Bethany Hunter | UX Portfolio

Project Overview

As someone who graduated from RIT with a BFA in Graphic Design, working with the AIGA National Chapter to redesign their digital ecosystem could not have been more humbling or exciting. AIGA, the largest professional association of designers, needed a modern digital presence to serve its 25,000 members across 75 chapters. Over the course of this project, I transitioned from UX Lead to Strategy Lead, overseeing everything from research and strategy to design and implementation. The goal was to create a unified, user-friendly digital experience that empowered AIGA's team and enhanced engagement within their design community.

My Contributions

As UX Lead, and later Strategy Lead, I led the project from discovery through to execution. This included conducting comprehensive audits and analyses to inform the design direction and collaborating with AIGA's internal team to modernize their site while honoring the brand's legacy. I also played a pivotal role in selecting and implementing a new tech stack, guiding the migration to Acquia Cloud and Site Studio on Drupal. By building a flexible, scalable CMS and streamlining content management, we helped AIGA’s team update content more efficiently, boosting user engagement and solidifying their digital presence.

Results & Impact

24x

Faster

Content Updates

Previously, it took 1-3 days for two staff members to update web content due to content handoffs and the complexity of the CMS. With the new system, any team member could update the site in 30-60 minutes, dramatically improving efficiency.

INCREASE

IN SITE TRAFFIC

The redesign resulted in a 24% increase in overall site traffic, with better-organized content leading to improved search engine rankings. Returning visitors increased by 3%.

More

site engagement

Enhanced UX design and simplified navigation helped reduce the bounce rate by 5%, while average session duration increased by 4%, indicating higher engagement.

Approach & Execution

AIGA Strategic Brief Deck Sample Slides

Discovery & Research:

The project began with a comprehensive Discovery and Research phase to inform our strategic approach:

Kickoff & Discovery Workshop: I was the design lead in an on-site workshop with AIGA leadership in New York City to align on goals and expectations.
Audits and Analyses: I led and supported audits that included stakeholder interviews, a competitive analysis, a content audit, a digital brand audit, an accessibility and performance audit, Google Analytics (GA) review, and an evaluation of AIGA's existing CMS (EpiServer).
Strategic Brief: As a team we developed a Strategic Brief that outlined our roadmap, guiding the project through to the next phase: information architecture (IA) and design.

UX Design & Content Strategy

My initial focus as Lead UX Designer was to collaborate closely with AIGA's staff designer, ensuring we honored their rich design legacy while modernizing the site to meet today’s digital standards:

Information Architecture & Wireframes: We designed a streamlined IA that would simplify navigation and make it easier for users to access content. This included introducing a mega-menu that organized content by topic instead of audience, reducing cognitive load and improving the user experience.
Visual Design: Worked to evolve AIGA’s visual identity online by staying true to the brand while modernizing its digital aesthetic. This included refining the color palette, typographies, and overall design language to ensure a cohesive and accessible experience.
Modular Design & Component Library: We built a modular site design with reusable components, enabling AIGA’s team to easily format and publish content including articles, blog posts, and event resources.

AIGA Component Library Documentation

“With all the challenges we had in our technical infrastructure, the designs LookThink created for us really helped us push the boundaries of where we wanted to go with our brand. The site has already provided so much value to our community and internal staff.”

– Director of Marketing, AIGA, shortly after site launch

Operations & Delivery Leadership

As my role transitioned to Strategic Lead, I took on broader responsibilities, leading the project from UX strategy to full implementation:

Tech Stack Evaluation & Feature Matrix: Our lead developer and I collaborated with AIGA’s team to determine the best technology for their evolving needs. I researched Digital Experience Platform (DXP) solutions, considering the requirements for chapter sites, membership management, awards libraries, and personalized content.
Platform Selection: After extensive evaluation, we selected Acquia Cloud and Site Studio on Drupal as the best platform to future-proof their digital ecosystem. The system allowed for flexibility, scalability, and ease of use for AIGA’s team.

AIGA Component Library Documentation

AIGA Site Studio Training

Implementation & Build

With the design and tech stack selected, we moved into the build phase:

Rapid Build & Content Migration: Using our design documentation as a blueprint, we rapidly developed the site and migrated relevant content in about four months. This included migrating resources from 16 disparate platforms into a single, centralized CMS.
Custom CMS with Drag-and-Drop Functionality: To empower AIGA’s small but dedicated team, we utilized Acquia's user-friendly CMS with Site Studio's drag-and-drop components, making it easier for the non-technical staff to update and manage the site. This drastically improved AIGA's ability to publish content quickly.
Training: To bring it all together and make sure we left the AIGA team in great hands we documented everything, recorded the training sessions that I led, and packaged it all up in a Google Drive folder for them to access, share and download as often as they need.

Reflection

This project allowed me to lead both the creative and strategic facets of a digital transformation for one of the world’s most influential design organizations. By modernizing AIGA’s digital hub, we laid the foundation for continued growth, better engagement, and an improved user experience that reflects the vibrant design community it serves.

Modernizing Graphic Design