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Mountain Top Arboretum

Website Redesign and UX Study for a local tree sanctuary


Mountain Top Arboretum is a public garden and sanctuary in upstate New York that seeks to celebrate and educate visitors about the native wild-life. Our UX study sought to analyse and redesign Mountain Top’s website for improved usability and appeal.


  • UX Research and UI Design
  • 4-Person Project
  • January - May 2024

My Role


I led UX research and information architecture and homepage design decisions. Specifically, I was responsible for:
  • UX Research: Contributed equally to usability testing, card-sorting, and A/B testing alongside team members.
  • User Personas: Developed detailed personas to represent key user groups, using insights gathered from research.
  • Information Architecture: Reorganized the website structure to ensure intuitive navigation and reduce redundancy.
  • Home Page Redesign: Revamped the homepage using Figma for improved usability, clear hierarchy, and user engagement.

Problem Space


Mountain Top Arboretum's (MTA) work for the conservation of nature is honorable, and a cause that is often undervalued. In today’s age of technology, having a strong online presence is essential for keeping the general public informed and interested. Most potential visitors or investors’ first impression of Mountain Top Arboretum is their website. 

User Experience Research


As a team, we used multiple research methodologies to identify user needs and pain points:

Walkthroughs:  Observed 16 unguided users navigating the website to identify usability pain points.
 Card-Sorting: Analyzed how users categorized and grouped information to improve the site’s information architecture.
A/B Testing:  Presented design variations to users to refine specific elements such as navigation menus and homepage layouts.

Personas
I developed three key personas based on research findings:









Key Findings

    Our research revealed what issues most hindered the arboretum’s ability to effectively communicate its offerings and engage its audiences.
    • Many users struggled with readability due to small font sizes and dense text blocks.
    • Users struggled to locate essential information as the navigation menu was perceived as confusing and overwhelming.
    • Interactive elements such as links and buttons lacked visual cues, reducing user engagement.
    • The homepage failed to guide users to key areas, such as event details or volunteering opportunities. 

    User Interface Redesigns

     
    Site-Wide Changes
    • Increased font sizes and adjusted layouts to improve readability across devices.
    • Added visual cues, such as hover effects, to enhance clickability for links and buttons.

    Site Architecture
    • Reorganized navigation using insights from card-sorting, grouping pages logically by user intent.
    • Reduced the number of links to minimize redundancy and streamline the user journey.
    • Updated ambiguous labels, such as changing "Support" to "Donate," for better clarity.
       
       



    Homepage Redesign
    • Introduced a three-section bar targeting specific user groups (visitors, volunteers, and educators).
    • Enhanced carousel arrows for better visibility and usability.
    • Added a clear descriptive header for the articles section to improve clarity.

    ORIGINAL


    REDESIGN



    Throughout the redesign, we used iterative testing to refine our solutions. A/B testing ensured that each change, from navigation structure to visual elements, addressed user needs effectively.

    Conclusion


    This project was an excellent opportunity to apply user-centered design principles to a real-world challenge. Leading the homepage redesign and navigation overhaul taught me the importance of research-driven decisions and iterative testing. The collaborative nature of the project emphasized how diverse perspectives can enrich the design process.
    You can read the full UX report here!