THE WALT DISNEY COMPANY

Universal Search
Experience

London uk award winning designer

webflow specialist interactive storyteller

dIGITAL UI/UX BRAND PRINT

Designing a universal search experience to create consistency across Disney
digital platforms and empower users ability to augment for content discovery

* This is a high-level overview of my design process. Can show in depth design visuals in person upon request.

Project

Universal Search Template

Role

Lead UX Designer

Team

Experience Design Team

Overview

How can we create the best search experience for both the user and the business?
‍

As a UX designer under Disney Entertainment and ESPN Technology design team,
I play a pivotal role in delivering first-class user experiences for Disney’s 90+ consumer facing digital products. On my immediate team, Experience Design, we focus on building
brand-agnostic and branded digital experiences for platforms that include
ABC, ABCN, ESPN, ESPN Fantasy, National Geographic, and Star Wars.

Taking into consideration the individual needs of each brand, how do we also address the main needs and motivations of the user in the search experience without building a new design system?

Background

Before diving into user research & Ideation,
I did an audit of the current search experiences first
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While auditing search experiences that currently exist within the different digital platforms, I looked closely at where users go to search for content (Search Input), where the suggested content lives (Results page), and how users can configure that content to find exactly what they're looking for (Filter/Sort).

I compared search patterns from platforms across different sectors like retail, sports, and news to highlight varying brand styles and how content is displayed according to those brands and their target audiences.

We began by experimenting with relocating the navigation to the bottom.

The hypothesis was that positioning the navigation closer to the user's thumb would not only facilitate easier interaction and engagement but also create additional space at the top of the screen later on. However, relocating the navigation to the bottom presents some design challenges concerning the Gamepad buttons. To implement this change, I had to first make some visual adjustments to the Gamepad.

info

Positioning the navigation at the bottom without making any visual adjustments was problematic because it made the screen feel very bottom heavy with far too many tappable elements right next to each other.

To help with the visual clutter problem we experimented with a vertical Gamepad design where we removed the Like & Nope buttons. We found that solely relying on users to swipe for Like & Nope significantly reduced swipes per session metrics.

info

Disney.com

I noticed that there is a very simple categorization system for content within the search recommendation drop down that excluded much of the
types of content found on Disney.com. Once on the results page, there is also a simple filtering system that reveals how, depending on the content,
the layout switches from list to grid view.
‍

I noticed that there was a very simple categorization system for content within the search recommendation drop down that excluded much of the types of content found on Disney.com. Once on the results page, there was inconsistencies between how content was displayed based on the filter type.

Learn
More

We still had one minor problem...

While these changes have helped in reducing the visual clutter in the current state of the app, the question remains: How well would it withstand future feature additions by Tinder?

ESPN

The search recommendation drop down returns a very in depth list of recommendations based on the user's search query. There are more varieties in categories that align with the filters shown on the results page, and the content regardless of the type, is visually consistent.
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In spite of certain UI enhancements, the introduction of additional visual elements leads to an imbalance on the screen, with numerous elements competing for attention within the same area.

Learn More

ABCN

When searching for content on ABCNews I noticed that there was a lack of suggestions presented to the user when typing in a search query. Suggestions would minimize the need for users to go to the results page to find the specific content they are searching for, as well as provide corrections if their query is misspelled. The results page displays a consistent, inline view of the content, with a more advanced filtering and sorting option.
‍

In spite of certain UI enhancements, the introduction of additional visual elements leads to an imbalance on the screen, with numerous elements competing for attention within the same area.

Learn More

After doing an internal audit of search experiences, I took this opportunity to create a universal design solution that would make finding content and tailoring results more efficient and configurable for the user while also tailoring to each brands unique needs.
‍

Discovery & Phase 1 Wireframes

Exploring ideas, I split the framework into 3 main sections

I kept my explorations based on 3 main points of the user's journey: Search input, Results, and Filter/Sort
Building off of this discovery and initial wire framing phase, I took the explorations to the team to receive
feedback and work to increase fidelity of the search framework.

User Testing

Interviewing users, I learned that people like adaptability & control.
‍

Partnering closely with user research, I created a click through brand agnostic prototype of the search design to test with users in order to develop an understanding of how users prefer to discover and find content.

The test revealed that users only want to see and process relevant results, have control over how content is presented to them, and want to conduct their search in one location.

A New Problem..

I added a new feature after meeting with product partners.
‍

After meeting with various product teams, I was presented with a new problem:
‍"As a search user, I want to see the most important and relevant content immediately so that I can get information ASAP"
‍‍
‍What does this look like? I took the new requirements and began brainstorming and designing a variety of concepts with my design and product teams before creating low-fidelity wireframes of this new promotional feature.

Universal Library

With new features came new components
‍

I designed a first iterations of new search components that currently did not exist within the design libraries. Partnering with a product designer on the design systems team, we worked on a second iteration of these components and kept in mind some of the following questions:

Stress Testing

The new framework goes through stress testing with brand libraries
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With the universal framework in place, I then began applying various brand libraries for different brands to the search experience, accounting for specific feature requirements obtained from product partners.
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This exercise included testing type, color, iconography, content card treatment, and content placeholder for brands like:

Review & Refinement

Reviewing the branded search experiences with their respective product partner helped to refine each platforms unique use cases. I was able to configure the search experience with features that would best represent the platform that it would be living on.

User Testing 2

Finally, I wrapped up by partnering with user research to conduct a second round of user testing, using a branded version of the search experience to explore user's expectations and mental models in relation to branded site search.

Applying the
Framework

While the entire universal search experience has not shipped, some elements have
‍

Elements like auto-suggest , filter tabs, and topic categories from the universal search experience was implemented into the recent re-design of the ABC News mobile application and OTV mobile applications for iOS and Android.

To tailor the universal template to this ABC News redesign , I focused on adjusting to engineering constraints, type of content available on the app, and content metadata

Product Launch

With the bottom of the screen now serving as our primary navigation, we have the opportunity to employ the top section of the screen for secondary navigation. This creates ample space, allowing us to incorporate additional features in the future.

info

After doing an internal audit of search experiences, I took this opportunity to create a universal design solution that would make finding content and tailoring results more efficient and configurable for the user while also tailoring to each brands unique needs.
‍

Conclusion

Repositioning specific items from the bottom to the top not only facilitates the incorporation of new features while upholding visual balance on the screen but also ensures that modifications made to the Gamepad successfully preserved our key metrics.

Reflection

This project was full of twists and turns, but the good kind! Here's what I learned.
‍

This project challenged me to think critically and practice end-to -end human-centered design thinking in order to design a universal framework that both empowers the user and addresses business needs. I sought opportunities to experiment with interactions and patterns and explore edge cases that lead me to introducing a new component into the design library. For next steps, this framework would be adjusted to specific brand needs and engineering constraints. In the end, I was able to deliver a framework that is intuitive and functional, and ultimately give all control and flexibility to the end-user. I enjoyed working alongside our project partners and research team, and glad I got to be lead designer on such an impactful project.

2012 - 2022

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About Me

Im currently a UX Designer at the Walt Disney Company.
I grew up in little ol' Mebane, North Carolina, a small country town where everyone knows everyone.
Because of my small town upbringing, I gained a unique perspective on the intricate relationships people form with the world around them. From an early age, I was fascinated by the influence that art, design, and technology wield in shaping individuals' interactions with everyday objects. This fascination eventually lead me to pivot from Industrial Design to User Experience Design, where I have found immense fulfillment in channeling my passion for crafting resonant experiences that not only engage users but also drive meaningful social impact.
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I create 24/7. When im not storytelling from the lens of user experience design, I find joy in leveraging Social AR platforms such as Snapchat and TikTok to curate immersive experiences. The realm of AR allows me to push the boundaries of my imagination and connect with users in different capacities , opening new avenues for engagement.

Let's Chat My Resume

Publications

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View all writing

“I worked directly with Deia in her time at Disney on design concepts that impacted the search experience across a number of products, including ABC News, Star Wars, ESPN, and Disney.com.

In my work with Deia, she demonstrated strong design and research skills, high adaptability and flexibility, and a contagious enthusiasm for learning.”

Lily L.

UX Researcher

“Deia was very insightful when providing use cases to help build the components for the search experience.With her help and guidance the component building process was faster and easier! Now our design system is able to provide the right search components essential for all of of our digital brands”

Kevin A.

Product Designer-Prism-Core /
X-Brand

“Deia is a great partner in the design process. She is receptive to product feedback, making thoughtful iterations and approaches based on questions, concerns, and suggestions.”

Charity T.

Sr. Product Manager -
Fan & Branded

Next Case Study

Universal Search Experience

Exploring ideas, I split the framework into 3 main sections

Interviewing users, I learned that people like adaptability & control.‍

I added a new feature after meeting with product partners.‍

With new features came new components‍

The new framework goes through stress testing with brand libraries‍

NVIDIA

Universal Search
Experience

Interviewing users, I learned that people like adaptability & control.
‍

I added a new feature after meeting with product partners.
‍

With new features came new components
‍

The new framework goes through stress testing with brand libraries
‍