About BeeyondBeeyond is a well-established Product Information Management (PIM) system in the Dutch market, helping small and medium-sized companies centralize and manage their product data since 2013.
OverviewPlease note: this is only a summary of the project. More detailed information and visuals are left out due to copyright restrictions. Feel free to reach out if you want to know more!
Driven by the ambition to scale internationally, leadership decided to transition the platform to a Software as a Service (SaaS) model. The system, having been developed solely by technical teams, required a massive overhaul due to a complex, legacy platform with a challenging user experience that prevented self-onboarding.
How might we redesign and rebuild the Beeyond PIM system to create an intuitive, self-service user experience that enables successful global SaaS expansion and eliminates the need for specialist-led onboarding?
UX/UI Designer (My role), Business stakeholders, Developers
Discover & DefineThis initial phase was dedicated to understanding the needs of the target user, analyzing the competitive landscape, and deconstructing the existing legacy system to identify the absolute minimum viable product required for a successful SaaS launch.
I conducted extensive user research to build a robust target persona for the new SaaS experience. This process included gathering critical input from business stakeholders and sales managers, analyzing previous internal research, and conducting direct interviews with active users to validate assumptions about user profiles, data affinity, and time constraints.
I conducted benchmark research on competitor PIM systems to understand successful SaaS transitions. This analysis identified market opportunities related to frictionless entry and provided a strategic playbook, notably by studying how one successful competitor translated complex PIM functionality into an accessible experience through low-friction entry, self-service access, and contextual learning.
A critical step involved gaining a deep understanding of the legacy system's structure and complexity. I collaborated closely with the main consultant, who provided guided tours of common tasks and user flows. This collaboration confirmed the two non-negotiable core functionalities required for a viable PIM:
The synthesis of research and system analysis led to the decision to primarily focus the design effort on the two core workflows identified: Data Blueprint Setup and Import Mapping, building them into a guided, self-service onboarding flow.
Generate & IdeateThis phase focused on rapidly prototyping the core onboarding flow, testing it with our target persona, and iteratively simplifying the experience.
I mapped out the ideal user journey, from initial discovery to successful internal setup. I developed a low-fidelity prototype to test the structural integrity of this journey. I conducted user tests with participants matching the target persona to validate the initial flow. Feedback was used to identify points where existing complexity was overwhelming users, particularly around terminology clarity and the initial setup flow.
The second round of prototyping focused on eliminating the friction points identified in the first test. I drastically simplified the account sign-up process and improved the visual design of the onboarding wizard to emphasize individual steps and progress. I also integrated entry points for training material directly within the flow for contextual help. The second test confirmed the success of these adjustments and helped identify final usability hurdles related to template customization, persistent progress tracking, and the complexity of the Import Mapping flow.
Based on the second test, I defined the final design requirements necessary to achieve the self-service objective. This included exploring design solutions for template customization options, ensuring a persistent setup overview to serve as a constant progress tracker, and brainstorming with stakeholders to simplify the complex Import Mapping process.
Design & ExperimentWith the functional flow of the setup wizard figured out, this phase was all about finalising Beeyond’s SaaS model.
I moved into high-fidelity design, building off an existing redesign within the company but focusing on critical usability improvements:
I conducted a final user test of the high-fidelity prototype, concentrating on the onboarding experience and the setup flows. This test confirmed the success of the guided setup wizard in enabling individual system setup and clarified progress tracking. The test also isolated remaining issues related to inconsistent naming conventions for actions and the lack of transparency in the Import Mapping process. These final findings informed the absolute final design specifications.
Summary & ConclusionThis project successfully achieved the core objective of self-service onboarding by focusing the design effort on the two core workflows (Data Blueprint Setup and Import Mapping) and employing an iterative prototyping and testing strategy. The result was a final set of detailed design specifications and functional documentation that provided the clear blueprint required for the development team to confidently begin the monumental task of rebuilding the platform from the ground up as a scalable SaaS product.
Beyond delivering the immediate specifications for the MVP launch, I proactively leveraged my work on this project to draft a complete, long-term redesign of the entire Beeyond interface. This long-term redesign served as a "dot on the horizon", giving the product team and developers a clear, aspirational target to guide all future feature development.
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