Proptech
Collective
Project Overview.
Proptech Collective, is a community-powered platform that brings together innovators in property technology through curated events, educational resources, and networking opportunities. As their reach grew, they needed a website that could clearly communicate their mission within the first 60 seconds of landing on the site.
The Challenge
Proptech Collective wanted a site that was low-maintenance yet high-impact, with an emphasis on clarity over complexity. Instead of focusing on user signups, the site needed to build trust and engagement by quickly answering three core questions:
" Who are we? What do we do? Why does it matter? "
The platform also needed to integrate seamlessly with existing tools like Squarespace, Beehiiv, and Luma, making flexibility and scalability key considerations.
My Role
I led the end-to-end design of the "About Us" page, translating user needs into a clear and engaging experience. My contributions included:
Conducting user interviews and competitive analysis
Creating site maps and affinity maps to define structure
Designing and iterating wireframes to high-fidelity prototypes
Running usability tests to refine clarity and hierarchy
Throughout, I ensured our solution aligned with Proptech Collective’s goals and platform limitations.
Team & Tools
Team: 4 UX Designers (collaborative project)
Timeline: 4 weeks
Tools: Figma (design & prototyping), Miro (research synthesis), Maze (usability testing), Squarespace (platform constraints)
User Research.
The existing site was scattered, difficult to navigate, and failed to clearly communicate Proptech Collective’s value within one minute. Users struggled to find niche-specific insights, meaningful partnerships, and a supportive community. This limited both engagement and growth potential.
To begin, we mapped the site’s current structure and conducted a heuristic evaluation to identify usability issues such as unclear calls to action, broken links, and inconsistent labeling. We also conducted a comparative analysis of similar platforms to explore how others organized content and fostered community engagement.
To better understand user needs, we conducted 10 Zoom interviews with participants, most of whom were recruited by our client:
2 Proptech Collective members
6 non-members referred by the client
2 external industry professionals recruited independently
Key Insights: Users wanted easier access to insights, better networking tools, and a clearer understanding of community value. Many discovered Proptech Collective through platforms like Eventbrite instead of the website. Existing resources felt outdated, and users preferred interactive, searchable formats. Some were unclear about membership benefits and didn’t realize the organization had a global reach.
Persona & Problem.
After completing our user interviews, we synthesized insights using affinity mapping in Miro to identify patterns and key themes. This helped us turn qualitative feedback into actionable direction for design.
We uncovered three core user needs:
Access to niche, property tech–specific content
Easier ways to find events and reports
A stronger sense of community and connection
We worked closely with the client to validate these insights and align them with business goals to help prioritize features.
Meet Dave: To bring our findings to life, we created a primary persona. A 42-year-old founder of a mobile-first facility maintenance app and former CMO in the construction industry.
Dave represents a growing group of users in PropTech who are experienced, business-savvy, and eager to connect with others in the field. He sees the potential in Proptech Collective, but feels the experience falls short of helping him grow and engage in meaningful ways.
Problem Statement
Information Architecture.
Users told us they had trouble finding what they needed. Important resources like newsletters, event links, and industry reports were scattered across different platforms, making it hard to understand the full value of Proptech Collective at a glance.
This fragmentation created friction. Users were dropping off before discovering the platform’s most valuable content.
Solution: We designed a centralized Resources Hub that brought together newsletters, reports, and curated tools in one place. We also embedded upcoming Luma-hosted events directly into the site, allowing users to browse and register without leaving the platform.
The new architecture improved discoverability with clear labels, grouped content by user intent, and made navigation simple and action-oriented.
Design Process.
We began with rough sketches focused on clean, modular sections that would make the experience easier to scan and digest. Each team member contributed ideas, which we combined into a cohesive layout. From there, we translated these into low-fidelity wireframes in Figma, refining the structure and content flow through collaborative feedback.
These wireframes became the foundation for our high-fidelity designs, which emphasized clear calls to action, member impact, and intuitive navigation.
As we moved into high-fidelity designs, I led the design of the About Us page to ensure it clearly communicated the organization’s story and mission. Drawing from client feedback and our design system, I crafted a layout that balanced visual storytelling with clarity.
To create a strong first impression, I reused the homepage’s icon style for visual consistency and to guide user attention. The client also emphasized the importance of showcasing the four community chapters, Toronto, Vancouver, Montreal, and Calgary, which would each eventually have dedicated pages. I designed a section with thumbnail images, city names, and short descriptions, followed by a prominent "See Upcoming Events" call to action to encourage exploration.
At the bottom of the page, I added a team spotlight using the circular photo pattern from the homepage to maintain visual cohesion. This section highlighted the founding team and our client, reinforcing Proptech Collective’s community-driven identity.
Our high-fidelity designs brought in visual branding and polish, featuring:
A sticky navigation bar for easier access
A bold hero section with clear messaging
Trust-building stats and quotes
Embedded tools like Beehiiv and Luma
Strong, consistent calls to action
We refined the About and Events pages to highlight community impact and set clear user expectations. The Home page became a compelling brand introduction, while the Resources section centralized reports, newsletters, and insights, anchored by a featured call to action for the 2024 Proptech in Canada Report.
Usability Testing & Feedback.
We conducted multiple usability tests to see how easily users, both familiar and new to Proptech, could navigate the platform. Feedback led us to improve visual hierarchy, simplify calls to action, and make the Resources Hub more prominent, which boosted navigation and user confidence.
The redesign transformed Proptech Collective’s website from a fragmented, confusing site into a clear, engaging, and easy-to-manage platform.
Post-test feedback included:
A 43% increase in homepage comprehension within the first minute
Users found key content twice as fast
90% of users rated the platform as more trustworthy and credible
Our client and CEO shared powerful feedback, noting that our research uncovered questions they wish had been asked 10 years ago. This reinforced how deeply our work addressed core challenges and positioned Proptech Collective for future growth.