Social Media Feed Simplification
The aim of this mixed-methods project is to enhance and streamline the content on a social media platform's feed.
Team
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We were a team of two user experience researchers. I was the quantitative expert and my colleague focused primarily on the qualitative side.
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Research Objectives
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Understanding how users perceive the proposed feed design compared to the current feed design
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Understanding if users can successfully discover key knowledge-seeking actions using the new feed design
Study details
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Recruitment
Respondents were recruited using the UserZoom panel
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Participants
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At least monthly users of the social media platform
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Active users (comment, like, save, etc.)
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Geographical distribution proportional to key English-speaking markets (USA, Germany, India)
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Methods
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1-1 Interviews
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Survey
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Clickthrough
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Attitudinal (Likert scale)
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Results
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Attitudinal Survey
This is an example of a graph used to showcase some of the results from the attitudinal survey, which collected user perceptions of the feed experience using Likert scales. Identifying information was blurred to preserve the confidentiality of the results.
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I analyzed the results statistically in R using T-tests followed by Cohen's D to measure effect size. I made the chart in Excel.
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Clickthrough Survey
This is an example of heatmaps aggregating the results of the clickthrough survey. Respondents were asked to perform a given action using the feed wireframe (for example, saving the post or commenting below it). The reddest areas are the most often selected as a response. The details of the designs and results have been blurred to preserve confidentiality.
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I analyzed the results statistically in R using 2-proportion Z tests and calculated the effect size based on Chi-Square coefficients.
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In this example, the task success rate was highest for Feed Y. Discoverability rate of the action was statistically significant with a large effect size.
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Recommendations and Reflection ​
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- We made recommendations to improve actions that are less discoverable in the new feed design.
- For example, we suggested modifying the design of icons based on the comments some participants made during the 1-1 interviews
- Similarly, we suggested combining a few actions under the same icon
- We highlighted the actions that became more discoverable in the new feed design compared to the current feed.
- We communicated to the stakeholders how respondents perceived each version of the feed based on our 1-1 interviews and attitudinal surveys
- We suggested adding a NUX/onboarding to educate users about changes made to the feed during the rollout.
Impact​
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- I played a key role within the testing team for the redesigned feed experience of a popular social media platform that boasts of over 300 million active users.