Windows 11 Settings app redesign
CHALLENGE Customers using Windows 10 frequently struggled with finding and adjusting their PC’s settings, and this experience was identified as one of three issues that, if improved, could help boost Net Promoter Scores (NPS) for Windows.
SOLUTION Redesign the Settings app to improve the experience
ROLE Lead Content Designer and Content PM
RESULTS The redesign increased customer satisfaction (CSAT) for three main themes and topics: +16% for finding and navigating, 34% for hard or easy, and 24% for move and change
Millions of people use Windows Settings every day, however customer research for Windows 10 showed that people were struggling to update and understand various settings and this experience was one of three main areas negatively affecting Net Promoter Score for Windows and overall customer satisfaction with the operating system. To address this customer pain point, a large scale redesign of the Settings app was undertaken for the first release of Windows 11.
Partnering closely with the Design lead for this project, I led a group of Content Designers in rewriting key pages in the Settings app.
A key focus of this project was to make sure the text worked very well with the overall app design. We wanted to make sure the words combined with the visuals created an intuitive and consistent experience across the different sections in Settings, even though each section was designed and built by a different feature team. To facilitate this, I served as the Content Design project lead and Content PM, answering questions not just from the Content Designers on my team but also from various visual designers, PMs, and developers across all of Windows. In my role, I…
Established and documented editorial guidelines specific for Settings, collaborating with the Design lead to ensure the content worked well with the layout of the pages
Reviewed all UI text and other related content and provided feedback to each Content Designer
Wrote UI text for several sections of the Settings app, including complex areas like Windows Update
Actively communicated and coordinated content deliverables within my own team and across multiple disciplines throughout the Windows team
Ensured on-time delivery of UI text to each feature team for all pages within the Settings app
Represented Content Design at Settings-wide check ins and status meetings, communicating progress, raising concerns, and answering questions
After the redesign, CSAT for Settings was up in all major categories and topics. In addtion, completion rates were also improved for the majority of common tasks as compared to Windows 10 Settings.
| Theme or topic | Windows 10 CSAT | Windows 11 CSAT | Percent change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Find & navigation | |||
| Hard or easy | |||
| Move and change |