
Taíno World Project – Phase 2
Project Overview
Project: Taíno World
Role: UXR Apprentice
Phase: 2 – Building an Immersive Website for Future Conferences
Duration: 8 Weeks
Objective: To design a user-centered, immersive digital experience that supports Taíno World’s mission to celebrate and preserve Taíno heritage. This phase aimed to establish a virtual conference platform for Taíno descendants and culture enthusiasts, enabling access to resources, events, and cultural content.
Scope of Work
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Conduct qualitative research and data analysis on user needs.
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Create detailed personas, empathy maps, and user journey maps.
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Develop usability testing scripts and questions.
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Present findings to cross-functional teams and clients to align on user needs and priorities.
Client Needs
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The client required a culturally authentic, accessible, and immersive platform that:
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Engages Taíno descendants and enthusiasts.
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Provides bilingual support (English and Spanish).
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Offers virtual conference capabilities, including live streaming, recorded sessions, and interactive features.
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Serves as a comprehensive resource hub for Taíno culture, history, and events.
Problem
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Users faced several challenges when engaging with Taíno cultural content online, including:
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Limited Reliable Information: Users reported difficulty finding accurate, up-to-date content on Taíno culture.
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Language Barriers: With a diverse linguistic audience, many users felt restricted in accessing bilingual resources.
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Event Accessibility: Limited virtual event options and networking opportunities left users feeling disconnected from the community.
UX Research Process
Qualitative Analysis
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Conducted in-depth interviews with Taíno descendants and culture enthusiasts.
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Coded and tagged interview data in Dovetail to identify themes, pain points, and user motivations.
Data Analysis
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Used Dovetail tagging to categorize and synthesize data, identifying three core pain points:
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Accessibility of reliable information.
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Need for bilingual support.
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Limited engagement in cultural events and networking.
Persona Development
Created two primary personas: Taíno Descendant and Culture Enthusiast, each representing unique user journeys and needs
Empathy Mapping
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Developed empathy maps for each persona, capturing their emotions, thoughts, and motivations to guide the platform’s design and content strategy
User Journey Mapping
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Outlined user journey maps to visualize critical touchpoints, such as accessing resources, registering for events, and interacting with the community.
Usability Testing Preparation
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Designed usability testing scripts and questions to gather feedback on the initial wireframes, focusing on accessibility, user experience, and content relevance
Presentations
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Presented research findings, personas, and journey maps to the cross-functional team and clients, aligning stakeholders on key user insights and informing the next design steps.
Outcome
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Based on our research and data analysis, the team identified three key pain points that informed the design. The design team created wireframes focusing on:
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Easy navigation with bilingual content support.
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Virtual event options with interactive and accessible features.
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A comprehensive Taíno resource hub.
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The wireframes were approved by the client, marking a successful transition to Phase 3, where usability testing will refine the design based on user and client feedback.
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This case study highlights a user-centered approach, showcasing how qualitative research, persona development, and data-driven insights can shape an accessible, engaging digital platform for cultural immersion and community building.