UX Researcher (Team of 2)
Austin PBS
1 Month
Austin PBS had gone through a major update of their physical space. With the new changes to their space and lead staff, they had a blank slate to update their web presence. However, they needed direction on how to bridge the gaps between their various channels and how to best utilize their diverse content.
After analyzing their current web presence and interviewing stakeholders, we determined several points that would unite their brand and allow their digital presence to grow and strengthen alongside their content:
We sat down with stakeholders in the digital welfare of Austin PBS, discussing the current and past strengths and pain points of Austin PBS’ digital presence. There were several key points that they wanted to improve:
We then facilitated a workshop for stakeholders, creating several categories on a whiteboard to define their current goals and pains, and future goals.
I reviewed direct and indirect competitors. Competitors were determined by their status as a non-profit or by their similarity of content.
My review determined similarities between the client and competitors that were successful, as well as areas where competitors excelled, such as content branding and organization.
We continued interviewing more stakeholders within the organization in rapid fire questionnaires about their roles, department pains, and goals for the future.
These interviews uncovered vital information about the state of the organization.
1
Non-Profit Organization Vs. Media-First Organization
While the CEO wished to move forward by focusing on the diverse, local content, many department leaders expressed their understanding of the company in it’s historical role: non-profit.
During the new changes being implemented at Austin PBS, there was a disconnect between whether the organization should focus on it’s non-profit status and donations, or leverage the range of media it produces for a new range of donors.
2
Station-Wide Unity
Department leaders had clear goals and directions they wished to go in. However, there was a lack of a station-wide goal being stated. The directions and goals themselves were divided. Some worried the diversity of content could dilute the station’s focus, while others felt the diversity was the station’s strength.
The lack of unity observed across all sites stylistically also extended to the departments and channels themselves.
3
Confusing Layouts
Stakeholders concerned with donations and pledge drives noted that users would often get confused between their donations and the PBS Passport- their subscription option.
After reviewing the website, it was clear from feedback that the positioning of the Passport call-to-action and donation call-to-action confused users trying to access either.
We presented our findings to Austin PBS, highlighting the points with the highest impact:
1
Creating a stationwide Culture Guidebook – uniting the station under the “Austin PBS” way, to move not only towards interdepartmental goals, but towards a stationwide goal
2
The strength of interdepartmental cohesion and goals, but lack of cohesion across the station
3
The importance to move from a non-profit organization competing for the same donors as other local non-profits, to a media-first organization
4
Incongruencies between each department’s web presence – their branding and content organization, leading to a disconnect from both each other and the overarching PBS organization
5
Areas to improve website content layout to encourage and promote regular donations
Our recommendations to Austin PBS included:
1
Creating a stationwide Culture Guidebook – uniting the station under the “Austin PBS” way, to move not only towards interdepartmental goals, but towards a stationwide goal
2
Utilizing a station-wide comprehensive Style Guidebook for branding, site architecture, and content tone
3
Uniting all websites under one CMS that could allow enough customization for producers, while being easy to learn and edit for anyone in the station
4
Using a Content Recommendation Engine to further engage viewers, as well as give each department the opportunity to showcase other departments’ content to their benefit
While all the interviews and comments from stakeholders painted a picture of pains with their individual departments web presences'. However, it was the details of what they said about their jobs and departments that stood out when put together. The dissonances between how they viewed the organization and it's path moving forward became one of the most important and telling insights.
I had felt stuck in trying to find commonalities while analyzing our interviews until I realized that the common issue with stakeholder comments was the lack of common ground. In realizing the disparity, it opened the way for the organization to find their common ground moving forward.
Copywrite 2023 Lauren Ashizawa