From Sunday Strips to Screens – UX for a timeless comic in a digital world
Redesigning the iconic Peanuts website with social sharing, e-commerce, and improved usability.
client
Peanuts Worldwide
Role
UX Designer
focus
Website Redesign
scope
Social Features, E-commerce, Content Discovery, Responsive Design
Research Process
Heuristic Evaluation
Analysis of the existing site uncovered current issues and opportunities for improvement
Stakeholder & User Interviews
Interviews with stakeholders and users to understand business requirements and user needs
Competitor Analysis
Comparison of existing websites and features of popular comic strips
Synthesis & Analysis
Card sorting and information architecture for the new site structure
Usability testing and validation of design concepts
Key Pain Points
- Site did not engage visitors beyond comic content
- High bounce rate - more than 50% of visitors did not return
- Difficulty in finding specific comic strips by date/occasion
- Limited social interaction and content sharing capabilities
- Poor content discovery and navigation
Initial Exploration
Proposed Solutions
- Optimize design across devices with responsive layouts
- Add social interaction and content sharing features
- Implement games and puzzles to engage primary user group (kids)
- Enhance content discovery with improved search and filtering
- Add geographic content and personalization features
Initial sketches exploring different concepts and features
Final Prototypes
Mobile Experience
Responsive design optimized for mobile devices
Interactive Features
Games and puzzles to engage young users
Reflection
Key Learnings
- Designing for kids required special consideration of both fun and educational aspects
- Parental concerns about online safety were crucial to address in the design
- Balancing entertainment with educational value was key to the project's success