A Complex Schema Product, Simplified
😡
Developer
Codes
Validates
Errors in Code
Track
Performance
Monitor
Health
😡
😡
😐
🙂
Customer Journey Before Schema Tool
The Challenge
Schemas Integrated by Engineers Manually
It was clear from the start of the project that there was a huge need to offer a schema tool. Today, schema integration is a complex and time-consuming process that can be error-prone.
It can also be difficult to keep up with the latest schema standards and best practices. This can have a negative impact on a website's performance, user experience, and overall profitability for businesses.
The Solution
I Shipped a Schema Markup Product
I have successfully introduced our schema product to the market, which integrates several key components. This innovative offering aims to provide substantial value to our users by incorporating the following main features:
Multi Schema
Quickly add many schema types to a webpage.
No Code Required
Easily create and deploy Schema Markup for unique webpages without any coding.
Auto-Tag
Quickly add advanced Schema Markup to thousands of similar templated pages
Monitor Schema
Monitor the existing Schema Markup to ensure it's healthy and effective. Also, measure performance and create custom reports.
Project Overview
Designing Milestone's SEO Tools
As a product design lead at Milestone, I improved our suite of web development tools. Despite our flagship product's impressive range of features, we identified a critical gap in our SEO optimization tools. To address this, I spearheaded the design of Schema, an SEO feature that would close competitive gaps, resulting in a significant increase in organic traffic and conversion rates for our users.
As a product design lead at Milestone, I improved our suite of web development tools. Despite our flagship product's impressive range of features, we identified a critical gap in our SEO optimization tools. To address this, I spearheaded the design of Schema, an SEO feature that would close competitive gaps, resulting in a significant increase in organic traffic and conversion rates for our users.
Team
1 Product Design Lead (me)
2 Product Managers
6 Engineers
2 QA
2 Product Marketing
1 Product Design Lead (me)
2 Product Managers
6 Engineers
2 QA
2 Product Marketing
1 Product Design Lead (me)
2 Product Managers
6 Engineers
2 QA
2 Product Marketing
Timeline
4 Months
4 Months
4 Months
Responsibility
Research
Strategy
Design
Prototyping
Project Management
Research
Strategy
Design
Prototyping
Manage Project
Research
Strategy
Design
Prototyping
Project Management
Results
SEO Traffic lift from 25%-140%.
2022 US Search Awards: Best Software Innovation.
2022 Adrian Award.
SEO Traffic lift from 25%-125%
2022 Award: Best Software Innovation
2022 Adrian Award
SEO Traffic lift from 25%-125%
2022 Award: Best Software Innovation
2022 Adrian Award
Customer Journey Before Schema Tool
😡
Developer
Codes
Validates
Errors in Code
Track
Performance
Monitor
Health
😡
😡
😐
🙂
The Challenge
Engineers Manually Integrated Schemas
It was clear from the start of the project that there was a huge need to offer a schema tool because most competitors were already offering this.
Today, schema integration is a complex and time-consuming process that can be error-prone. It can also be difficult to keep up with the latest schema standards and best practices. This can have a negative impact on a website's performance, user experience, and overall profitability for businesses.
The Solution
I Shipped a Schema Markup Product
I have successfully introduced our schema product to the market, which integrates several key components. This innovative offering aims to provide substantial value to our users by incorporating the following main features:
Multi Schema
Quickly add many schema types to a webpage.
No Code Required
No Code Required
Easily create and deploy Schema Markup for unique webpages without any coding.
Auto-Tag
Auto-Tag
Quickly add advanced Schema Markup to thousands of similar templated pages
Monitor Schema
Monitor the existing Schema Markup to ensure it's healthy and effective. Also, measure performance and create custom reports.
Discovery
The Research Interviews Uncovered 3 Opportunities
An All-In-One Solution
I saw an untapped opportunity in the market - a lack of solutions that integrated schema markup with performance tools. By developing a tool that combined both, we could eliminate the need for context switching and provide users with an all-in-one solution.
Milestone replaces all 6 of these software products
Process
I Led This 16 Week Project From
Research Through Launch
3 weeks
Discovery
Planned and conducted 20 remote interviews with customer service agents, SEO team, key stakeholders, and users to understand gaps in existing Schema Products.
4 weeks
Strategy
Identified and prioritized the differentiated features for the schema markup product while collaborating with the PM, CSM, Stakeholders.
4 weeks
Design
Mapped and designed key user flows for first time user and repeat user to ensure that our web development tools are intuitive, and integrated with Milestone’s other products.
Mapped and designed key user flows for first time user and repeat user to ensure that our web development tools are intuitive, easy to use, and integrated seamlessly with our other products.
5 weeks
Prototype & Test…
Created several interactive prototypes.
Conducted remote usability testing with 10 participants and optimized key parts of the user flow to identify pain points and areas for improvement.
Discovery
The Research Interviews Uncovered 3 Opportunities
An All-In-One Solution
I saw an untapped opportunity in the market - a lack of solutions that integrated schema markup with performance tools. By developing a tool that combined both, we could eliminate the need for context switching and provide users with an all-in-one solution.
Milestone replaces all 6 of these software products
Visualize Schema Entities
I observed users struggled with visualizing schema entities, which made it difficult to effectively manage their data. By incorporating a visualizer into our tool, I aimed to provide our users with a comprehensive and seamless experience.
Setup Schema Easily
It was painful to setup schemas in most competitors. I proposed the inclusion of all website URLs into our platform for easier setup.
Alignment
Convincing Stakeholders to Expand Scope
Expanding the scope of a project can be challenging, especially when it involves convincing stakeholders to invest more time and resources.
To expand the scope of the project, I put together a pitch which included concept tests, competitor eval and opinions from industry experts. I organized an alignment workshop where I facilitated a discussion around addressing these opportunities in the project.
Frustration with frequent context switching and losing track of tabs
Frustration with frequent context switching and losing track of tabs
Through the alignment workshop, the stakeholders were able to see the value of expanding the scope of the project and addressing the identified opportunities. The workshop helped to create a shared understanding of the project's potential and the benefits of incorporating the new functionality. As a result, the stakeholders were convinced to expand the scope of the project to include the all-in-one solution, visual schema entities, and first-time and repeat user flows.
Design
First I Mapped Out the User Flow
Setting up schemas was complex, so I designed a guided flow for our product. The diagram illustrates two main flows: the setup flow and the ongoing schema flow.
Design
Narrowing it down to 3 Options
After conducting user research and competitive analysis, as well as creating sketches, I have now narrowed down my focus to three distinct concepts for the Schema product.
Design
Narrowing it down to 3 Options
After conducting user research and competitive analysis, as well as creating sketches, I narrowed down my focus to three distinct concepts for the Schema product.
Right Panel
Centralizes all elements in a single location.
Right Panel
Centralizes all elements in a single location.
Detached Right Panel
Distinguishes between webpage and schema functions.
Top & Side
Utilizes a stepper. Segregates Primary and Secondary actions.
Detached Right Panel
Distinguishes between webpage and schema functions.
Top & Side
Utilizes a stepper. Segregates Primary and Secondary actions.
Validation
Testing the Prototype
After creating a functional prototype and getting buy-in, I concept tested these with users.
We tested SEO Marketeer flow
Users can monitor the existing Schema Markup on your site to ensure it's healthy and effective. Also, they can measure performance and create custom reports.
Then I tested Engineer tagging flow
This tool is designed to assist in tagging elements on corporate websites. This tagging enables Google to comprehend the content within the page more effectively. With improved understanding of page data, Google can then display it in a larger format and better presentation styles within Google Search.
Design
Changes After Testing
The concepts really resonated with people and we were headed in the right direction overall. We needed to make 1 change to the schema tagging flow.
Added colors to form fields to make the hierarchy clearer
After
Design
Schema's Impact on Google Search Results
The true test was Google Search results. With the new schema tool, Google could showcase schema markup in a drastically improved search result. Our clients have witnessed remarkable SEO outcomes, with our product outperforming competitors.
Outcome
The Schema Tool is Proving to Be a Huge Impact with SEO Traffic Lift From 25%-140%
Organic traffic lift after schema deployment
Regional Bank has 43X increase in visitors from rich results in 4 months, and 600 increased visitors per week.
Mexican Resort Hotel: +225% Increase in Impressions, +67% Increase in Clicks Post-90 Days of Milestone Schema Deployment.
Hospitality Company Surges Conversion & Organic Share of Revenue 2.5X with Schemas, SEO.
Impression Share on Search By 52% and Clicks to Website by 135% Using Milestone Schema Manager.
17B
Impressions
539M
Clicks
2.5B
Rich Results
Conclusion
Strategic Design Led Milestone to be Successful
This is a success story of how I convinced stakeholders to expand scope, and create a differentiated website SEO tool product. Despite initial hesitation from stakeholders, I was persistent in advocating for the expansion of the project's scope to address these areas, and our decision proved to be highly beneficial. Ultimately, the launch of the Schema tool was a resounding success and emerged as our top-grossing product.
Retrospective
What is Happening Now
The launch of ChatGPT marked the beginning of our journey, during which we promptly embarked on integrating an AI feature into our schema product. While this AI tagging feature is currently in the development phase, we are diligently working towards its impending launch. Concurrently, we continue to make minor enhancements to the Schema product, ensuring that it remains up-to-date and refined.
Visualize Schema Entities
I observed users struggled with visualizing schema entities, which made it difficult to effectively manage their data. By incorporating a visualizer into our tool, I aimed to provide our users with a comprehensive and seamless experience.
Setup Schema Easily
It was painful to setup schemas in most competitors. I proposed the inclusion of all website URLs into our platform for easier setup.
Alignment
Convincing Stakeholders to Expand Scope
Expanding the scope of a project can be challenging, especially when it involves convincing stakeholders to invest more time and resources.
To expand the scope of the project, I put together a pitch which included concept tests, competitor eval and opinions from industry experts. I organized an alignment workshop where I facilitated a discussion around addressing these opportunities in the project.
Frustration with frequent context switching and losing track of tabs
Through the alignment workshop, the stakeholders were able to see the value of expanding the scope of the project and addressing the identified opportunities. The workshop helped to create a shared understanding of the project's potential and the benefits of incorporating the new functionality. As a result, the stakeholders were convinced to expand the scope of the project to include the all-in-one solution, visual schema entities, and first-time and repeat user flows.
Design
First I Mapped Out the User Flow
Setting up schemas was complex, so I designed a guided flow for our product. The diagram illustrates two main flows: the setup flow and the ongoing schema flow.
Design
Narrowing it down to 3 Options
After conducting user research and competitive analysis, as well as creating sketches, I narrowed down my focus to three distinct concepts for the Schema product.
Right Panel
Centralizes all elements in a single location.
Detached Right Panel
Distinguishes between webpage and schema functions.
Top & Side
Utilizes a stepper. Segregates Primary and Secondary actions.
Validation
Testing the Prototype
After creating a functional prototype and getting buy-in, I concept tested these with users.
We tested SEO Marketeer flow
Users can monitor the existing Schema Markup on your site to ensure it's healthy and effective. Also, they can measure performance and create custom reports.
Then I tested Engineer tagging flow
This tool is designed to assist in tagging elements on corporate websites. This tagging enables Google to comprehend the content within the page more effectively. With improved understanding of page data, Google can then display it in a larger format and better presentation styles within Google Search.
Design
Changes After Testing
The concepts really resonated with people and we were headed in the right direction overall. We needed to make 1 change to the schema tagging flow.
Added colors to form fields to make the hierarchy clearer
After
Design
Schema's Impact on Google Search Results
The true test was Google Search results. With the new schema tool, Google could showcase schema markup in a drastically improved search result. Our clients have witnessed remarkable SEO outcomes, with our product outperforming competitors.
Outcome
The Schema Tool is Proving to Be a Huge Impact with SEO Traffic Lift From 25%-125%.
Organic traffic lift after schema deployment
Regional Bank has 43X increase in visitors from rich results in 4 months, and 600 increased visitors per week.
Mexican Resort Hotel: +225% Increase in Impressions, +67% Increase in Clicks Post-90 Days of Milestone Schema Deployment
Hospitality Company Surges Conversion & Organic Share of Revenue 2.5X with Schemas, SEO
Impression Share on Search By 52% and Clicks to Website by 135% Using Milestone Schema Manager
17B
Impressions
539M
Clicks
2.5B
Rich Results
17B
Impressions
539M
Clicks
2.5B
Rich Results
Conclusion
Strategic Design Led Milestone to be Successful
This is a success story of how I convinced stakeholders to expand scope, and create a differentiated website SEO tool product. Despite initial hesitation from stakeholders, I was persistent in advocating for the expansion of the project's scope to address these areas, and our decision proved to be highly beneficial. Ultimately, the launch of the Schema tool was a resounding success and emerged as our top-grossing product.
Retrospective
What is Happening Now
The launch of ChatGPT marked the beginning of our journey, during which we promptly embarked on integrating an AI feature into our schema product. While this innovative feature is currently in the development phase, we are diligently working towards its impending launch. Concurrently, we continue to make minor enhancements to the Schema product, ensuring that it remains up-to-date and refined.