UX/UI and Marketing

English Learner Portal Website

PROJECT OVERVIEW

For this project, our class had the opportunity to collaborate with a real company, English Learner Portal, which provides professional development resources for ESL (English as a Second Language) educators. Our task was to assist them with social media strategies, improve the user experience (UX) for their target market, and design an intuitive user interface (UI) that appeals to ESL teachers. This project required us to focus on making the platform more user-friendly and accessible to educators looking to enhance their teaching methods.

PROBLEM

English Learner Portal wanted to grow their online presence and reach more ESL educators globally, but they faced challenges in identifying the most effective social media strategies and understanding how to communicate with their target market. Additionally, their current layout didn’t fully support the needs of educators who sought easy navigation and access to professional development resources. The challenge was to refine both their social media strategies and the user experience on the platform, ensuring it was both appealing and functional for educators.

Website before project

SOLUTION

Our solution focused on improving both the social media strategies and the UX/UI of the website to address these concerns:

  • On the UX side, I worked to make the website more intuitive and informative. By ensuring that the landing page offered clear, concise information about the courses—including prices, timelines, and delivery formats—I aimed to improve user engagement. I also suggested adding reviews and testimonials to help build trust with new users.

  • On the UI side, I proposed a simplified design with a stronger emphasis on the “register” button and promotions for free trials or courses to drive user engagement. The design also highlighted course information clearly on the landing page, reducing confusion.

  • For the social media strategy, I developed content ideas aimed at ESL teachers’ pain points. This included sharing teaching tips, stories from successful teachers, and resources to make classrooms more interactive, helping them connect with and support their students better.

RESEARCH METHODS

Although I didn’t conduct direct surveys, I relied on secondary research and created empathy maps to understand how ESL educators think and feel during their teaching journey. I also performed a competitive analysis, comparing similar businesses, and used this to inform our social media and UX/UI strategies. This helped us ensure our designs and strategies aligned with the target market's needs.

PAIN POINTS

Through our research, I identified several concerns and pain points that ESL teachers face:

  • Disengaged students: Teachers often found it challenging to engage students who had language barriers and struggled to follow instructions.

  • Unfamiliarity with teaching methods: Many teachers felt they lacked effective strategies for teaching ESL students.

  • Connection and relationship building: Teachers were unsure how to create an inclusive, welcoming environment for students from diverse backgrounds.

  • Limited interactivity: Educators were looking for ways to make their classes more interactive and engaging.

USER PERSONA

After researching, I developed a user persona to help visualize the understanding of users.

EMPATHY MAP

To better understand our target audience, I created an empathy map that captured the thoughts, feelings, and behaviors of ESL educators.

USER JOURNEY MAP

I developed a customer journey map to visualize the steps ESL educators take when seeking professional development resources. This map outlines their interactions with the English Learner Portal, from initial awareness to ongoing engagement.

IMPLEMENTING SOCIAL MEDIA STRATEGIES

Once we developed the user persona and deeply understood her needs, we implemented targeted social media strategies. These included sharing practical teaching insights, featuring success stories from experienced ESL educators, and providing interactive resources to enhance classroom engagement. The goal was to empower educators, strengthen their connection with students, and create a more impactful learning environment.

YOUTUBE:

Once we developed the user persona and understood her needs, we also created a YouTube content strategy as part of our social media plan. Instead of recording videos ourselves, we designed a weekly calendar with detailed ideas for video topics.

By developing this YouTube strategy, we aimed to help the English Learner Portal extend their reach to a broader audience and provide valuable content in an engaging and easily digestible format.

WEBSITE UI REDESIGN

Upon reviewing the English Learner Portal's website, we identified several critical issues impacting user experience. The website's cluttered design contributed to unclear messaging, making it difficult for visitors to understand the platform's offerings. Key areas for improvement included:

  • Unclear messaging: The website’s message wasn’t clear, leading to confusion about its offerings.

  • Insufficient course information: The landing page lacked details about course pricing, timelines, and formats.

  • No reviews or testimonials: These were missing, making it harder for users to trust the platform.

  • Lack of promotions: The website didn’t effectively promote free courses or trials.

  • Register button placement: The registration process wasn’t streamlined, as the “register” button was not easily accessible.

The following images showcase the the proposed redesign, illustrating our efforts to enhance clarity, accessibility, and user trust.

MOCKUPS

CONCLUSION AND WHAT I LEARNED

This project gave me invaluable experience working with a real-world client, English Learner Portal. I learned how to develop tailored social media strategies for a specific audience, ensuring that the content resonates with their needs. On the UX/UI side, I gained a deeper understanding of how to create user-centric designs that support the goals of both the user and the business. The project also taught me how to collaborate effectively in a class setting, balancing creativity with practical business objectives.