The Challenge

Designing a branded website to attract and retain the right clientele for Laura Baldwin, LCSW

Laura Baldwin is a licensed clinical social worker based in Atlanta, GA. She currently provides counseling at Kennesaw State University. Laura plans on starting her own private practice early next year where she will provide women with mental health support through perinatal counseling. As a group of women Product Designers, we were thrilled to be a part of this journey by designing and creating her website. We were tasked with designing an attractive website so that Laura could build her clientele.

Tools

Figma
Keynote 
Squarespace
Zoom

Methods

Business analysis
Competitive analysis
UI comparative analysis
User interviews
Affinity Mapping
Persona development
Design studio
Sketching
Wireframing
Prototyping
Usability testing

Discovery

Competitive & Comparative Analysis

Collaborative research was conducted by the team to accrue a list of comparable sites. First, we looked to Laura’s direct competitors in Atlanta and the surrounding areas to see what was currently being offered and the design trends for the area. Then, we looked to industry leaders for aspirational comparisons. The data collected was used to discover areas of opportunity and inspire the overall website design.

Insights

• Free Consultation: It is standard to offer a free phone consultation as an intro for potential clients. Laura would like to offer a 15 min consultation to make sure she is a right fit for her clients.

• Services: Most counselors offer more than just individual sessions. Some include; Family, couple, and group counseling. Laura would like to offer couples sessions and group counseling once she starts accumulating clientele.

• Tone: most counselors practicing in Laura's area include copy about themselves throughout their websites. The overall tone being casual, warm, and inviting.

User Interviews

9 participants were interviewed remotely via Zoom or phone call to better understand the overall experience of new and expecting mothers. We wanted to learn their goals, motivations, pain points, and behaviors in order to prioritize relevant content and attract the right clients for Laura Baldwin, LCSW.

Outreach & Screening

• Pregnant or have a child 18 months or younger

• Ages 25-35 years old

Define

Who is the user?

Due to perinatal counseling being such a specific service, we knew from the beginning that our persona was a women who is currently pregnant or recently gave birth. Even with that knowledge, our research was informative and validated our assumptions.

Meet Julie, our persona. The persona is a summary of the goals, needs, and frustrations of the user. This practice helped ground the product in research by keeping the primary user in mind.

Business Needs vs. User Needs

Before beginning the Design phase, we reviewed our research and identified our goals. By doing this we define our focus and align as a team on our priorities.

The Problem

Julie, a scared new mother, needs support through the emotional journey of being a new mom because she hasn’t been feeling like herself and she wants to show up for her family.

Design

Kicking off with a design studio to explore different solutions

We began with a brief design studio. As a team, we sketched and brainstormed different solutions. Since we were starting from scratch, we wanted to allow for all possibilities while keeping the website focused and intuitive.

Style Guide & Design Inspiration

We created a style guide for branding and consistency throughout the design.

TONE
Soft, natural, calming, beautiful, peaceful 

POINT OF VIEW
A supportive resource for overwhelmed new moms.

STYLE
Feminine, elegant, clean

MOOD
Supportive, nurturing, caring, loving, understanding