New Zealand Relay Service

A website by the New Zealand Crown for people with communication disabilities
Project Type
Interaction Design, Website Design
Project role
Research, Prototyping, Visual Design
Project year
2020

Introduction

New Zealand Relay is a range of services that is provided by the Crown for people with disabilities relating to communication. MBIE is funding NZ Relay to provide equal employment and lifestyle opportunities to people with speech, hearing, and vision disabilities in New Zealand. These services enable people who are deaf or hard of hearing, speech-impaired, deaf-blind or have impaired hearing to communicate over the phone with others.

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Design Guidelines

It is certainly imperative to pay attention to the appearance of the website. However, keep in mind the purpose of the website, People want to complete some task or find some specific piece of information. The overall look and feel of the site should be similar across all of the site's pages. Backgrounds, colour schemes, typefaces, and even the tone of writing are all areas where consistency has a positive impact on usability and UX.

Typography

A consideration was made to how fonts would actually be styled on a page and how that could be incorporated into the style guide, or how to restrict certain styles to content editors/creators so that typography remains accessible.

Accessibility - Legibility

All users should be able to easily decrease or increase text size using an accessible slider. The font size itself should make it easy for the text to be effectively displayed on all devices. Making content accessible requires an understanding of both the layout of the website (UI) and the experience of users (UX).

Accessibility - Visual

Designing for accessibility becomes more important in the world of UX and product design, thinking in terms of generating options for smaller sets of users is an impactful and expedient way to generate new features and preferences for all users. The goal of web accessibility is to make a website that anyone can use, including people with disabilities or limitations that affect their browsing experience. The website is designed thinking of these users in the UX plan.

Brand Identity - Logo Design

A logo is the visual rendition of a brand and the building block of its branding. Well-designed logos help the company achieve prominence and distinction. If done correctly, it grabs attention and makes a memorable first impression. Logo depicts the core values of the company at a glance, which attracts the targeted demographics. Logos are also effective in augmenting brand loyalty and strengthening an organisation's credibility and professionalism.

Wireframing

Wireframes push usability to the forefront and using them is a strong way to illustrate the layout of pages and the functionality of the elements on the page. By laying the foundations of the site, you can look objectively at aspects like user experience and functionality, before adding more stylised features. Using wireframes early on in the design process forces you and your clients to look objectively at ease of use, conversion paths, element placement and helps point out flaws early. These are all things that lead to intuitive, functional and delightful products.

User Interface Design

User interface refers to the way that users interact with a website. An effective User Interface combines visual design, interaction design, and information architecture seamlessly. It involves anticipating the user preferences and then creating an interface that understands and fulfils those preferences. The User Interface not only focuses on aesthetics but also maximises responsiveness, efficiency, and accessibility of the website.