MFA Redesign

Usability Test on Existing MFA Website

I conducted online moderated usability testing on the existing MFA website to evaluate its usability and content quality. The test had two main objectives: first, to identify pain points in the user flow of key website features and propose an improved information structure; second, to explore new virtual content opportunities to enhance the website experience, as requested by the MFA Asia Art committee.

Study Method: This formative assessment used online moderated usability testing to evaluate the website's ease of use and identify user pain points.
① 10 volunteers participated in testing either in person or remotely via Zoom screen sharing.
② Volunteers completed specific tasks and provided overall satisfaction ratings for their website experience.

Task1: Find the Japanese Print "Actors Sawamura Yodogorô II as Kawatsura Hôgen and Bandô Zenji as Oninosadobô" and browse the collections.
Task 2: Check out the latest exhibition of MFA Asia Art.
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Task 1 Summary: Lack of direct navigation to collection search:
Six out of ten participants used the top menu bar's search function to find the collection, which redirected them to a separate collection search engine. The remaining four participants found the Japanese print collection by scrolling to the highlights section at the bottom of the page.
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Task 2 Summary: Users had difficulty finding current exhibitions and expressed confusion between the exhibition and gallery features.‍
⭕2/10 participants clicked on the image slider, expecting it leads to the latest exhibition.
⭕4/10 participants clicked on Exhibition button on the top menu bar.
⭕6/10 participants clicked on Related Exhibitions on the side.
⭕2/10 participants clicked Related Galleries, expecting exhibition info. Easy navigation to Collections, Exhibitions, and Galleries.

Design Recommendations:
✔️ Create intuitive navigation for Collections, Exhibitions, and Galleries.
✔️Prioritized featured contents.
✔️Develop a distinctive Asian art web identity
✔️Balance visual proportions between media and text.
✔️Maintain consistent graphic style for titles, menu navigation, and image layout.

Features to keep:
Landing Page:
•Image slideshow •Videos •Exhibition highlights
Collections Page:
•Collection filter •Text description •Social media share •Resource download

Features to add:
Landing Page:
•Image slideshow •Videos •Exhibition highlights
Collections Page:
•Collection filter •Text description •Social media share •Resource download

User Research

Our audience includes the general public, both from the Boston area and anywhere with Internet access. A key advantage of virtual exhibitions is that they provide interactive, hands-on experiences through digital devices. To understand both MFA's redesign goals and public sentiment regarding this shift in museum experience, we conducted interviews to gather feedback about the current website.