umpa branding & utility design
Client
UMPA Uus Maa Property Advisors (today known as RESTATE)
duration
August 2018 - January 2019
Design challenge
Rebrand UMPA's online presence to attract new leads and automate backend data management, so that it becomes less time-consuming.
Responsibility area
UX Research & Strategy, Business & Concept Design, Creative Project Management. UI design by the wonderful Laura
business value proposition
RESTATE is an investment management and real estate services partner in Baltic states. Restate Property Advisors, formely known as UMPA, creates value and appreciaton of assets, time and privacy. Building a better future for the Baltics and Europe.
Market snapshot tool high fidelity prototype
Service Blueprint Journey Map
solution, process, & tools
Provided with valuable feedback from user research testing, we created concept solution for UMPA: an informative customer-facing website with automated tools for property investment evaluations (KALKUR) and getting a market overview (SNÄP), and a back-end content management system for handling business-specific data.
The branded interactions design process was used as a central methodology behind this project, being that the client had a deep need for rebranding. Several other UX best practices such as heuristics, service blueprint and brand experience map, etc were used to design the data management backend system.
Two extremely helpful tool was to use User Journey Mapping to get and overview of all insights, and Wireflows to bridge the gap between user research and prototype creation. It made a huge difference being able to visualize the user interaction process on both parts of the solution.
Our team worked fully remote, which allowed us to keep an efficient and agile pace. We used Toggl timer for tracking our working hours, both to have an overview of what to charge to our client, and also to use as data for improving our team performance.
“You have shown remarkable professionalism and creativity, I really love what you have come up with.”
challenges and learnings
As it was the first time to use the branding interaction process in its entirety, it was fun to experience jumping back and forth between research, defining, designing and delivering. One got the feeling that this project would never be done, especially based on the feeling of having an imaginative client. One of my favorite learnings from this project was to REALLY use the time it takes to research, especially when the industry jargon and structure is unfamiliar.
The website and it’s tools are in constant evolvement and changes as the business and the people involved change. As Neville Brody put it: “Digital design is like painting, but the paint never dries”. After the initial designs, UMPA team decided to jump all in and change their name and logo. Using the same underlying principles and illustrations, we then redesigned the pages using a bright energetic orange.
With an aspiration to push the industry forward, Restate helps to flourish the real estate sector. By setting a strong example, they are investing in the future of Baltics and I was honored to be part of this mission.
*The full prototype is property of UMPA and can thus not be published here
Langing page redesigned prototype (*The full prototype is property of UMPA and can thus not be published here.)