Potential Parent Hint

FamilySearch

Summary

|

In-depth

problem

Designing trust into a feature with no prior version.

FamilySearch's new matching algorithm could surface ancestry connections users had missed, but no design existed yet for how this would reach them. My first design was a hypothesis, and testing it revealed the real problem: users cared less about discovering a match than verifying it, and many didn't realize a hinted person wasn't yet in their tree at all.

Designing trust into a feature with no prior version.

Role

UX Design Intern

Duration

In progress at internship end

solution

A design that signals progress, not judgment.

I led the design of a side sheet that surfaces the supporting record and relationships in one place, and worked with my mentor to redesign the hint card with higher contrast, clearer cues, and a direct "Review" call to action, then extended the pattern across every Family Tree view and device size.

Desktop View

Mobile View

outcome

Increase in feature confidence and engagement.

Testing showed users could confidently verify and act on hints where they previously couldn't tell what was being asked of them. The feature moved into alpha and beta testing as my internship ended.

reflection

Value of the first test when designing from scratch.

Designing from scratch means your first round of testing has to do double duty: validating the concept and surfacing the real problem at the same time.