Project DEEP Virtual Reality
Web Redesign

Background

Deep VR Website

Can a Virtual Reality Game Combat the Rising Mental Health Crisis Caused by the Pandemic?

DEEP is a meditative virtual reality (VR) game controlled by breathing, allowing players to navigate a serene underwater world. It had its initial success as a health and wellness experience shown at galleries, festivals, hospitals, and research centers.

The impact of the Covid-19 pandemic made the team realize to reevaluate the product. There was an increased demand for tools to combat rising anxiety, stress, and isolation. In addition, evidence from clinical studies has been shown to decrease players' anxiety levels.

Company Goals

  • Launch DEEP on Oculus Quest.
  • Introduce the DEEP experience to a wide audience of at-home users.
  • Continue collaborating with health and research organizations to explore other potential applications.

Website Goals

  • Lead users to play DEEP in VR.
  • Attract health and research organizations to partner up with the DEEP team.
  • Subscribe to DEEP's newsletter to receive updates and news.

Project Goal

  • To improve the information architecture of the website landing page.
Planning

The Process

Process

This 5-step process was used to complete a thorough assessment and analysis of the current website information. Finally, the insights gained from each step were applied to produce the end result, a high-fidelity wireframe of the landing page.
Process

Content Audit

Content Audit

A comprehensive assessment of the website landing page content was conducted. The details included:

  • Type of content
  • Quality of content (i.e. redundant, outdated or trivial)
  • Content decisions (i.e. keep, modify, add or delete)
Key Insights
  • Repetitive content
  • Information overload from high text density
  • Excessive amounts of hyperlinks to articles and other websites distracting users
  • Extensive information required on the contact form “Register Interest in Accessing Deep”

Current-State Site Map

A current-state site map was created to visually represent the site hierarchy and how individual web pages are related to each other. Although the primary project focus was redesigning the landing page, it is crucial to understand the information architecture as a whole system.

Key Insights
  • Excessive content displayed on the home page
  • New content grouping and labeling required
  • Location of “Privacy Policy”page misplaced in navigation bar
Process

User Research

User Persona

The primary users can be divided into two main segments: (a) individuals searching to use VR for health and (b) individuals interested in collaborating from research centers and hospitals. However, the focus was limited to the first user segment.
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A research-driven user persona Danny was created to understand the target user better. Danny is a mental health therapist burdened with increasing clients impacted by the pandemic while facing his own life challenges.

Key Insights
  • User: Danny is searching for more than just entertainment and seeking an effective solution.

    Question: "Will DEEP solve my problems?"

    Design Decision: Clear outline of the evidence-based user benefits of playing DEEP at the top of the page.
  • User: Danny owns a VR headset. He also wants to recommend DEEP to his clients.

    Question: "Which VR devices can I use to play DEEP?"

    Design Decision: Create a section dedicated to 'Compatible Devices' to play DEEP.
Process

Content Planning

Future-State Site Map

Well-known user mental models and other VR competitor website designs were utilized to create a future state site map showcasing the improved taxonomy of the landing page.

Key Insights
  • The page "Privacy Policy" was relocated to the footer of the landing page from the navigation menu bar to mirror web design best practices.
  • A new page titled "The Science" was created in the navigation bar to contain all scientific information, such as research studies, papers, and publications. The content was previously located on the home page.
  • The page "Access Deep" was renamed to "Contact Us" to align with known user mental models.
  • Condensed the excessive information displayed on the home page.
Page Hierarchy Table

The page hierarchy table is valuable for delivering the proposed content strategy. It helps prioritize the content from most to least important.
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Cognitive psychology and usability heuristics were applied to minimize cognitive load and inform design decisions. The principles of cognitive psychology include using bullet lists, imagery, and white space to make content more digestible and reduce visual clutter.

Key Changes
  • A clear value proposition and background imagery were added to the hero section.

    Before: hero section contained only the logo
  • The social proof was prioritized to the top of the page.

    Before: social proof located at the bottom
  • All three testimonial quotes, each with a user image, are grouped in one section.

    Before: each testimonial quote was dispersed randomly throughout the landing page
  • Product benefits made simple and clear in a dedicated section.

    Before: benefits overlooked and lost in dense text
  • Dedicated section for compatible devices created for reference.

    Before: unclear which VR devices are supported by DEEP
View full table here
Landing Page

Final Design

Landing Page Final Design

View Old
Design

View UX/UI
Redesign

Conclusion

Project Takeaways

Project Takeaways

User Research

I would invest additional time researching significant user segments supported by personas to ensure the website is user-friendly for all target users.

User Testing

I would have performed user testing on the high-fidelity prototype to receive constructive feedback from users to iterate on the final design.

Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

I would collaborate with the marketing and sales team to improve SEO and increase traffic site. In addition, contacting site content contributors for articles, news, and blog posts can help enhance SEO descriptors.

Research Studies

Organizing the research to distinguish past published studies from current and potential future studies can help attract relevant partners in the industry.

Janar.
Project T.I.M.E.
Project DEEP VR