Design process
We knew customers wanted educational content, but we didn’t yet know what format would be most effective for this type of content. We planned to run a second round of research to narrow down which design patterns were most compelling and effective for motivating customers to make their first bitcoin purchase.
Defining the learning style
I led an exercise with research participants to explore different content formats that could be used for educational purposes.
Early content type explorations
How did education rank among other modules?
In one research exercise, customers built their own bitcoin applet home screen from their choice of pre-designed modules. Education (colored tiles) was by far the most used and talked about as the most compelling.
Experimental modules from a drag-and-drop exercise conducted with customers
Refining content types
Customers preferred micro-learning over longer articles and other formats. It was important to for the content to live on a surface that felt familiar, interactive, and accessible to users. Cards were a nod to traditional studying, but felt too much like rote memorization. Quizzes provided a fun interaction, but made some users worry about getting the answers right. The story format hit the mark.
UI explorations of card stacks, an end-of-lesson quiz, and stories (the crowd favorite)
Telling the story
In partnership with content design, we established a storytelling approach that would achieve clarity and simplicity through both the visual design and language choices.
Integrating illustration
To de-risk the creative workload, I sourced illustrations from the existing Story of Bitcoin microsite that were emotive, humorous, and non-technical.
