KyanZa
Antioch International Missions
July 2022 - October 2022
Remote / Global
A responsively-designed website that provides resources to help people in Myanmar to read and understand the Bible for themselves
My Role
As the sole product designer for this project, I worked directly with the project manager and content creator to create a responsive, user-friendly website to help people in Myanmar read and understand the Bible. Our goal was to create an accessible, comprehensive platform for biblical resources in Burmese for locals in Myanmar.
UX Challenge #1
The client had many different features and content that they wanted to build into the website (see the initial website below). However, early user research revealed that Myanmar locals do not have as much exposure to technology. Therefore, I constantly needed to advocate for our target user to ensure optimal usability by simplifying the platform’s features and streamlining the user journey.
The key to improving usability was to simplify the UI and user journey as much as possible, while meeting the users’ main needs and providing the resources they desired in an easily accessible format. Organizing the information hierarchy in an intuitive way was imperative to our design approach.
The UX Design Process
After establishing brand colors, defining our target user, and honing in on our MVP with the team, I drafted several user flows and input content placeholders in English to A/B test with our English-speaking contacts in Myanmar. I also collaborated with the Content Lead and Project Manager to edit and format content and the layout of the website.
Our user research revealed that Facebook was the most-used web platform in Myanmar, so we sought to incorporate similar features in building out our website. We utilized CTA buttons, embedded videos, and imagery with text overlay to guide the user journey and streamline the user experience.
UX Challenge #2
After the UI was built out with all of the English text placeholders, I began receiving the translated Burmese text from the translator. Our user studies revealed that our target users mainly use mobile devices rather than desktops, so the UI needed to be well-optimized for mobile use. Because Burmese is much more complex in written form and lengthier than English (see below), we had to modify some of our designs to fit the text legibly onto smaller mobile device screens.
UX Impact & Outcome
This platform was created to improve ease of access to a one-stop-shop for biblical resources in Burmese. We received positive feedback from both missionaries and local users regarding how helpful and easy-to-use this was on mobile devices. Users appreciated the guided user experience and how the text and videos help explain the story of the Bible in smaller, digestible segments.
Lessons Learned
Clients’ desired objectives can sometimes conflict with the identified target users’ needs and what may lead to the most optimal usability of the product. As the sole designer working on this team, I learned the importance of consistently advocating for the perspective, pain points, and needs of our end user. In this case, simplifying the user journey and designing clear call-to-action buttons to guide the user through all the different resources available was imperative to improving usability.