Real Client UX Audit & Redesign
Role
UX Researcher & Designer
Duration
2025
UXP 403 UX Writing
Tools
Figma,
Nielsen Heuristic Framework
Live Site
Real client. Real constraints. Real stakes. Morehouse Crafted Interiors is a small interior design business whose website was actively losing clients before they ever reached out. Through a full heuristic evaluation and UX writing overhaul, I rebuilt the trust architecture of the site from first click to booked consultation — and delivered a high-fidelity Figma prototype the client could hand directly to a developer.
Problem
A small business site has one job: turn a visitor into a client. Morehouse's site was failing at almost every stage of that conversion. The copy was vague where it needed to be specific, formal where it needed to be warm, and silent where users needed reassurance. The consultation booking flow created anxiety instead of resolving it.
The heuristic evaluation using Nielsen's 10 usability principles revealed critical failures in user control and freedom, error prevention, error recovery, and help documentation — all rated 3–4 on the severity scale. These weren't minor polish issues. They were conversion killers.
Process & Research
I rated all 10 Nielsen heuristics on a 0–4 severity scale, identifying the highest-priority failures and their specific locations in the interface. From there I developed a UX voice chart aligning the brand's core principles — Academic Integrity, Function as Freedom, Radical Transparency — with user goals at each touchpoint.
The voice chart became the foundation for rewriting six key interface touchpoints: calls to action, form labels, error messages, confirmation language, the about section, and the services overview. Every word change was tied directly to a specific heuristic failure and a specific user anxiety.
Evidence
The before and after UX writing comparisons show the clearest evidence of impact. Vague CTAs were replaced with specific, action-oriented language. Error messages that blamed users were rewritten to guide them. Confirmation copy that left users uncertain was replaced with clear next-step communication that reduced post-submission anxiety.
The high-fidelity Figma prototype implemented all copy and visual hierarchy recommendations, standardized typography, refined the color palette, and restructured the consultation booking flow to reduce friction and increase conversion confidence.
Outcome
The client received a complete Figma prototype with annotated design specifications, a UX writing guide documenting voice and tone decisions, and a heuristic evaluation report with severity ratings and prioritized recommendations. The redesigned consultation flow reduces the number of steps to first contact and removes the anxiety-producing ambiguity that was preventing potential clients from reaching out.
Honest Reflection
Academic projects let you define the problem. Real clients remind you that the problem was already defined before you arrived — by their business goals, their brand history, and the constraints they live with every day. This project taught me to listen before I redesign, to show my reasoning, and to deliver something a non-designer can actually use and hand off. That is a different skill than making something beautiful in Figma.