Beacon
Beacon is a digital literacy platform that helps older adults build confidence and stay safe online.
Role
UX Designer
Industry
AgeTech
Service
UX Design
Year
2026
Tools
Figma, FigJam
Methods
Interviews, affinity mapping, card sorting, usability testing
Overview
Beacon is a digital literacy platform I designed during my Designlab UX Academy program. It is for older adults who want to use the internet with more confidence. I handled the research, design and testing. I was really designing for 2 people at once. The older adult trying to stay independent and the person who keeps getting called for help.
The Challenge
Older adults want to handle everyday tasks online without help, but a lot of websites aren't built with them in mind. Pages are often cluttered, full of popups and hard to read. Scams also leave them feeling unsafe. When they get stuck, someone close to them becomes their tech support. Those helpers end up on call for every small problem while juggling their own lives.
This matters for Beacon as a business too. People who feel overwhelmed by a product stop using it. People who feel confident keep using it and want to learn more. They also need less hands-on support.
Research & User Insights
I interviewed 3 older adults (ages 55 to 82) and 3 caregivers (ages 24 to 33). 3 patterns came up:
• Older adults were afraid of scams, popups and anything that looked like a security risk
• They wanted simple, step by step guidance on everyday online tasks without feeling embarrassed to ask
• Caregivers were always on call for tech help while juggling their own lives
I sorted my interview notes into an affinity map. The biggest problem was not a lack of skill. It was a lack of confidence. One confusing screen was often enough to make someone give up. One caregiver said this about her mom: "She won't even try, she just freezes."
I then ran a card sort with 4 people (ages 24 to 82) to see how they would group Beacon's features. All 4 put the safety features together. Since safety mattered to everyone, I built it into the lessons instead of hiding it in one menu. When a category was unclear, people were unsure where things belonged. One participant put screen sharing under Settings because she did not recognize it. As she put it, "If it looks confusing, I just stop."
User Needs
• Simple explanations at the moment they need help
• Protection from scams, suspicious popups and security risks
• A way to ask for help without feeling embarrassed
• More independence and fewer calls to someone close to them
The Solution
Beacon gives older adults a safe place to learn online skills and get help when something feels confusing, like an unfamiliar email, a password reset or a suspicious popup. It has 4 parts:
• A short assessment that places each person at the right level before they create an account
• Guided lessons that build skills one step at a time and track progress
• Beacon Assistant, an AI guide that answers questions as they come up
• A Support Center where people can reach a helper they trust or the Beacon support team
Design Approach
I sketched the main screens first to work out the flow. Then I moved to wireframes and high fidelity screens in Figma. 3 things from my research guided every screen:
• I used common icons and layouts so no one had to learn something new. The homepage greets each person by name and asks one simple question, like "Hello, Josie! How can Beacon help you today?"
• In the card sort, people were unsure where things belonged when a category was unclear. I chose menu names that say exactly what people will find, like Lessons and Get Help.
• I chose DM Sans, a clean font that is easy to read, along with large text and buttons. A zoom button stays on screen so people can make text bigger anytime.
Key Features & Interface
Assessment: Before creating an account, people answer a few simple questions about how comfortable they are with technology. This tells Beacon what level their lessons should start at. It helps beginners not feel overwhelmed and lets more experienced users skip what they already know.
Lessons: Lessons teach everyday online skills one step at a time. Each lesson asks a real-life question, like which password is safest. Whatever people pick, Beacon explains why and gives a tip. Testers said the lessons felt encouraging and not like a test because the language was calm and felt like a person talking to them. Progress was first shown only with colored circles, which made it hard for people to fully grasp where they were in each lesson. So I added clear labels that show if a lesson is completed or how much progress they have made instead of having them guess.
Beacon Assistant: People can ask Beacon Assistant a question anytime. They can attach a screenshot to ask if a message is safe or what a popup means. Testers liked having it there and said it felt supportive, not intrusive. People do not need to call someone for every small thing.
Support Center: When people want help from a person instead of AI, they can go to the Support Center. From there they can message or call their helper, or contact the Beacon support team.
Testing & Iteration
I tested a clickable prototype with 3 older adults and 2 helpers. Some sessions were remote and others were in person. Each one lasted 20 to 30 minutes. People worked through Beacon's main flows, from the assessment questions to contacting a helper in the Support Center.
Most people finished the tasks on their own with few errors. Their confidence grew after the assessment and their first lesson. No one felt embarrassed by the level Beacon placed them in. Testers liked that lessons ask real-life questions and explain each answer. They also loved the zoom button and having more than one way to get help. Most problems came from unclear words and instructions, not the layout. Here is what I changed:
• Beacon lets people pick a helper, like a family member or caregiver, to contact when they need help. Every tester was confused about who the "helper" was. The Support Center now explains each way to get help, including who a helper is.
• Password rules were at the bottom of the sign-up page, so people did not see them until after they typed a password. A checklist of the rules now stays on screen while they type.
• The welcome tour shows people around the navigation bar after they sign up. It was on separate screens, so some people could not tell if they were in the tour or the actual product. The tour now shows short pop-up tips on top of the real homepage.
Visual Refresh
After testing, I refreshed the visual design. I wanted Beacon to feel more modern, like the apps and software people already use every day, while still feeling calm. Older adults already use phones and tablets, so a familiar look may help them trust Beacon faster. I changed the main color from teal to a dark plum and added soft gradient backgrounds in light blue, pink and lavender. The lighter colors make it feel brighter and more approachable. The screens in this case study show the refreshed version, which has not been tested with users yet.
Learning & Next Steps
Beacon was my first big UX project and it changed how I think about design. I learned that good UX is not about adding fancy new features. It is about making things easier by removing friction points that companies may not have thought about. Going into testing, I expected the biggest issues to be visual, like the layout. But even small details, like the words on a button or how a message was written, had just as much impact on how confident people felt.
I also learned the importance of building user flows before designing screens. Mapping out how people move through Beacon first meant I did not have to redesign screens later when the flow changed. Hearing critical feedback on my design was not easy, but it was worth it. The feedback was valid, it made Beacon better and it gave users a real voice in the design.
Next steps:
• Test the refreshed visual design with older adults
• Run a larger round of testing with a wider mix of older adults
• Check that the assessment places people at the right level once real people use it
• Add Spanish support, since 2 of the older adults I interviewed struggled with English-only apps