Enhancing Discovery and Value Through User-Centered Curation
Role
Product Design Lead
Timeline
Q2 2024
With substantial traffic on Messari's Research pages, it became clear that updates were needed to better serve our users. In response to valuable user feedback, we developed a new crypto research portal designed to meet these evolving needs. A key priority was addressing user requests for more relevant research reports by enhancing our tagging systems to improve discoverability and relevance.
Empower users to find reports that match their interests, provide greater value to our paying customers, and continue to solidify Messari's reputation as the leading source for crypto research.
Previous Research Portal
We enabled researchers to pin content types like evergreen articles and trending reports, managed via the back end and displayed in the "Research Spotlight" section. A "Latest Reports" feed was added below, with a back-end rule ensuring pinned reports always take precedence for improved prioritization and user experience.
A major weakness of the previous Research Portal was its filtering experience. To improve this, we implemented a robust sidebar filtering system, enabling users to sort reports by research tags. Additionally, a tab-style navigation at the top allowed the sidebar to expand, offering more comprehensive filtering options and enhancing content discovery.
We seized the opportunity to introduce dedicated newsletter and podcast tabs in the revamped research portal. Previously, these media assets could only be accessed through a user's email or podcast player. With the addition of these tabs, users can now easily access Messari’s media directly from the research portal—listening to podcasts in their browser and catching up on past newsletters, all in one convenient location.
User retention on the Research Portal has increased by 35% since the launch of the updated portal in September 2024.
The Research Portal is one of our highest-converting areas, with paywalled CTAs seeing consistent month-over-month growth in clicks, demonstrating its effectiveness in driving engagement and conversions.
65% of users who visit the Research Portal homepage go on to engage with a Messari research report, demonstrating strong user interest and content relevance.
In addition to implementing the Research Portal, I developed a text-to-speech feature that enabled users to listen to research reports directly from their devices. Powered by AI, this feature quickly gained popularity among our users for its convenience and accessibility.
Looking ahead, we are committed to making Messari Research more accessible to a broader audience, extending beyond crypto-native users. To achieve this, we are exploring advanced AI tools to simplify complex terminology for newcomers and enhance content consumption speed for experienced users. These innovations aim to further democratize access to our research and elevate the user experience.
