visible
by Verizon
Role:
Product Designer (UX Research Focus)
Duration:
6 weeks
Tools:
Figma, inDesign, Photoshop, R, Python, SPSS, Illustrator
Team:
Independent Project
It's phone service. In an App
Filters, Filters and More Filters
Wearables
"Bring my phone"
Prototypes
Overview
Visible by Verizon is an all-digital, prepaid wireless service brand, which means users rely entirely on the app for onboarding with no in-store support. Because of this, a seamless sign-up experience is important for both customer adoption and retention.
For this case study, I wanted to uncover pain points in Visible’s onboarding process and propose design improvements. I conducted 6 user interviews and usability tests, synthesized findings into themes, and translated insights into wireframes and interactive prototypes. To maintain consistency and scalability, I also recreated Visible’s design system in Figma and applied it throughout the redesigned flows.
Problem Statement
How can we make Visible’s onboarding process easier and more intuitive for users so they feel there is no need for in-store support.
“Absolutely horrible signup experience”
Average score of all reviews
3/5
Average score when interface is mentioned
2/5
Average score when app is mentioned
2.6/5
Quantitative Research
My first step was to conduct quantitative research to discover what common issues that users encountered when it came to the onboarding process. I was limited to the Google Play Store, but I was able to filter through over 10,000 reviews and find reviews that discussed in any capacity aspects of the onboarding process.
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User Quotes
I was able to discover that when app and interface were mentioned in the review the score tended to be lower than average.
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For the full quantitative research process CLICK HERE
Account
Creation
Onboarding
Registration
Setup
“Worst app I have ever used, period. Login function does not work making it impossible to access your account and do anything.”
Qualitative Research
I conducted user interviews to get familiar with the users in Visibles target demographic. Some questions included:
From the interviews, I synthesized participant feedback into two user personas that captured shared goals, behaviors, and pain points. These personas were my reference points throughout the design process to ensure solutions addressed real user needs.
User Interviews
Usability Testing
User Journeys
I made two separate user journeys for each user persona. These two user journeys tackle on both of the possible flows that new users can take.
If they decide to start the Visible Service on their own phone.
If they decide to buy a new device with Visible.
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User Personas
Get to Know the Users.
Shop New Devices User Journey.
Bring My Phone User Journey.
This highlights a core usability issue. Users should not face such unpredictable completion times for a single, simple step especially one crucial to the onboarding process. The wide variation shows that consistency should be a motivation driver for improvement.
The bootstrapped 95% confidence interval for the standard deviation was (11.49, 16.93), showing high variability in task completion times.
The bootstrapped 95% confidence interval for the mean was (39.8, 61) seconds, a wide range that reinforces the inconsistency in how long users took to complete the task.
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Statistical Testing
I conducted bootstrapping on usability test results to estimate the average time to complete an important task involved in the onboarding process, and to see variability across users. This involved running 1,000 resamples and adjusting for bias to produce a more reliable estimate.
Results
Tell me about yourself.
Starting a new service would you rather set up everything in app/online or go in person to a company store?
How long have you been with your current network provider?
After conducting usability tests, I mapped participant feedback to each screen in the onboarding flow. This approach allowed me to clearly visualize user sentiment at every step, uncover recurring pain points, and identify behavior patterns. From this, I was able to highlight the most critical problems users consistently faced during the process.
Opportunities
Wording Changes
Users often hesitated to move forward due to unclear or technical wording. While instructions eventually helped them continue, the language created moments of uncertainty. This presents an opportunity to simplify phrasing and use more user-friendly terms to build confidence throughout the flow.
Spacing
Some users struggled to navigate key features due to inconsistent spacing and layout. Improving the visual hierarchy and spacing presents an opportunity to make important information easier to find and interact with.
Transparency
Although Visible prides itself on transparency, some users felt that certain features were not presented in a way that was easily accessible. This creates an opportunity to improve the visibility and organization of key features so users can quickly find and understand them.
Filters
Most participants were confused by the filter functionality, often forgetting to deselect options or not realizing filters were still active. This indicates an opportunity to make filter states clearer and more intuitive, reducing errors and frustration.
Below are key opportunities identified from user feedback that I considered when moving into the design phase. These insights highlighted areas where the onboarding experience could be simplified, clarified, and made more intuitive.
Design System
Below are key opportunities identified from user feedback that I considered when moving into the design phase. These insights highlighted areas where the onboarding experience could be simplified, clarified, and made more intuitive.
I created a library of Visible’s current design style, which included the key components used to build wireframes. This ensured consistency across the project for typography, color, spacing, and UI elements. I designed with scalability and handoff in mind, ensuring that the system could easily support consistency if developers or collaborators were to build from it.
Low Fidelity Wireframes
Based on user feedback I wireframed multiple solution cases for the problems encountered during testing. On each of the wireframes I put a text bubble explaining why I made the change brief explanation of my thought process.
Both Wireframes Address Issues:
Confusion moving on to the next task (fixing the CTA)
Many participants were confused at the CTA and were hesitant moving forward to the next task. I made sure to note to change the CTA
Users confusion with what the IMEI was
(adds a tooltip with short and brief information)
Many participants questioned what an IMEI was. Or stated without being prompted that they don't know what an IMEI is.
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Address Issue:
Transparency with pricing
This allows users to know how much they are saving in comparison to getting a traditional monthly plan.
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Address Issues:
Spacing and typographic hierarchy also touches on consistency
Some users had a hard time locating the Visible Protect Plan. Due to the fact you can't add this feature after purchasing device I made readability and identifiability a key focus point.
3
Address Issues:
Filter Selection
Some participants forgot they had selected filters since selected filters can be hidden at times. I created four filter options.
Two followed the existing app theme.
Two introduced a new overlay filter screen where users could see and adjust their selections more clearly.
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Address Issue:
Confusion on Watch selection
Since the band appearance changes with different selections, users should be able to clearly see those updates. I moved the band option above case size, since case size does not affect the watch image. I also explored options for displaying colors on a single line or tightening spacing so users can more easily view band changes.
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High Fidelity Wireframes
Each number corresponds to the low fidelity wireframe associated with it.
With only five days to deliver high-fidelity wireframes and a prototype, I prioritized solving the most critical usability issues uncovered during research. Instead of replicating the full app, I focused on redesigning the flows where users experienced the most friction.
New Wireframes
New Wireframes
New Wireframes
New Wireframes
Original (app screenshot)
Original (app screenshot)
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New Wireframes
New Wireframes
2nd variation
2nd variation
Original (app screenshot)
Original (app screenshot)
4
New Wireframe
New Wireframe
Original (app screenshot)
Original (app screenshot)
5
Original (app screenshot)
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Original (app screenshot)
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Reflection
This project was my first independent end-to-end design initiative and provided valuable knowledge into both my design process and the realities of working within constraints. Due to limited access to typeface variations (Circular STD Medium and Light only), I had to experiment with stroke adjustments to create depth and hierarchy. While the outcome was not fully aligned with my original vision, the constraint encouraged me to think creatively, problem-solve and adapt.
This project was completed over a six-week period, from scoping through final prototyping. The compressed timeline created challenges, particularly around evaluation. While I was able to incorporate feedback from my initial interview participants, who found the prototypes innovative and responsive to their needs, I was unable to conduct formal usability testing. If resources and time had permitted, my next step would have been to implement structured statistical analysis (ANOVA testing) to determine whether the redesigned prototypes measurably improved the onboarding experience.
Despite these limitations, this project reaffirmed the importance of iteration, continuous feedback and grounding design decisions in user research. Most importantly, it highlighted how engaging and enjoyable this type of work is for me. This project gave me more confidence that I can successfully pivot into the field of product design and UX research, using the statistics and qualitative research skills I developed during my undergraduate studies. I will always look back at this project with pride, not only as proof of my determination, but as a foundational experience and a personal milestone.
This project was my first independent end-to-end design initiative and provided me with valuable knowledge into both my design process and the realities of working within constraints. Due to limited access to typeface variations (Circular STD Medium and Light only), I had to experiment with stroke adjustments to create depth and hierarchy. While the outcome was not fully aligned with my original vision, the constraint encouraged me to think creatively, problem-solve and adapt.
This project was completed over a six-week period, from scoping through final prototyping. The compressed timeline created challenges, specifically around evaluation. While I was able to incorporate feedback from my initial interview participants, who found the prototypes innovative and responsive to their needs, I was unable to conduct formal usability testing. If resources and time had permitted, my next step would have been to implement structured statistical analysis (e.g. ANOVA testing) to determine whether the redesigned prototypes measurably improved the onboarding experience.
Despite these limitations, this project reaffirmed the importance of iteration, continuous feedback and grounding design decisions in user research. Most importantly, it highlighted how engaging and enjoyable this type of work is for me. This project gave me more confidence that I can successfully pivot into the field of product design and UX research, using the statistics and qualitative research skills I developed during my time in undergrad. I will always look back at this project with pride and as a personal milestone.
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