The nabuur redesign: reworking the signup process

The redesign of Nabuur.com has been underway for some time now. One of the main objectives for the improved Nabuur site is to make it easier to use for both existing and new members. One of the main points in the feedback from Nabuur members is that the actual signup process to become a member on the site is quite difficult to complete.

Considering that another goal is to grow the community with more volunteers and villages, it made sense to start with making it easier to actually join the Nabuur site.
The current signup process seems to be unnecessarily complex, especially for a site that aims to help those who often have only limited access and experience with online applications.

So how did we go about redesigning the signup process? First, we made an inventory of the existing process; which questions are asked? How many? Are the steps in the process clear? Are the descriptions helpfull and to the point? Basically: does it help people getting this particular job done?

We then analysed this information and quickly identified some of the bottlenecks, revolving mostly around duplicate questions and no clear feedback on where you are in the proces.

Best way to make it simpler to sign up is to ask for as little information as possible. We discussed what the bare minimun of required info should be for someone to join, saving other questions for later, after succesfully signing up.

Based on this new set of questions a schematic drawing of the signup form was drawn. This so called wireframe served both as the specification for the programmers as well as the starting point for the visual design.

Now, the actual visual design isn't done yet, but here's a comparison between the current and new signup form:

We're applying this same process of analyse, define the minimum requirements then build & design to all the main tasks available on the site: registering a village, starting a project, connecting with other members, volunteer for a task, etc.

It's a pretty intense process but has already proven to be instrumental in finding the existing bottlenecks and working towards better solutions.

Roy Scholten