This is the last process posts for this class and I think it is a good idea to a quick reflection and the things I have learned along the way.

This site has been on so many ups and downs as a reflection of my semester. With no time, I struggled to find ways in displaying my contents online. I found it hilarious that the site is about me being a design student, and it took me almost until the end of the semester to work on the visual design of the site. My defense is how busy I had been. Currently, I would say that the blog is fairly close to the vision I had at the beginning. With the images and content, they portray who I am as an individual online fairly well. I wish I could have more time to work on the public posts, showing my creativity in podcast and videos. I can work on it after this class.

From this class, I am more thoughtful about the content I posted online and the relationship I have with my audience. Also, I make me think about the potential my posts could make to my audience. I hope I could use this knowledge more on my YouTube channel, since I’m going to start working on it again next year.

This post talks about the audience of my blog after starting to personalize the site more.

Since the last time I posted, I have made quite a bit of change to both the visual and the content visibility of the site. I mentioned in the process post back in October that I would like to make this site feel more like me and start to do something else that is not writing. Since then, I have started uploading podcasts every week and recently posted unedited videos on the site. Surprisingly but not really, I find joy in the uploading process again! Although I know that it will not be perfect like my YouTube videos, I can speak my thoughts and keep those funny little moments. Those moments are the portions that make my posts unique. I laugh at myself, I make jokes, and I ask questions. The audience can be a part of the conversation. Instead of making it a monologue, it is more like a dialogue.

Once I start creating this vlog, I get to put the pressure off as an “Influencer” and become who I am both in person and online. The audience is informed about who I am as a creator through my choice of content on the page. Putting myself outside of my comfort zone during the most stressful semester I have ever experienced, I can feel like myself again. And the audience can feel that! Although I still receive no comments on any posts, I see an increase of numbers in views on my YouTube videos. It would be impossible for people to find my content since I haven’t posted anything for the past 3 months, other than checking this blog out! I am excited to see this site grow and see the potential of what I can do as a creator! More to come!

This post is for Process Post Prompt on November 22nd, 2022

As for now, my blog has no exposure outside of the classroom. I have never thought about publishing outside since it is not my best work nor do I have the time to perfect it. However, the current layout of the site has a stronger organizational system for the content. So, thinking about the exposure of my site might be a step I can consider soon.

I am thinking of bringing my blog up on YouTube and Instagram since those are the two top social media platforms I use currently to, not only have fun but also create a consistent online identity. On both platforms, I have the freedom to be expressive through my knowledge of graphic design, as well as showing my editing skills for images and videos. One thing that I love about both platforms is how visual they are in attracting the audience. Since I am hoping to make my site more visual-based, I think it would be a great idea to include that on YouTube and Instagram. In addition, both platforms are the ones I have the most conversations with. I would get messages, asking about courses and the program, on those platforms. I also get reactions and comments from the audience under my posts. These tell me that I can engage with my targeted audience. So, hopefully, with the addition of my blog to this existing online exposure, I will be able to incorporate more transmedia integration. On top of this discussion, it ties back to one of the process posts on analytics. With more exposure, the more audience I would get more for this site. The dialogue will be created between them and myself on the content I upload weekly, which is exciting to hear!

This process post is for October 18th, 2022. 

In this post, I choose the Rose Island website as the website that I will be analyzing the design elements of it. The reason I choose to write about this site is that several simple interactions on the site still make it interesting. It is one of my favourite websites because I am interested in interaction design, so hopefully, I could pursue that path!

The part that is doing well is the visual graphics on the homepage. There is a clear hierarchy of what content the user has to look at, starting from the title to the 3D model of the house to the subtitles. The colours and font choices are strongly driving the website. The site uses light grey, orange and black as the main colour palette, with monochromatic images. The geometric shapes of the font, match the structure of the house that the site is going to focus on. On top of that, the body copy font choice is circular, contrasting with the title and creating balance in the tone. The content’s placement is symmetric, with asymmetric organization within the content section. 

Another element that is working quite well is the transition between sections. It is my favourite part about this website! I found this very unique and make the site very special. This transition applies to other sections of the site, such as hovering on buttons. This transition shows the grid system used on the site and it is a cool way to put it into use. In the image I have attached below, the monochromic image and the black background are complementing each other, making the transition look even smoother.

The one comment I would have that is working but not to its full potential is the scrolling effects on the text. As in the image below, the user has the scroll all the way through to highlight all the text. Visually, yes it is very pleasing to see, but talking in terms of interactions, it is not working. This is very demanding for the user to complete, especially since the user interacts with the site mostly only through scrolling to find content.

My recommendation for this site is, instead of fading word by word, they could work on the animation to create asymmetric balance on the white space more. For example, as the user scrolls, the whole content shows up all at once or comes out behind the image.

Overall, I still think it is a very strong website. I want to get inspired by their brand style to create my branding for my site. This includes the solid colour palette, image treatment and font choices on the site. I would also like to play more with the interactions on the site!

This post is for Process Post Prompt on November 8th, 2022.
On the day we set Google Analytics on our site, I had a vaccination appointment for the flu and COVID booster, so I did not join the class. I set the analytics on November 14th, so I will be talking about the days after that.

Analytics shows the progress and interactions my blog has with my audience. It shows the clicks, interactions, views, where the audience finds my site etc. Knowing the behaviour of the audience can help me improve and see the content they are most interested in or interact with. From the creator’s side, I see quite a peak around November 20th-23rd. The contents I posted during those times were the peer review and my first video on this blog. The analysis shows that the number peaks due to the number of visits to the homepage. However, the second top number of visits is the peer review. Not going to lie, I am quite surprised that the top numbers are not related to my public posts. I thought that showing my content based on my existing identity online could help with the numbers. Instead, I learn that maybe my content is not showing that. Back then, I had a different theme for the site. The site, unfortunately, did not show any visuals nor feel that personalized since I was in the process of fixing it. Without identity, I failed to direct users to other pages and content on my blog. This can help me to think more about the thumbnail or first impression of the site. I can think of the visuals on the homepage and accessibility of the site to attract more users.

Currently, the site is consistent with only one or two viewers every week. I am not that surprised since everyone is wrapping up their semester right now. I have updated the theme and worked on the accessibility of the site. Of course, getting more numbers on the analytics is ideal, but I have no control over that. I am just going to keep working on the site as something I enjoy and see how that goes. Maybe, I could make this site more public on my social media. Using that to my advantage could help the exposure of the site.

This process post is for November 8th, 2022 on the feedback I have received from the peer review #2 made by Isha Hoonjan.

In the post, she said that she could clearly understand the content I am trying to portray from the design I chose. Before the current theme, I chose another theme as the image attached. 

However, her comments were on the lack of imagery and accessibility of the site. Even if the colour choices and my logo help to bring the lively side out, the content layout conveyed something different. She mentioned that all the content seemed to be structured in the same way, making the whole site feel too professional. She put some links for inspiration as well, very sweet of her. Another suggestion she made is to add more categories in the menu to convey different types of posts I was making. 

After receiving the feedback, I decided to change the theme of the site because they did not have the elements I would like to change. I saw the feedback quite interesting, on the contrast between the design and the layout of the content. At the time, I was focusing on the content and not the design as much. The fact that she, as the audience, could tell is kind of funny. Of course, it can be problematic as well. From this review, I needed to learn how to balance between content and design to keep my audience being engaged.

This process post is for October 28th, 2022.

To improved my site, I would need to make site looks more interesting by the use of images as featured imaged for each post. Currently, the site is covered with texts (yikes) since I just changed my theme that is more clean and less “chaotic” than the last one. I am also planning to show summary for each post with maximum 10 words, so that the pages don’t look too intense with all the posts expand out.

The images and summary of the posts will help audience not feel overwhelm and check if the post is something they are interested in reading. Since I already have quite interesting titles for each post already, these are the missing elements for my site that would help everything more interesting. The problem is…would I figure it out before the peer review #2? I guess we will find out later…

This post is for Process Post Prompt on October 4th, 2022.

The main audience for my blog is mostly university students and would like to see the progress or changes I have made as a design student. My main platform to publish my online self is YouTube. Because of that, I have some kind of recognition online, but without a solid identity other than a design student. I am currently not writing consistently on the blog. On top of my lack of confidence in writing and lack of time to create my identity on this blog, I fail to connect with my audience. This is because, long story short, I do not make my blog feel like a valuable place for the audience to stop by.

Currently, I am looking for ways that I could make this blog feel more like me and attract an audience that does not include writing. Since it is not my strongest skill, I want to show something that will make me enjoy updating this blog. In other words, I want this place to feel fun and not as if it is an assignment. Even though it has been mentioned multiple times in class, it is hard to know where to start when your world is spinning around a hectic schedule and unstable mental health. I know I will figure it out. I have been thinking about starting a podcast before, so maybe that could be an option. It might work because although I love video editing, I just do not have time right now. I need to prioritize creating an identity first. Plus, it is going to be exciting that I can try something new. I imagine my audience would be informed about my week in the introduction of my podcast. I want the audience to feel like they are learning something from this “conversation”, so my chosen topic of the week will bridge my experience and the lesson from it. Not only that it can help me to express my thoughts about my mental health, but it will also show my valuable side. The side that makes me unique and different from other creators. It seems like I do have a plan, after all, Let’s see how it turns out!