From bottlenecks to scale: revamping Publish for scalable adoption
Background
A legacy content management platform plagued by errors, poor workflows, and reluctant adoption after a failed earlier release.
Challenge
Overhaul the product in 4 months with a new team, fixing usability and adoption issues to win back social media managers.
Impact
100% users migrated to Publish 2.0
in 4 months
~36% reduction
in customer support tickets after 4 months
Built a scalable product
TikTok was integrated later
Sped up future initiatives & problem solving
through cross-team knowledge sharing
Team
My role
End-to-end design
Documentation
Timeline
July - November 2023 (4 months)
Flowbox: empowering global brands with authentic UGC
Flowbox is a B2B SaaS platform helping 850+ global brands turn authentic user-generated content into powerful marketing. Operating in 40+ countries, it drives engagement through a subscription-based model.
Designing across products at Flowbox
As one of only two designers at Flowbox, I collaborated across product, engineering, customer success & sales teams, leading end-to-end design for four products, including Publish.
The story of Publish 2.0
Publish is a tool for scheduling and distributing visual UGC across platforms like Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, Twitter, and TikTok. Although Publish 2.0 launched in 2021, it faced significant usability and adoption challenges when I joined Flowbox.
Publish dashboard
Some of the major issues included:
1. Error loops blocking workflows
For instance, adding a Facebook link without a URL, triggered an endless error loop with no guidance.
Example: Adding a Facebook link without a URL, triggered an endless error loop with no guidance.
2. Incomplete workflows and silent failures
For example, editing a post after its scheduled time could cause it to fail, yet the social media managers received no feedback on what went wrong.
Example, editing a post after its scheduled time could cause it to fail, yet the social media managers received no feedback on what went wrong.
As a result, only 25% of companies (10/40) were using Publish 2.0, while maintaining two versions of the product became costly and unsustainable.
The business aimed to migrate the remaining 30/40 companies to Publish 2.0 within 4 months and achieve full adoption.
Key challenges
1. Knowledge gap
When I joined, most of the original product, tech, and design teams had left, creating a significant knowledge gap.
2. Tight timeline
The revamp had to be executed by a completely new team under a tight 4-month timeline.
3. Uncovering hidden issues
As we dug deeper into the product, we uncovered numerous hidden bugs and issues that needed to be addressed
Iterative approach to fix critical issues
I adopted an iterative approach inspired by the Double Diamond framework, working closely with PMs and developers to ensure designs were feasible. Together, we prioritized issues based on criticality, impact, and effort, creating a clear backlog to guide execution.
Refocussing on the core problem
1. Error loops blocking workflows
Our first priority was to fix the error loops that blocked workflows and frustrated social media managers.
For example, adding a Facebook link without a URL triggered an endless error loop. My initial approach was separating the input with inline validation, but this only partially solved it.
Initial approach: Separate the link into its own input form with inline validation, but this only partially solved the problem
Decoding the source of workflow errors
Through testing with developers, I discovered two error types:
System errors (e.g., API failures) needing instant validation
User errors (e.g., empty posts) appearing at the workflow’s end, requiring delayed checks.
These insights guided targeted error handling.
Example of a system error: Facebook API blocking a scheduled post due to missing permissions.
Redesigned validation flow
I redesigned the validation flow using a mix of inline and on-click validations, catching immediate mistakes and handling later errors smoothly. I also reused an existing component for error summary to save development time.
Example of the redesigned validation with inline and on-click checks for error detection and recovery.
Enhanced error detection & prevention with real-time alerts
API failures were previously only visible in the dashboard. I added real-time notifications showing errors and their impact on scheduled posts, giving users immediate visibility and a smoother workflow.
API failure alert showing impact on scheduled posts
Real-time notification for failed scheduled posts
Building a shared guide for error handling
While redesigning the validation flow, I created an error handling documentation through feedback sessions with developers and the PM, creating consistent UX patterns and a shared knowledge base for the team.
Sample of error messaging guidelines documentation
Impact
After launching the updated Publish, we closely monitored key metrics.
Next steps
Integrating Analytics for smarter scheduling
Given more time, I would have integrated social media analytics into Publish, helping users find optimal posting times without leaving the platform. This would create a seamless experience and differentiate Flowbox by combining curation, analysis, and scheduling in one place.
Integrating Analytics to Publish for smarter scheduling
Key learnings
Balancing quick wins with long-term vision for scalability. It is a subtle balance between impact on users and dev efforts.
Learnt first hand how UGC and trends shape brand trust and consumer perception.
Staying flexible is key to navigate ambiguity in a legacy system instead of rigidly following any single process.
