POLARIS EYE & LASER

Website

Image of Polaris Eye & Laser, Inc. in desktop and mobile

SUMMARY

This website is for Polaris Eye & Laster, Inc. which is a private practice for Dr. Jeehee Kim, an ophthalmologist located in the Bay Area. She needed a website that lists the services that she can offer as a medical professional, specifically her specialization in cornea surgery.


PROJECT OVERVIEW

Challenge

Redesign the outdated and clunky website, which is difficult to navigate and does not have a good information architecture. It should feature the specializations that make Dr. Kim stand out as an ophthalmologist so that she can attract more clients located in the area.


Solution

  • Research necessary components needed for the website to succeed with its audience
  • Organize the website and improve the information architecture
  • Create a style guide so the website has a unifying theme

Role

  • UX Researcher
  • Web Designer
  • Copywriter

Time

3 months


Skills

  • Graphic Design
  • Research
  • Copy-editing

VIEW WEBSITE

RESEARCH


COMPETITIVE ANALYSIS

SPECTRUM EYE

logo for spectrum eye

CAREY VISION

logo for carey vision

STRENGTH:

  • Beautifully designed, clean, little design touches and animations that give the website charm and professionalism
  • The information architecture is clear and well organized
  • Redundancies for making appointments

STRENGTH:

  • Simple, easy to navigate, informative; has everything a user needs on a website
  • The information architecture is clear and well organized
  • Redundancies for making appointments

WEAKNESS:

  • Because the practice has several different doctors and operates in several different locations, it may be more difficult to arrange an appointment with desired opthalmologist
  • There is a lot of text about complex medical information, which may overwhelm users

WEAKNESS:

  • Banner image is basic, header image has information that may be difficult to read because it is crowded
  • Client finds the color choice and design too plain

LAURA PHAN

logo for Laura Phan, MD

SOUTH BAY

logo for South Bay optometry

STRENGTH:

  • Simple, no-frills website
  • Lacks clutter, makes it easy to go through the website
  • Single person practice, which is unusual since most websites are group practices

STRENGTH:

  • Bold and eye-catching design, stands out among competitors
  • Medical information included is simple and easy to follow by using bullet points
  • Uses images strategically and informatively

WEAKNESS:

  • Lacks images or descriptions that can clarify things for users, may be overly plain
  • Unique design comes at the cost of making the website user-friendly

WEAKNESS:

  • Strong gradient color choices can be distracting for users, especially if they struggle with their vision
  • Design may not suit website for opthalmology

USER PERSONA

ESL GRANDMOTHER

Boomer Korean Immigrant

NEWCOMER

Gen-X Man

FRIENDLY FACE

Millennial Woman

GOALS:

  • Find a practice where she can communicate with a medical professional who is fluent in Korean
  • Get the eye care that she needs to accommodate her specific needs as an elderly woman struggling with cataracts

GOALS:

  • Find an opthalmologist who can help him with his rapidly declining eyesight
  • Receive a diagnosis that can explain his health troubles and receive the treatment needed to alleviate his symptoms

GOALS:

  • Find a reliable ophthalmologist where she can receive general eye care, which may or may not include an updated prescription for her eyesight
  • Recieve care in a friendly environment

DIFFICULTIES:

  • Being able to navigate a website where she can find everything she needs as someone who is not well-versed in technology

DIFFICULTIES:

  • Being able to understand the medical terminology that he is unfamiliar with

DIFFICULTIES:

  • Finding a medical practice where she feels welcomed and cared for

SITEMAP

sitemap

STYLE GUIDE

style guide

COPYWRITING

The client had a series of documents detailing different medical conditions and surgical procedures that she wanted to put on the website. However, it was significantly more detailed and complex such that the layperson would struggle to understand the medical terminology and go through the dense material. The goal was to make sure that the information was accessible enough for the users to easily read and understand. I went through the documents and simplified the language; however, because the client wanted to maintain the integrity of the original document as much as possible, we also had to compromise on the final document.


FINAL WEBSITE

We published the website on Wix mainly because the client wanted the freedom to edit the material herself. Previously, she had her website managed by a design studio and she did not like that she had to ask them to make changes, especially since they were often slow to get back to her. Because Wix happened to have the easiest UI for her and included business features that can help her take appointments from her clients, we decided that this would best suit her needs.

VIEW WEBSITE

WHAT I LEARNED

It was interesting to complete this project while working closely with a client who doesn’t have any knowledge about design principles. The client favored a brutalist style and wanted this website to accommodate her aesthetic choices, even though it would go against the font hierarchy, color scheme, or the style guide in general. We managed to negotiate things such that she was able to be satisfied with the final product while maintaining some consistency with the design choices. I came out of this experience learning that it was important to be able to work with a client to figure out what they want and make compromises as needed, according to the situation at hand.


CONTACT