Granted Consulting
Empower small businesses through grants
Client: Granted Consulting
Type: App Design
Role: UI Designer
Scope: 3 weeks
Deliverables: Art Direction, Logo, Branding, Web App Prototype
Granted Consulting started in 2011 to help small to medium-sized businesses to identify eligible grant programs and guide them through the process. Over the years, they noticed a niche market where smaller businesses do not need Granted Consulting to be involved in the process. Up-to-date information and a project management system to keep them on track with each grant program they applied would be more helpful.
The project is to design a grant management system with a grant search portal and, more importantly, has clear, step-by-step instructions to guide the users throughout the grant application process.
Research
Interviews were conducted with small business owners in the community, clients of Granted, or anyone with relevant experience. We found that most small businesses have little to no knowledge of grants, but they would love to get the support. Those who know about grants and have gone through the process by themselves. It is frustrating, challenging and hardly fathomable to understand what grants you are eligible for. We conclude it into three pain points:
Confusing process
Lack of support
Time-consuming
Challenge
Find a way to streamline the grant process while keeping the users engaged
Make the process simpler, faster and less confusing
Design
Two art directions were presented. The first one is "peace of mind" which uses a friendly, familiar, and reliable approach to show users that applying for grants could be an easy, simple, and enjoyable experience. They do not have to worry about the process anymore since everything has been taken care of. The other one is "accomplished" which takes a driven, confident and professional direction, implying that even small businesses can have the chance to grow and become more successful.
