DMKBuilds responsive website
DMK Builds is a small construction company that offers custom builds at an affordable price. The typical user is a new or prospective home owner that is looking for an affordable option for home repairs or renovations. I began working on this project in January of 2023 through March of 2023. As the lead UX designer I was tasked with updating and designing a simple creative website for this company that can be used across multiple devices.
Understanding the User
I conducted user interviews, which I then turned into empathy maps to better understand the target user and their needs. I discovered that many target users have trouble finding a quality handyman at an affordable price. Many websites were outdated and unclear, in addition these sites lacked an option to book a handyman and instead only offered a contact number and nothing else. This caused an already potentially stressful situation to become even more so.
Site Map
Difficulty with website navigation was a primary pain point for users, so I used that knowledge to create a sitemap. My goal here was to make strategic information architecture decisions that would improve overall website navigation. The structure I chose was designed to make things simple and easy.
Paper Wireframes
Next, I sketched out paper wireframes for each screen in my app, keeping the user pain points about navigation, browsing, and checkout flow in mind. The paper wireframe variations to the right focus on optimizing the browsing experience for users.
​
Because DMK Builds customers access the site on a variety of different devices, I started to work on designs for additional screen sizes to make sure the site would be fully responsive.
Digital Wireframes
Moving from paper to digital wireframes made it easy to understand how the redesign could help address user pain points and improve the user experience. Prioritizing useful button locations and visual element placement on the home page was a key part of my strategy. I also made several screens for a mobile device which I feel a significant amount of users will be using.
Original screen size
Variable screen sizes
Hi-Fi Prototype
To create this prototype, I connected all of the screens involved in the primary user flow of adding an item to the cart and checking out. At this point, I had received feedback on my designs from members of my team about things like placement of buttons and page organization. I made sure to listen to their feedback, and I implemented several suggestions in places that addressed user pain points.
Going Forward
Our target users shared that the design was intuitive to navigate through, more engaging with the images, and demonstrated a clear visual hierarchy. I learned that even a small design change can have a huge impact on the user experience. The most important takeaway for me is to always focus on the real needs of the user when coming up with design ideas and solutions.
​
The next steps with this project are to conduct follow up usability testing on the new website, identify any additional areas of need and ideate on new features and to try out different color and typeface schemes for the client to choose from.
​
If you'd like to see more or get in touch my contact information is provided below.