To start things off, our team took a close look at the current partner experience. I put together a detailed, annotated site map that laid out the various user journeys by use case, highlighted areas with high abandonment risk, and pinpointed gaps in the experience. This map became the go-to guide during the discovery phase, helping the team shape the roadmap for improving the entire program.

Using our sitemap and audit as a starting point, we collaborated with stakeholders and subject matter experts to nail down the scope for each part of the partner journey and set priorities each phase of the project. Along the way, we carved out new spaces to support program updates and bridge the gap between previously separate pieces.

The original portal page, inspired by PegaSystems’ look and feel, felt a bit utilitarian and lacked warmth. By expanding into more of the brand’s color palette and teaming up with their creative marketing designers, we crafted a more inviting and engaging digital space for both new and returning partners.

Working closely with the development team, we carefully annotated the mockup pages and created a prototype for the engineers. This document laid out clear content guidelines for every page and included links to all the visuals. On top of that, we provided the client with brand-specific handoff documentation to make the entire process seamless so they could expand on the redesigned UI as the program grows.

When we passed the documentation over to the engineering team, we made sure to include a complete content schema to keep things running smoothly after the project was out of Somnio’s hands. The document featured templated schemas for every page in the program portal, along with all the existing content and images, plus sample copy for the pages where designs were still in progress.