes, I went back to the team of designers for feedback.
Testing and Insights
I met with one group of designers from Minted's Operations team and was able to watch 4 designers test my prototype. I created two tasks for these users to complete, first to upload a proof to a customer order using my prototype and then to review and submit the same proof.
These interviews immensely informed my goal to decrease information overload. I was able to discuss and hone in on some of the finer details of information hierarchy so designers saw the most important information where they needed to see it. Through the lens of progressive disclosure, I was able to identify what information came too late or early and contradicted some of the assumptions I had originally made.
1. Add Previous DA/QC to “assign to me” section.
2. Move Order Notes to the left column with Special Requests.
3. Add Proof States to information section on the left column.
4. Label thumbnail to say “click to enlarge”.
5. Add extra emphasis on next step buttons.
6. Label Review page.
7. Split notes section on the review page to pair with each item.
Final Designs
Uploading a proof
Reviewing and submitting a proof
Page Comparison
