CaLM for Google Search

Millions of people turn to Google Search every day for health information, but navigating complex medical terms and unverified sources can be stressful. To create a more empowering experience, we researched and identified distinct user archetypes representing individuals facing chronic illness diagnoses:

The Anxious Guardian: These dedicated individuals assume the responsibility of caring for a loved one with a chronic illness. They tirelessly seek ways to improve their loved one's quality of life. (Stage: Primarily caregivers at the time of diagnosis)

The Community Seeker: Newly diagnosed individuals who crave connection with others facing similar challenges. They seek to learn from others' experiences and gain a sense of normalcy. (Stage: Early diagnosis)

The Question Mark: Individuals grappling with a recent diagnosis. They yearn for private, reliable information to understand their condition and navigate the uncertainty of their future. (Stage: Early diagnosis)

The Hopeful Realist: Individuals who have accepted their diagnosis but actively seek ways to maintain their quality of life and pursue their passions. (Stage: Later diagnosis, managing the condition)

The Social Detective: Individuals frustrated by the lack of readily available medical research on their specific condition. They seek connection with others facing similar challenges to combat isolation and discover coping mechanisms. (Stage: Varies, often ongoing)

Analyzing the archetypes, we discovered common threads in their search experience needs and desires. This insight led us to define four core pillars for the ideal health search experience: Resonant, Genuine, Empowering, and Contextual.

These pillars served as our guiding principles. We explored existing visual and user experience design elements within and beyond Google that embodied these attributes. This exploration provided a roadmap for crafting the look and feel of the search experience.

Leveraging the user archetypes and experience pillars, we began exploring the search experience. Due to time constraints, we explored content strategy concurrently. This resulted in diverse explorations, some focusing on empowering users to delve deeper into their conditions or take action on information. Others prioritized calming user anxiety or facilitating immediate connection with support resources.

However, client feedback led to a course correction. While initially preferring solely user-generated content, the client now desired a mix of user and official sources. Additionally, the preference shifted from large, organized modules to modular components that could function independently or together.

This required us to revisit the drawing board and develop a more specific framework. This framework would guide the creation of targeted, practical designs that effectively addressed the user archetypes and experience pillars we established.

By prioritizing user needs, we identified a previously unconsidered aspect of the experience: the need for balance between individual understanding and social connection. On one hand, users sought to grasp and manage their condition independently. On the other hand, they craved a sense of community and connection with others who shared their experiences.

This realization allowed us to develop specialized components and modules that addressed these distinct needs. This modular approach created a flexible network that could deliver targeted support, empowering users to cope and thrive on their health journeys.