Portfolio: Thomson CompuMark — PowerBuild & SAEGIS Inbox

Software from Thomson CompuMark (formerly Thomson & Thomson) helps attorneys and paralegals do online research on intellectual property topics (e.g., trademarks).

PowerBuild reports contain trademark search information that Thomson CompuMark does for attorneys and paralegals. SAEGIS Inbox organizes these and other reports that the company produces. Together, they allow legal professionals to streamline their workflow while doing research and collaborating with colleagues. Also read about the design of Online Ordering for this client.

Requirements

Thomson CompuMark had many requirements for the redesign of the existing product and integration of new features. They came down to two main points:

Improve the overall user experience by improving an out-of-date UI.

Add features to retain a competitive edge and meet client requests.

The result: an improved product, tested with users

We customized the design process to suit the business and user needs. The process included:

Personas. We wrote descriptions of users and their tasks to resolve design questions and to be sure we had the right people for usability testing. (Read more about using personas.)

Iterative design. Frequent design reviews with working prototypes ensured that the design was on track and that we understood requirements as they developed.

Visual design. My partner presented visual design treatments, which we incorporated into the prototype.

Usability testing. Multiple rounds of testing with actual users showed that the new features were very useful and that the new design made improved usability. We changed the prototype design between rounds of testing so we could use what we learned right away.

A design spec. The client wrote the bulk of the spec. We reviewed it and provided annotated screen captures to show how to implement the visual design.

After and before images

The new design is more visually appealing and shows more of the data that users said they wanted.

Thomson CompuMark UI example (new version)

The new design is visually more pleasing, uses a familiar layout and makes it easier to find information.

Thomson CompuMark UI example (old version)

The original design did not show enough data. The top of the screen was dominated by options and the main data area wasn't laid out well. In this example, only two citations show, where many more show in the new design (top).

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