Agency59 Website Redesign
2024
By Chiedza Kaseke, Irena Faiz, and Valerie Bian
Our project focused on developing a high fidelity redesigned portfolio website for Agency59, a marketing agency based in Toronto Canada.

Objectives: Make the user experience seamless, the task flow simpler and implement smoother navigation for users to submit job applications.

Usability Test: The results provided us with ways in which we could improve the visual signifiers and make the task flows easier and more accessible for users. We took these insights and applied them to our final redesigned prototype.
Heuristic Evaluation
This heuristic evaluation focuses on Agency 59’s portfolio website, an independent branding and ad agency based in Toronto, Ontario.
The two key processes evaluated were:
  1. Usability - assessing whether users can easily navigate the website without encountering mismatched system-user expectations
  2. Information discovery - evaluating how easily users can find specific client project examples or information on the agency. The goal in this report was to uncover the issues that negatively impact user experience and clarity in locating relevant content.
The Problem

The lack of clear visual cues and efficient feedback slows down the user process and adds friction to the user experience.

  • Unclear navigation due to inconsistent signifiers and lack of user visibility feedback making it difficult to confirm actions or reverse them.
  • Users who were searching for specific content like client projects encountered issues with mapping and conceptual models.
  • Confusion on where information was located.
The Solution

A concise portfolio website that still encompasses the brand fundamentals of Agency59 and elevates the users experience while completing the key processes highlighted in the beginning.

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Firstly, we made the project viewing process simplified and added back buttons for the user to return to previous pages. Secondly, we added a client page for users to see all of their previous clients in one place. Lastly, created a job application process that would streamline applications to their HR department, making it easy, simple and informative for users.

The Redesign
We decided to make the landing page more streamlined and allow users to appreciate each project by implementing an infinite scroll for them to look through. Filter tags and a menu bar were added as well.

The original website does not have a process for submitting resumes nor does it have a page that displays what job positions are available.
We designed this page to streamline this process for both Agency59 and job seekers. The original website did not have a way for users to look for specific projects or clients so we developed these pages in order to make the navigation process easier for users.
Both as a list of all clients Agency59 has worked for and as a filtered tag page where users can look for different types of projects such as Branding, Creative Direction and Films.
Pre-User Testing
Our testing environment was held in a google meeting. Participants were screened out accordingly. Screen recordings of the call were further analyzed. The participants were asked to fill out a form before starting to gather their data. It was collected anonymously.

Our total Sample size included N=7 , n=3 were screened out.
User Tasks
  1. Apply for a Job — Navigate to the careers page, find the studio designer position, submit an email to the agency. This task should be completed in 5 minutes, giving the user ample time to find the careers page and submit an email.
  2. Find a Specific Client — Locate a specific project using the filter features (Origin Organic) or arrows and find more information about the client through the info tag. This task should take 3 minutes to complete as it usually takes users 2-3 minutes to locate a project on portfolio websites.
User Feedback

Key issues and what needed to be address for
the final redesign:


  1. Hamburger Menu — Navigating the menu page was difficult and some steps could be cut down to shorten the task of searching for information about the company.
  2. Carousel wheel — Older demographic did not appreciate the carousel wheel, they would prefer a search bar with a full list of their past projects and clients.
Research Insights
  1. Participants found the hamburger menu hard to find and navigate when trying to complete the first task.
  2. Participants found it harder to find the careers button in order to find the careers page. They appreciated the user feedback after applying to the studio designer job.
  1. Users from an older demographic did not like the carousel and would prefer a search bar while the younger users appreciated the carousel design. 
  2. Participants found the second task fairly straightforward and appreciated the clean aesthetic and the filters. 
© Chiedza Kaseke 2025