My Professional Role
This is a portfolio website that I designed and created during my freelancing period. The client is a family member of mine who is a talented goalkeeper and aims to play hockey overseas.
As the only UX designer, I handled the completion of this website from start to finish. I conducted research to understand what is needed in an athletic portfolio, came up with ideas regarding the user interface, created an effective user flow, and posted the portfolio online. My client can count on me to make updates and corrections swiftly. I can continue my research and integrate new trends and features according to the needs of the management in the field hockey industry.
To view the entire portfolio website, visit www.biancadeguisti.com
The homepage of this website is an excellent introduction to the portfolio. Above the fold, the goalkeeper's name is clearly emphasised and the cover image, along with the personalised quote, hints towards the type of portfolio.
The user flow has multiple starting points. Visitors can simply scroll through the homepage and select which page to visit from there, or they can use the navigation bar provided at the top of each page. The footer, which is consistent across all the pages in the website, also provides an alternative way of navigation. This removes the effort of having to scroll to the top of the website again and again.
These choices create a smooth and effective user flow.
I created unity through consistent use of colour.
For example, all the buttons are white, but when tapped, they turn into a yellow that can be found on all the pages of the website.
This change of colour, also indicates when a button is successfully tapped or clicked. Users can then confirm the action by continuing to explore the page that the button takes them to, or they could exit and chose a different action.
An important request was to add testimonials to the portfolio. My research confirmed that the success rate of an athletic portfolio can be improved immensely through positive commentary provided by coaches, managers and teammates.
Due to this effect, I created a page solely for the testimonials. They are emphasised and can be easily accessed.
Of course, now that the recruiters, managers and coaches like what they see, they will need a way to contact the hockey player.
The "contact" page includes fields to fill out so that the visitor of the website can contact the player or the preferred manager through the website.
The player/manager can also be reached directly through the email address and the telephone number provided at the top of the "contact" page, or they can find it in the footer as demonstrated above.
What I learned
I learned the importance of allowing my own personal brand and design style to step aside, in order to bring the client's vision to life.