MACovidVaccines.com
Timeline:
February 2021-July 2021
My Responsibilities:
Content Strategy
Information Architecture
User Research
Ideation and Wireframing
Overall Impact:
Helped over 5,800 users sign up for available COVID-19 vaccines in MA
Overview
When vaccines for COVID-19 were rolled out in MA, the state-run site was difficult to use and full of broken links. A software developer who was on maternity leave decided that she would build her own website that would serve as a comprehensive resource and display available vaccination appointments from across the state.
Our team consisted of 8 Developers and 1 Project Manager. I was brought on as one of two Designers, and our goal was to create designs to enhance the user journey of signing up for vaccines without sacrificing the efficiency of the website.
Some of my achievements on this project included:
Designing and launching 2-3 new features per week. The Covid-19 landscape was changing rapidly, and we wanted to make sure that the features of our product were being updated appropriately.
Facilitating 4 remote, moderated usability tests and interviews. Conversing with our users shed valuable insight on how we could improve MACovidVaccines.com to address the needs and pain points of real people
Helping over 5,800 users sign up for available COVID-19 vaccines in MA. Knowing that we directly helped people protect themselves against COVID-19 during this precarious time was by far the most satisfying accomplishment to everyone on the team.
The home page of MACovidVaccines.com
Certain vaccination sites displayed on our website were only serving specific populations. I wanted to improve the design for restriction notices to be clearer in alerting peoples’ attention to crucial information.
Restriction Notices
I opted to revise the copy to “Important Eligibility Notice,” as “May be restricted” felt vague and ambiguous. While I received pushback on changing the color, I felt that the information it represented was crucial enough to warrant using red.
Filter Feature
As more and more vaccination sites became available, we decided to implement a Filter feature so that users could easily find locations that would be most convenient for them.
We brainstormed on different possible Filter categories that would create the most intuitive user experience:
Appointment Availability
Distance
Manufacturer
Setting (Indoors/Drive-through)
Dose Number
Initial wireframes of the Filter feature on mobile screens, either as a modal window or as its own page
The launched feature included only Appointment Availability and Distance as the Filter categories because 1) of engineering and time constraints and 2) we felt that the other categories were extraneous.
On mobile screens, we decided to have a clear Call to Action on the Home page that allowed the Filter feature to slide in from the left. We felt that this was a recognizable design pattern that would be intuitive to users, and it would also mirror how the Filter feature looked on desktop screens.
Filter feature on mobile screens
Filter feature on desktop screens
Usability Testing
“Terrible system! I’m 69 and there are never any available appointments no matter when I check or how often I check!! There’s no time frame mentioned! So are you supposed to sit at your computer 24/7!!!!”
When we started receiving frustrated emails like the one above, we decided to conduct 4 remote, moderated usability tests with users who had both positive and negative experiences with our site as a way to align our next steps in improving the usability of the website.
We came up with different scenarios, and observed how participants navigated our website to achieve the task at hand.
Between the two of us, one of us would facilitate the session while the other would take notes.
Insights
Talking to our users brought about many interesting insights. Here were two of the biggest takeaways:
“The site is very clear, easy to use, and streamlined with accurate information.”
Users rated their overall confidence in our site at an average of 6 out of 7. This proved to us that users found our site reliable in their goal of signing up for vaccine appointments.
“No one is going to wait in front of their computer for 24 hours…I’d have to leave the page open, then come back to it later to try and find an appointment.”
However, a pain point that came up frequently in our conversations was that people were most frustrated at feeling like they had to sit in front of their computers all day. No matter how efficient our website was in showing available appointments, users felt that given the competitive nature of securing vaccinations they had no choice but to stay on the page and constantly press refresh.
Text Notifications
To enable users to sign up for available appointments without spending their entire day perusing our website for an available spot, we implemented a text notification feature.
Some ideas we brainstormed included:
Text and/or email notifications
Notifications for locations within a certain distance
A preferred time window to receive notifications
A wireframe of the modal window for people to sign up, followed by a confirmation message
Given engineering and time constraints, the launched feature included only text notifications and notifications by location. Because we were a small team that moved very quickly, the other Designer and I were fine in making concessions with our designs as long as the original problem was still being properly addressed. In this particular case, we felt that this feature still effectively addressed the pain point of users sitting in front of their computers all day and pressing refresh.
Reflections
Here were two of the biggest lessons I learned being a part of this small but impactful team:
We could have incorporated usability testing earlier in the process. While we still gleaned valuable insights, it could have kept our design processes better grounded in user needs if we had talked to our users sooner on.
Context of the situation directly impacts the team’s priorities. Within a situation as fast-paced and variable as COVID vaccines, we were correct in our instincts of prioritizing launching MVP features that kept our website adaptable and relevant.
The most fulfilling part of this project was seeing how our website positively impacted the lives of so many throughout MA. Below are some examples of emails that we received that helped to keep us motivated.
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