KnownOrigin Labs
Design an analytics and CRM tool for web3 creators to manage NFTs and build collector relationships
Role
Design Lead
Responsibilities
Product Design
Project management
Visual Design
Interaction Design
Prototyping
Timeframe
6 months
Overview
NFT artists who sell their work on KnownOrigin and other marketplaces face a range of issues when it comes to managing their sales often having to trawl through emails and maintain manual spreadsheets. KnownOrigin’s Northstar was to help artists quit their day jobs so having a tool that provides powerful collector insights would not only help to solve some of these problems but could also help the artists to build sustainable relationships with their fanbases by leveraging the possibilities of web3. I came into this project post discovery phase after an early stage working tool had been built by an agency which we were now looking to bring in house. My role was to validate some of the initial discovery findings and help to lead on the evolution of the product. I worked directly with the CPO at the time as there were no available PMs but was effectively leading research, product and design initiatives myself whilst guiding a team of engineers on the front-end build.
Worked with
Chief Product Officer, Engineering, Product Designer and Product Manager (later on)
Moderated Usability studies
I conducted a series of in depth moderated tests where I interviewed 6 NFT artists to understand their key needs for the tool whilst assessing the overall usability of the current product.
Example of a research board from moderated test with an artist
Example of summary of feedback from user tests on dashboard landing screen
Affinity mapping of key themes
Affinity mapping to summarise the key themes across each section of the dashboard and core features followed by key outcomes of the initial objectives and questions the study set out to answer.
Summary of research learnings + outcomes
User testing key outcomes
Focus on Collectors for MVP followed by more elaborated listings/sales/activity section
Reward and messenger features are also important
Collector section improvements
Categorisation and ability to airdrop specific groups
More personalised / content-based collector profiles
Make smaller UI + copy tweaks to sections e.g pricing consistency / prioritisation of Eth pricing + more supporting content/tooltips
Re-structure some of the IA based on usability
User story map
Recommendations and outcomes from the affinity mapping and overall research findings were then translated into a user story map defining key changes, improvements and feature additions to each section across a phased approach
Design v.75 - Tidy up
Eth/Dollar price toggle
UI and copy improvements to key modules
Additional tooltips added / descriptions amended
Design v.1 - w/multi-chain indexer
Revamped UI.
Ability to airdrop collectors.
Create cohorts
Badges
CSV download wallet addresses
Improve menu structure and page IA
New branded fonts implemented (as part of the brand refresh project I was involved in)
Reflections
As the sole designer initially leading the creation of an insights tool for artists to understand their collectors and NFT sales, I undertook a discovery-heavy project that significantly enhanced my user research and analytical skills. Conducting in-depth studies with multiple artists allowed me to deeply understand their needs, which I then translated into a comprehensive user story map that shaped the product direction and strengthened my strategic thinking.
Immersing myself in blockchain technology was essential, and I quickly gained knowledge by working closely with engineers building a multi-chain indexer, guiding them on which data to query based on artist needs and research insights. Given the importance of data accuracy for this tool, I took a proactive approach to verifying the data being displayed in the portal for various artists, identifying several issues and bugs that needed to be addressed. My attention to detail played a crucial role in spotting and resolving these problems, and collaborating with developers to ensure a smooth, reliable user experience reflecting correct information.
This project sharpened my ability to align user needs with technical capabilities while maintaining a focus on precision and functionality.