MY APPROACH

Good research respects time and budget. A diary study paired with web surveys can generate a rich dataset at participants' own pace — and at a fraction of the cost of a full interview series. Asynchronous methods are flexible, scalable, and often underrated.

For this project, the two methods worked together: the tree test gave us quantitative weight, while the surveys helped explain the why behind what participants did.

Analog.com carries thousands of parts across dozens of categories — finding the right component can be genuinely difficult. My job was to evaluate whether a proposed reorganization would make navigation easier, or at least not make it harder. In short: could people still find the needle in the haystack?

THE WORK

I designed a mixed-method approach to put the new structure to the test. A tree test with ~100 participants told us whether people could still locate parts. A diary study with ~15 participants gave us the texture — comments, frustrations, suggestions, and quotes that numbers alone can't capture. One method was statistical; the other was human. Together, they painted a complete picture of where the redesign was working and where it wasn't.

IMPACT

The new organizational structure launched on time, with the most critical issues already resolved — no last-minute UX fires, no brand damage, no expensive post-launch redesigns. I also built in a survey mechanism to track user satisfaction with the change over time. Scores dipped initially, as they tend to with any transition, then climbed back to their previous highs.