“It Makes Me Feel Like a Bad Mom”:
Tone Matters in a New Healthcare Website
The Project.
Two large health organizations merged and needed to unify more than a dozen different websites across state borders into a single user experience. They also wanted to know more about super-users in the healthcare decision-making space: moms. The client created a design concept and new features for a website prototype without any benchmark data and our team designed a generative research study with selective evaluative tasks.
My Role.
I was part of a four-person team and contributed to participant recruiting, crafting usability testing tasks, and led the synthesis of insights about tone, voice, and navigability.
Three Significant Insights.
Participants desired a credible voice and straightforward tone to help them make
confident decisions; a whimsical tone risked misinterpretation, increased anxiety, or even guilt.
Participants looked for personal pronouns (“find my doctor” not “find a doctor”) to guide their understanding of and expectations for site personalization.
Chatbots or conversation assistants were seen as valuable features and time-saving alternatives to calling nurse line. The new Mother’s Little Helper?
Want to read more of our insights? Continue reading to find out more about tone and voice findings.
Qualitative user research helped us understand the emotional journey of moms seeking health care.
Ambiguity and whimsy in website copy led to significant user anxiety.
Sample recommendation slide delivered to clients.
Impact
Regarding our insights about tone and voice, the Client’s Lead Project Designer said “this is new information to us and we would love more info!” and “Brilliant!! Loved this!”