MyCO Mail Center
My Colorado Benefits (MyCO) is Colorado's primary mobile app for managing food and cash benefits, serving thousands since 2019. Recognizing a growing demand for an electronic inbox feature—since users relied on an outdated web app or physical letters—our client sought a solution. Additionally, the State's emphasis on the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) encouraged users to choose paperless options. To address these challenges, our team developed the MyCO Mail Center.
Team: 1 BA, 3 Engineers, 1 Designer (me!)
Role: UX Designer
Tools: Figma, Google Suites
Date: Oct 2021 - Mar 2022
1. Discover & Define
USER NEED
“What’s the point of
a mobile app if I have
to keep checking my physical mailbox?”
BUSINESS NEED
“How can we be more eco-conscious
while maintaining communication with users?”
2 PRIMARY RESEARCH METHODS
Based on the resources we had, we conducted user interviews and competitive analyses to gain initial insights.
Primary Research #1: User Interviews
Randomly selected 5 MyCO users
Gaining insights on users’ technical familiarity and experience on both MyCO and other electronic inboxes
Users are likely to be tech-savvy and have positive experiences with MyCO
Primary Research #2: Competitive Analyses
Analyzing other mobile app electronic inboxes (Gmail & Airbnb)
Benchmarking and identifying room for improvement
Some features may not be ideal for our users
Good visual cues and helpful information on the screen
OPPORTUNITIES AND GAPS BASED ON PRIMARY RESEARCH
After conducting 2 preliminary researches, we identified design opportunities and gaps to be considered for MyCO Mail Center
OPPORTUNITIES
- With more tech-savvy user base, room for adding complex features like customization (i.e. filters, sort)
- Provide mails with better readability
- Make the mail status more scannable
GAPS
- Sometimes inbox functionalities are buried under other functionalities
- Make it more discoverable
2. Design & Develop
DESIGN ITERATIONS
After refining the concept sketches, we created low-fidelity wireframes to discuss technical constraints and business impacts. Early involvement of engineering and product teams improved our workflow, allowing for design previews before the high-fidelity stage and facilitating quick issue resolution for user testing.
1
Concept Sketches
The sketch illustrates a preliminary design of the MyCO Mail Center, incorporating client requirements, addressing user pain points, and enhancing usability.
2
Low-Fidelity Wireframes
After refining the concept sketches, we created low-fidelity wireframes to discuss technical constraints and business impacts with our cross-functional team.
USABILITY TESTING
Once the team approved the initial designs, we conducted usability testing with five randomly selected MyCO users, presenting low-fidelity wireframes and observing their interactions. The images below show notes from the sessions.
Despite early collaboration with our engineers and product managers, observing actual user interactions highlighted three major challenges in the proposed design.
CHALLENGE #1:
3 out of 5 users missed message indicators like ‘read’ or ‘new’
CHALLENGE #2:
A lot of information was shown in a small screen and it was overwhelming
CHALLENGE #3:
Users found it difficult to understand what signing up for "Paperless" meant.
DESIGN IMPROVEMENTS
With valuable insights gained from usability testing, we implemented modified solutions in the final designs. The images below highlight the improvements made following the usability sessions:
Improvement #1:
Noticeable Status Indicators
Pain Point: Some message statuses were difficult to notice or interpret
Solution: Enhance the indicators to be more explicit and visually distinct by making them bolder
Improvement #2:
Prioritize Readability
Pain Point: Users found that displaying both the title and mail preview was overwhelming on a small screen
Solution: Limit the displayed content and reduce the number of emails shown
Improvement #3:
Provide Contexts
Pain Point: Some users were confused by the term ‘Paperless’
Solution: Provide additional context and explanations about what ‘Paperless’ means and its benefits
3. Deliver
FINAL DESIGN DEMO
Here’s how our research findings and design improvements came together in the final design. Each video highlights one of the three main flows of the project, showing how users can interact with the new Mail Center feature.
Flow #1: Sign-In & Pop-Up Reminder
Lets users sign in or register for the app
After logging in, users will see a quarterly pop-up reminder if they haven't signed up for Paperless
Flow #2: Mail Center Navigation
Easy navigation to the Mail Center from the homepage
New filter and sort features enable users to customize the Mail Center to suit their needs
Flow #3: Signing up for Paperless via Mail Center
One of the primary ways to sign up for the Paperless option, now with increased visibility
More context on what to expect when signing up for Paperless
IMPACTS
Following the launch of the Mail Center feature in Spring 2022, our client provided statistics that highlight its significant impact. Here are some of the key contributions that Mail Center made:
TAKEAWAYS
Takeaway #1:
I would love to to continue enhancing the accessibility of MyCO
Takeaway #2:
Interviewing users and observing their interactions taught me to design with their perspective in mind
Takeaway #3:
I’d like to explore whether a survey could have provided a more accurate view of our users' experiences
Takeaway #4:
I learned how a UX designer balances multiple responsibilities and wears many hats on a project.
