The Donovan Venom Practice Time Tracker Design
Project Summary:
I redesigned an EdTech product that wasn't built for its young users, cutting the features that added friction and rebuilding the core flow around how they actually behaved, which lifted task success 75% and reduced errors 77%.
The Donovan Venom Practice Time Tracker Design
Project Summary:
I redesigned an EdTech product that wasn't built for its young users, cutting the features that added friction and rebuilding the core flow around how they actually behaved, which lifted task success 75% and reduced errors 77%.
Design
Home of Practice Tracker
On the time tracker's home page, users can view all the trackers they created. They can also use search and filters to precisely locate the trackers they want to access.
Creating a New Tracker
Compared to the old tracker creation process, the new user flow reduces the 4-page steps to just 1 page, drastically lifting core task success by 75% and reducing errors by 77%.
Practice Along & Track Progress
Under each tracker, users can practice and record alongside the music track to monitor their performance. They can also keep track of their practice time and ensure they are achieving short-term and long-term goals.
Design
Home of Practice Tracker
On the time tracker's home page, users can view all the trackers they created. They can also use search and filters to precisely locate the trackers they want to access.
Creating a New Tracker
Compared to the old tracker creation process, the new user flow reduces the 4-page steps to just 1 page, drastically lifting core task success by 75% and reducing errors by 77%.
Practice Along & Track Progress
Under each tracker, users can practice and record alongside the music track to monitor their performance. They can also keep track of their practice time and ensure they are achieving short-term and long-term goals.
Design
Home of Practice Tracker
On the time tracker's home page, users can view all the trackers they created. They can also use search and filters to precisely locate the trackers they want to access.
Creating a New Tracker
Compared to the old tracker creation process, the new user flow reduces the 4-page steps to just 1 page, drastically lifting core task success by 75% and reducing errors by 77%.
Practice Along & Track Progress
Under each tracker, users can practice and record alongside the music track to monitor their performance. They can also keep track of their practice time and ensure they are achieving short-term and long-term goals.
Design
Home of Practice Tracker
On the time tracker's home page, users can view all the trackers they created. They can also use search and filters to precisely locate the trackers they want to access.
Creating a New Tracker
Compared to the old tracker creation process, the new user flow reduces the 4-page steps to just 1 page, drastically lifting core task success by 75% and reducing errors by 77%.
Practice Along & Track Progress
Under each tracker, users can practice and record alongside the music track to monitor their performance. They can also keep track of their practice time and ensure they are achieving short-term and long-term goals.
Fixing The Design Process
A Messy Beginning
The first design rounds weren't landing. The PM and I were stuck in a loop: I'd revise, they'd respond, and the work kept changing without getting better. We were trading opinions with no shared evidence, optimizing features without checking whether we'd even found the real problem.
Bringing in Data to Streamline the Process
Research wasn't within the project scope, but the loop wouldn't break without evidence, so I ran usability testing directly with target users. The goal was twofold: to find where users actually struggled in the core flow and to audit the experience against accessibility standards. Real behavior turned a subjective back-and-forth into a clear, prioritized list of what to fix.
Task 1: Create a music practice tracker
Task 2: Check weekly progress with a tracker
Task 3: Practice and save the recording with a tracker
Key Insights:
Young users (children ages 6-12) found it hard to create a tracker due to the lengthy 3-step process.
Advanced tracker features added traction during the tracker creation process and are not needed.
UX writing and color contrast hurt accessibility, especially for young users.
A New Path Forward
With data on the table, the PM and I stopped trading opinions and started solving the right problem together. We cut features that added cognitive load rather than polishing them, rebuilt the core flow around real behavior, and closed the accessibility gaps the audit surfaced. The redesign lifted task success by 75% and reduced errors by 77% compared to the original web application.
Fixing The Design Process
A Messy Beginning
The first design rounds weren't landing. The PM and I were stuck in a loop: I'd revise, they'd respond, and the work kept changing without getting better. We were trading opinions with no shared evidence, optimizing features without checking whether we'd even found the real problem.
Bringing in Data to Streamline the Process
Research wasn't within the project scope, but the loop wouldn't break without evidence, so I ran usability testing directly with target users. The goal was twofold: to find where users actually struggled in the core flow and to audit the experience against accessibility standards. Real behavior turned a subjective back-and-forth into a clear, prioritized list of what to fix.
Task 1: Create a music practice tracker
Task 2: Check weekly progress with a tracker
Task 3: Practice and save the recording with a tracker
Key Insights:
Young users (children ages 6-12) found it hard to create a tracker due to the lengthy 3-step process.
Advanced tracker features added traction during the tracker creation process and are not needed.
UX writing and color contrast hurt accessibility, especially for young users.
A New Path Forward
With data on the table, the PM and I stopped trading opinions and started solving the right problem together. We cut features that added cognitive load rather than polishing them, rebuilt the core flow around real behavior, and closed the accessibility gaps the audit surfaced. The redesign lifted task success by 75% and reduced errors by 77% compared to the original web application.
Fixing The Design Process
A Messy Beginning
The first design rounds weren't landing. The PM and I were stuck in a loop: I'd revise, they'd respond, and the work kept changing without getting better. We were trading opinions with no shared evidence, optimizing features without checking whether we'd even found the real problem.
Bringing in Data to Streamline the Process
Research wasn't within the project scope, but the loop wouldn't break without evidence, so I ran usability testing directly with target users. The goal was twofold: to find where users actually struggled in the core flow and to audit the experience against accessibility standards. Real behavior turned a subjective back-and-forth into a clear, prioritized list of what to fix.
Task 1: Create a music practice tracker
Task 2: Check weekly progress with a tracker
Task 3: Practice and save the recording with a tracker
Key Insights:
Young users (children ages 6-12) found it hard to create a tracker due to the lengthy 3-step process.
Advanced tracker features added traction during the tracker creation process and are not needed.
UX writing and color contrast hurt accessibility, especially for young users.
A New Path Forward
With data on the table, the PM and I stopped trading opinions and started solving the right problem together. We cut features that added cognitive load rather than polishing them, rebuilt the core flow around real behavior, and closed the accessibility gaps the audit surfaced. The redesign lifted task success by 75% and reduced errors by 77% compared to the original web application.
Fixing The Design Process
A Messy Beginning
The first design rounds weren't landing. The PM and I were stuck in a loop: I'd revise, they'd respond, and the work kept changing without getting better. We were trading opinions with no shared evidence, optimizing features without checking whether we'd even found the real problem.
Bringing in Data to Streamline the Process
Research wasn't within the project scope, but the loop wouldn't break without evidence, so I ran usability testing directly with target users. The goal was twofold: to find where users actually struggled in the core flow and to audit the experience against accessibility standards. Real behavior turned a subjective back-and-forth into a clear, prioritized list of what to fix.
Task 1: Create a music practice tracker
Task 2: Check weekly progress with a tracker
Task 3: Practice and save the recording with a tracker
Key Insights:
Young users (children ages 6-12) found it hard to create a tracker due to the lengthy 3-step process.
Advanced tracker features added traction during the tracker creation process and are not needed.
UX writing and color contrast hurt accessibility, especially for young users.
A New Path Forward
With data on the table, the PM and I stopped trading opinions and started solving the right problem together. We cut features that added cognitive load rather than polishing them, rebuilt the core flow around real behavior, and closed the accessibility gaps the audit surfaced. The redesign lifted task success by 75% and reduced errors by 77% compared to the original web application.