Industry
Digital Advertising
Company
Yahoo!
Duration
2 Months
Yahoo Internship
Enhancing the Onboarding Experience for Yahoo’s Demand Side Platform (DSP).
Overview
In the summer of 2021, I had the opportunity to intern at Verizon Media (now Yahoo) with the Ad Team, where I worked on enhancing the Demand-Side Platform (DSP).
My focus was on improving the onboarding experience for ad publishers and optimizing the creative uploading process. This role required close collaboration with cross-functional teams, where I identified user pain points and implemented design solutions to boost both platform efficiency and user satisfaction.
Key Contributions
01
Redesigning the Onboarding Flow
To improve the onboarding experience for ad publishers, I conducted thorough user research to identify pain points. I led the redesign of the onboarding flow, simplifying the process and making it more intuitive for new users. This project specifically focused on optimizing the “What’s New” section, ensuring that users could quickly familiarize themselves with DSP features in a smoother and more efficient manner.
02
Optimizing the Creative Uploading Process
I worked closely with engineers to refine the creative uploading process, which was a significant pain point for ad creators and publishers. By streamlining this feature, we reduced friction during the uploading of creative assets while maintaining flexibility for more advanced users. This redesign allowed ad creators to upload assets more efficiently, improving their overall experience.
03
Envisioning the Future of Creative Uploads
In addition to optimizing the current system, I worked on a concept project that reimagined the creative uploading feature for future iterations of the platform. This involved envisioning ways to further simplify the process, ensuring that it scales effectively as the DSP evolves.
Testimonial
Bilan successfully optimized the "What's New" section, improving users' ability to onboard about DSP more efficiently and fluently.
- Lee Delgado, Lead Systems Designer at Yahoo
Design Process
01
Communication
Maintaining clear and regular communication with stakeholders was essential throughout both projects. I worked closely with designers and developers, providing regular progress updates and gathering feedback to keep everyone aligned. During the creative conception stages, I collaborated with software engineers to identify technical challenges and constraints. Together, we brainstormed and proposed feasible solutions to overcome any roadblocks, ensuring the designs were both innovative and technically sound.
02
Designing
Collaborating with the design system team gave me a broader understanding of how design components work together at scale. This experience provided valuable insights into creating a cohesive and consistent user experience across the platform.
02
Usability Testing
Testing and iterating on designs was a critical part of my process. For the “What’s New” prototype, I utilized Useberry to conduct user tests, gathering important feedback. One key finding was that users needed more information and guidelines about the new audience insights feature. Based on this feedback, I added a “Learn More” button within the modal popups to provide clearer guidance, improving user understanding and engagement.
Takeaways
01
Collaboration with Engineering
Working closely with the engineering team was a key part of my learning process. Through this collaboration, I developed a deeper understanding of edge cases and how backend logic influences design. This experience helped me sharpen my critical thinking and attention to detail, ensuring that my designs weren’t just visually appealing but also functional and scalable across various use cases. This also allowed me to contribute components to the design library that bridged the gap between aesthetics and functionality.
02
Embracing Communication as a Designer
As a designer, I quickly realized that effective communication is just as important as design skills. In the first week of my internship, I was hesitant to ask for help. But soon, I understood that in order to grow, I needed to be proactive. Once I started reaching out to other designers for feedback and guidance, it became much easier to improve my work and stay aligned with the team. This taught me that open communication is key to success in any design environment.
