Problem Statement
Creators on Stck.me want more control over their online brand and a professional look. Creators with limited technical skills struggle to use their own domains and updating a website can be a hassle, making it hard to create a seamless online presence. Therefore, it's clear that there's a need for an easy way for creators to integrate and manage custom domain names on Stck.me.
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Professionalism and Credibility: Creators struggle to appear professional and credible with standard Stck.me URLs.
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Technical Challenges: Creators with little technical expertise find it difficult to set up and manage custom domains.
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Ease of access: Since many creators have limited technical expertise, we prioritize creating straightforward interfaces. Additionally, we're developing documentation or tutorials to guide users through the process of adding their domain names.
Goals
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Simplify Domain Management: We're building an interface that's easy to use and understand, making it simple for creators to integrate and manage their custom domains, even if they're not tech-savvy. Plus, we're putting together helpful documentation to walk you through setting up and solving any issues with your domain.
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Support Flexibility and Scalability: Design the custom domain feature to be flexible, allowing creators to update or change their domain settings as their brand evolves. Ensure that the feature can scale to accommodate a growing number of users and increased demand for custom domains.
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Enhance Brand Identity & Improve Professionalism: Enable creators to replace default Stck.me URLs with personalized domain names that reflect their unique brand identity.
Target audience
Users who are looking for a way to enhance their written work, stories, etc. using visually captivating images.
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Authors and Novelists: Writers who work on long-form fiction or non-fiction projects.
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Comic Writers: Creators specializing in comic book and graphic novel writing, leveraging Picto AI to enhance and visualize their narratives through dynamic and captivating visuals.
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Storytellers and Scriptwriters: Individuals engaged in crafting narratives for various mediums, such as film, television, or digital media, interested in visualizing aspects of their storytelling.
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Bloggers and Content Writers: Individuals who regularly produce written content for blogs, websites, or online platforms.
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Online Platform Contributors: Writers contributing to online platforms, forums, and communities.
Research methods
To gather valuable insights various research methods were employed. Some research methods:
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Technical Feasibility Studies: Evaluate the technical requirements and challenges of integrating custom domains. Domain registrar compatibility, DNS settings, SSL certification, and security measures.
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Interviews with Creators: Gather quantitative data on user preferences, technical skills, and demand for custom domains. Obtain qualitative insights and deeper understanding of user needs, challenges, and expectations.
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Competitor Analysis: Identify best practices and features offered by competitors in the market.
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User Journey Mapping: Visualize and understand the steps users take from discovering the custom domain feature to successfully setting it up and using it.
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Analytics and Usage Data: Continuously monitor the performance and adoption of the custom domain feature post-launch.
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Usability Testing: Assess the user-friendliness and efficiency of the custom domain setup process.
Wireframes & User journey
The primary goal of wireframing is to establish a clear blueprint for how users will interact with the custom domain integration process, ensuring an intuitive and seamless user experience. We included notes and questions along the way to encourage collaboration and address any user concerns.
Visual Designs
We collaborated in a fast-paced environment, iterating swiftly alongside co-founders and the engineering team to develop a high-fidelity prototype. In addition to visuals, I took on the task of coding HTML, SCSS, and some JS.
Entry Point
You can access the option to add your custom domain by going to the settings section and navigating to the "Pro Features" menu inside the hamburger icon.
Setup Flow
After clicking "Get Started," users are directed to a setup screen for custom domain configuration. Here, they can select their domain provider, enter their domain name, and add the CNAME alias to their DNS provider. We've designed this process to be user-friendly, allowing users to easily copy and paste the required values.
Before rolling out ....
We did Pilot Testing in the beta version with a small group of users. In this stage we checked user feedback on functionality, ease of use, and any encountered issues.
Through our research, we discovered that many users were skipping step 3, where they needed to add the CNAME alias. To address this, we made a small adjustment to the design. We moved step 3 to the next stage and added a checkbox to confirm if users had updated the CNAME in their DNS. Additionally, we refined the UX copy to provide clear guidance to users at each stage.
Updated designs below:
After implementing this change, we noticed a significant decrease in failure rates. During our follow-up sessions with creators, we found that they really appreciated the new copy and the separation of steps, as it gave each stage its own importance and clarity.
Settings Screen
The custom domain section within the settings page now includes a feature to check if the domain is linked. We've incorporated a status indicator for this purpose.
Edit/Remove Domain name
After successfully linking the domain, users have the option to edit or remove domain names from their settings page. Editing follows a similar flow to the initial setup, with some adjustments to the copy. To remove a domain name, we use a full-page prompt for confirmation.
Emails
We send users an email update for each stage (Success, In Progress, or Failed) of their process. Emails below:
Results
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User Adoption Rate:
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Metric: Percentage increase in the number of new users.
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Positive Result: A 5% increase in user adoption, indicating that more people are discovering and signing up for stck.me as they found out an intuitive, user-friendly interface that guides creators through the process of integrating and managing their custom domains with minimal technical knowledge.
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Conversion Rate to Premium Features:
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Metric: Percentage increase in users upgrading to premium subscription.
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Positive Result: A 10% increase in conversion rates, indicating that users see value in premium features and are willing to subscribe.
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Even More(next steps) ...
After the successful implementation of the Custom Domain feature and witnessing the positive impact it has had on user adoption, our team is eager to embark on the next phase of enhancements and advancements.
User Feedback Collection: Conduct user surveys and focus groups to gather comprehensive feedback from our user base. Gain insights into user preferences, pain points, and expectations regarding the Custom Domain feature and other aspects of the platform.
User Interface Refinement: Analyze user feedback to identify areas for improvement in the user interface related to the Custom Domain feature. Implement changes to enhance user experience, streamline navigation, and ensure intuitive usability.
By focusing on user feedback, we aim to continue enhancing the value proposition of our platform and delivering an exceptional experience to our users.