Back
Social Management
Constant Contact • Mobile
My Role
Product Design
User Experience
Interaction
My Team
Glenn Brannely
Gyorgy Grell
Jake Levy
Ben Sweet
Linda Borghesani
My Tools
Figma
Notion
Jira
User Testing
Description
A strategic redesign of the mobile social posting experience, aimed at helping small business owners create smarter content faster without adding complexity. The project led to a 40% increase in daily engagement and a 23% boost in satisfaction among mobile users.
Context
“I just want to post something quick and move on.”
That sentence came up early in our research, and it stuck with me. It was from a small business owner who ran everything herself - inventory, customer support, scheduling - and squeezed in marketing whenever she could. She was not lazy. She was overwhelmed.
At the time, Constant Contact’s mobile social tool gave users what they asked for: a fast way to post across Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and Twitter. But the design was quietly encouraging bad habits. People were posting the same message and image to every platform, often with broken formatting, cropped visuals, or poor engagement. They did not know they were doing it wrong. And we were not helping them do it better.
The deeper we looked, the more this pattern emerged. Users were not exploring platform specific tools, were not previewing posts, and had no idea how their content was performing. Even scheduling, a feature they claimed to want, was buried and barely used.
The challenge was not just usability. It was trust. We needed to keep the experience fast and familiar, but guide users toward better habits, all without making the tool feel heavier or harder to use.We also had limitations. We could not wipe the slate clean. The existing system was live and in use by tens of thousands of customers. Platform APIs, especially for Instagram and Facebook, restricted what we could change. So we had to work in phases, fixing the friction while setting up for smarter AI powered workflows later.
My Role
I led UX design for the full redesign of the social posting experience in the mobile app. I worked closely with product, research, and engineering to rethink the core flows, simplify the interface, and embed lightweight coaching into the experience. I also helped define the roadmap for improvements tied to future automation.
I developed the content strategy, created prototypes for testing, and partnered with research to validate everything from layout to tone. My goal was to reduce guesswork, build trust, and help users market more effectively without even realizing they were learning.
Key insights and decisions
Users trusted the product more than they should
In interviews, people said they assumed everything would just work. They did not realize Instagram would crop their images or that identical posts would underperform. This trust gap made education tricky. Too much, and we would overwhelm them. Too little, and we would leave them stuck.
The design needed to change behavior without adding friction
We introduced small, intentional nudges:
• Platform specific tips while composing posts
• Dynamic previews showing how content would appear on each channel
• Soft warnings when content might not perform wellThese were not modal walkthroughs or heavy handed prompts. They were just enough to make users pause and consider improving their message.
Scheduling tools were too hidden
Even though users said they wanted to plan ahead, most did not use the scheduler. We made it more visible and integrated it into the natural flow. No deep menus, no extra effort. Usage went up.
Users had stopped checking engagement metrics
The data was there, just buried. We redesigned post management to surface relevant stats inline, giving users a reason to look without making it feel like work. One user said, “I didn’t think it was worth checking until now.”
Results and User Feedback
The results spoke clearly:
• 40 percent increase in daily engagement
• 25 percent improvement in satisfaction among mobile users
• More users customizing posts for each platform
• Increased scheduling and metrics engagementIn moderated sessions, users expressed relief. One said, “I didn’t know I needed this until I used it.” Another said, “It feels like it’s helping me, not lecturing me.” That shift from tool to assistant was the outcome we wanted.
Takeaway
This project reminded me that good design does not just support behavior. It shapes it.
We did not add new features. We made existing ones visible, understandable, and useful. We did not block bad habits. We gently redirected them. The value came not from adding power to the tool, but from helping users feel more powerful using it.
Back
Social Management
Constant Contact • Mobile
My Role
Product Design
User Experience
Interaction
My Team
Glenn Brannely
Gyorgy Grell
Jake Levy
Ben Sweet
Linda Borghesani
My Tools
Figma
Notion
Jira
User Testing
Description
A strategic redesign of the mobile social posting experience, aimed at helping small business owners create smarter content faster without adding complexity. The project led to a 40% increase in daily engagement and a 23% boost in satisfaction among mobile users.
Context
“I just want to post something quick and move on.”
That sentence came up early in our research, and it stuck with me. It was from a small business owner who ran everything herself - inventory, customer support, scheduling - and squeezed in marketing whenever she could. She was not lazy. She was overwhelmed.
At the time, Constant Contact’s mobile social tool gave users what they asked for: a fast way to post across Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and Twitter. But the design was quietly encouraging bad habits. People were posting the same message and image to every platform, often with broken formatting, cropped visuals, or poor engagement. They did not know they were doing it wrong. And we were not helping them do it better.
The deeper we looked, the more this pattern emerged. Users were not exploring platform specific tools, were not previewing posts, and had no idea how their content was performing. Even scheduling, a feature they claimed to want, was buried and barely used.
The challenge was not just usability. It was trust. We needed to keep the experience fast and familiar, but guide users toward better habits, all without making the tool feel heavier or harder to use.We also had limitations. We could not wipe the slate clean. The existing system was live and in use by tens of thousands of customers. Platform APIs, especially for Instagram and Facebook, restricted what we could change. So we had to work in phases, fixing the friction while setting up for smarter AI powered workflows later.
My Role
I led UX design for the full redesign of the social posting experience in the mobile app. I worked closely with product, research, and engineering to rethink the core flows, simplify the interface, and embed lightweight coaching into the experience. I also helped define the roadmap for improvements tied to future automation.
I developed the content strategy, created prototypes for testing, and partnered with research to validate everything from layout to tone. My goal was to reduce guesswork, build trust, and help users market more effectively without even realizing they were learning.
Key insights and decisions
Users trusted the product more than they should
In interviews, people said they assumed everything would just work. They did not realize Instagram would crop their images or that identical posts would underperform. This trust gap made education tricky. Too much, and we would overwhelm them. Too little, and we would leave them stuck.
The design needed to change behavior without adding friction
We introduced small, intentional nudges:
• Platform specific tips while composing posts
• Dynamic previews showing how content would appear on each channel
• Soft warnings when content might not perform wellThese were not modal walkthroughs or heavy handed prompts. They were just enough to make users pause and consider improving their message.
Scheduling tools were too hidden
Even though users said they wanted to plan ahead, most did not use the scheduler. We made it more visible and integrated it into the natural flow. No deep menus, no extra effort. Usage went up.
Users had stopped checking engagement metrics
The data was there, just buried. We redesigned post management to surface relevant stats inline, giving users a reason to look without making it feel like work. One user said, “I didn’t think it was worth checking until now.”
Results and User Feedback
The results spoke clearly:
• 40 percent increase in daily engagement
• 25 percent improvement in satisfaction among mobile users
• More users customizing posts for each platform
• Increased scheduling and metrics engagementIn moderated sessions, users expressed relief. One said, “I didn’t know I needed this until I used it.” Another said, “It feels like it’s helping me, not lecturing me.” That shift from tool to assistant was the outcome we wanted.
Takeaway
This project reminded me that good design does not just support behavior. It shapes it.
We did not add new features. We made existing ones visible, understandable, and useful. We did not block bad habits. We gently redirected them. The value came not from adding power to the tool, but from helping users feel more powerful using it.
I design for teams that care about doing it right
Get in touch, or send me a cat video
