The Collaboratory tool that provides AI-powered search capabilities that make research easier, faster, and more efficient. The Collaboratory CEO, Nick Lilovich approached us to revamp the existing product and update the marketing landing page to support Collaboratory’s business growth. The powerful search capabilities of the tool allow companies to easily search for files stored in their ELN, Sharepoint, Box.com, network storage, and more. The tool reduces the need for complex and costly integrations across platforms. The product enables teams to quickly locate specific figures, images, and diagrams within internal and public documents. It reduces time spent scrolling, searching, and hunting for specific visuals. Collaboratory also offers a literature review feature that will consider the parameters provided, leverage existing content, and generate a highly curated list of articles, so that the team can get straight to the information they need. This project required Slick to understand the value provided by the AI-powered tool and redesign the website to communicate that value to Collaboratory’s customers.
Analyzed the entire all its flows and identified the pain points.
Slick team revamped the product look n feel
Identified potential improvements and analyzed metrics
Private Search
One of the core features that we improved was the Private Search tool. The Collaboratory wanted to provide their customers with a solution to reduce time spent searching through internal documentation that might be stored across several platforms. The Private Search tool allows customers to retrieve internal information, including graphics and data and reduces the time spent sorting through vast storages of information. We wanted to make this feature more prominent and easier to navigate. We identified a use case where customers would need to alternate between searching private and public documents to curate content. To solve the user problem here, we designed an easy switcher functionality that made alternating from Public to Private Search more intuitive. We also implemented conversational UX, utilizing a smoother, more natural language-based interface that would assist the user in easily navigating the Private Search tool.
Refine search
Through our initial discovery phase and user research process, we identified a feature that could be improved that would have a high impact The Collaboratory’s users. The Refine Search feature allows users to enter a search term and provide feedback on the results with a simple click that gathers sentiment. The product is able to use this feedback and AI to filter results for customers, providing more personalized content to suit the user’s needs. When we started this project, the feature was rarely used to the full extent of its capabilities. This left a core feature of the product unused. We were able to identify the problems with this feature and redesign the UI to improve visibility and usability. Our redesign led to an increase in usage of the tool and a higher rate of users completing the flow. This solution benefited The Collaboratory by reducing bounce rates, increasing engagement and conversion rates, and providing them with valuable insights into their users’ behaviors and preferences.
The process
We partnered with The Collaboratory team to ensure our process was transparent and our goals were aligned. At Slick, we’ve worked with dozens of companies. We know that thoroughly evaluating the existing product is critical to achieving a successful redesign that will improve the user experience and drive the product’s growth. We conducted a comprehensive analysis of the product’s current state, reviewing the existing features, functionality, and user journey. The Collaboratory provided Slick with all the context needed, including web analytics data, user interview feedback, and stakeholder insights. This level of coordination between teams set us up for success.
We initialized the wireframing phase to validate that all team members involved were in alignment and understood the goals of this redesign. Creating this low fidelity vision of the interface allowed for early identification and correction of design flaws and usability issues, reducing the need for costly redesigns and development changes down the road. Once we had a clear understanding of the project requirements, we transitioned to the UI design phase of our journey. Our design team, primed with user research and a clear vision for the product, were ready to use their product thinking skills and design talents to create an aesthetically appealing, intuitive, and user-friendly interface.
Client
They were very responsive - I never waited more than a day for a response to one of our queries. We're very pleased with the deliverables from their team, and how well they collaborated with our team
