eNotes
Enriching the Collaborative Learning Environment
eNotes offers students and teachers fact-checked study guides, lesson plans, and reference materials from the experts. Founded in 1998 by two bibliophiles, eNotes is committed to education, providing scholarly materials, and fostering a safe environment for lively academic discussion.
Challenge
When we started working with eNotes, they already had rich, authoritative content, a powerful system, and a strong user base. eNotes is a company with its heart in the right place; their dedication comes from a passion for literature, not for monetizing teenagers and college kids. Our research made it clear that students and teachers enjoy being a part of that mission, but some stumbling blocks were in the way of their experience.
We needed to improve the navigation, organization, and overall usability of the very powerful eNotes system. Our responsibility was to present users with the depth and breadth of the resources within eNotes, while revealing the different levels at which people can engage with the materials.
Solution
We wanted eNotes to feel like a safe and collaborative learning environment, backed by a community of experts. Our approach was to enhance readability, understanding, and participation, while making the best use of eNotes’ existing and anticipated resources. The outcome is a platform that rewards interaction and supports teaching and learning in every way.
The core demands of the project were to connect students and teachers, enhance the learning experience, and encourage exploration of the site. All of these goals necessitated restructuring the site around a basic unit: the topic. Once we developed the information architecture, we explored visual directions and branding.
The new look and feel has a simple color scheme with cues from the romantic schoolhouse palette. Along with the blackboard background, we used colors reminiscent of yellow #2 pencils and Pink Pearl erasers.
Since users already recognize the iconic red notebook, we refreshed the visual identity to work in the new visual design, rather than starting from scratch.
The site features HTML-based typography throughout, with headlines in Tisa OT and navigational labels in Museo Sans, with licensing through Typekit.
After our work with eNotes, the conversion rate went up 25%, with an 11% increase in the average order value. Total revenue increased 30%.