CuriousCore

Increasing customer confidence and qualified leads

Website experience improvements for a tech education startup.

Role

Product Designer, Product Owner

Timeline

8 months

Client

Curious Core

Skills

Experience Design Leadership UX Research User Testing Wireframing
CuriousCore website redesign

CuriousCore — UX Career Accelerator Website Redesign

Overview

About the project

CuriousCore is a tech education startup focused on mid-career transitioners and upskillers. The existing website felt outdated, course information was hard to compare, and navigation created confusion — resulting in low-quality leads.

As Product Designer and Product Owner, I led the end-to-end redesign of the website experience to drive higher-quality leads and build user confidence in the brand.

Challenge

Objective & Problem Statement

Objective

Drive higher-quality leads for the UX Career Accelerator by improving content structure, CTA visibility, and clear separation between B2C and B2B offerings.

Problem Statement

How might we help mid-career switchers feel confident in CuriousCore's value so they take the next step in their decision journey?

Research

Understanding the landscape

Research Objectives

  • 01

    Understand the goals and motivations of mid-career switchers and upskillers.

  • 02

    Identify how they currently navigate their decision journey and where friction occurs.

  • 03

    Evaluate how well the current CuriousCore website supports their needs and builds confidence.

Desk Research Insights

58%

of workers are willing to take a pay cut to change industries, with job dissatisfaction as the primary driver.

39

is the average age of a career switcher — often more financially stable and willing to invest in long-term change.

11mo

on average spent evaluating a career transition, focusing heavily on what they need to succeed before committing.

1 in 3

enrol in structured education or training, indicating a strong preference for pathways that build on transferable skills.

Implication: Mid-career switchers are deliberate, risk-aware decision makers who need clear outcomes, credibility, and a structured learning path before taking action.

Competitive Analysis

With a saturated market of UX training providers — from bootcamps to online platforms and traditional institutions — we analysed how competitors positioned their offerings, communicated value, and structured their conversion journeys to identify opportunities for differentiation.

Competitor site 1
Competitor site 2
Competitor site 3
  • Competitors' copy focuses on the user — consistent use of "you" and "your" across their websites builds a personal connection.

  • Navigation menus could be organised into more useful and descriptive categories to reduce confusion.

  • Information presented in a sharp, concise manner with clear illustrations performs better across comparable sites.

  • Across competition, there is an overall lack of personalised touch — a gap CuriousCore could strategically address.

User Interviews / Usability Testing

Using affinity mapping, we extracted key themes from user responses to identify core pain points on the existing site.

Key Usability Issues

Content Overload

Users felt overwhelmed by the volume and density of content, which slowed decision-making.

Inconsistent Structure

Inconsistent structure made it difficult to compare information and locate key details.

Broken Flow

Premature and visually dominant elements interrupted the browsing flow and reduced confidence in the experience.

Low Confidence

Users left the site without a clear sense of whether CuriousCore could actually support their transition goals.

Design Mandate

How we do it

Improve Clarity

Visibility of system status — ensure users always know where they are, what's available, and what to do next throughout the browsing experience.

Amp Up the Human Touch

Make users feel that CuriousCore cares and that they will be well supported and guided in their career transition journey.

Design mandate screenshot 1
Design mandate screenshot 2

Wireframes

From insights to structured solutions

The wireframes were developed from our research findings, turning insights into structured, solution-driven design decisions. Each layout was tested and iterated based on usability feedback before moving into high-fidelity design.

CuriousCore wireframes

Mid-fidelity wireframes — translating research into structure

Wireframe detail 1
Wireframe detail 2

Final Prototype

The redesigned experience

The final prototype brought together improved information hierarchy, clearer CTAs, and a warmer brand voice — guiding users through their decision journey and building confidence at every step.

CuriousCore prototype walkthrough

Hero and navigation — clearer structure and welcoming tone

Final design screen 1
Final design screen 2
Final design screen 3
Final design screen 4

Key screens — improved content structure and CTA visibility

CuriousCore prototype interaction 2

Course comparison flow — simplified and scannable

CuriousCore prototype interaction 3

B2B section — clear separation from B2C offering

Final design screen 5
Final design screen 6

Results

Validated outcomes from usability testing

Usability testing with 6 users showed a clear improvement in how users navigated and understood the site. These results validated that the revised information hierarchy and navigation reduced friction, increased user confidence, and strengthened conversion intent.

100%

Users found clarity in content and structure

83%

Users found the primary CTA with positive intent to engage

100%

Users found success in locating relevant information

What I'd Improve

A natural next step would be to test the full conversion flow — evaluating how the new structure performs beyond the discovery phase and into completed enrolments.

While personas were developed during early stages, they did not evolve alongside our research findings and had limited impact on design direction. We shifted toward behaviour-based insights for faster, more informed decisions. In future iterations, co-creating data-driven personas with the team would strengthen alignment and long-term product thinking.