Redesigning Evernote

PROBLEM

We previously had 2 separate iOS and Android apps (that were quite different from each other). We made the switch to React Native so we could build once, and have it render on both platforms. This meant we were building the app again, from scratch, and needed a consolidated design.

GOALS

Design a new, consistent mobile app experience. Use the opportunity of the redesign to address and UX issues while maintaining current user flows.

MY TASKS

End-to-end design for a complete redesign
Prototyping designs for user testing
Prepare handoff and work with developers

My Role: Sr. Product Designer

Team: 1 PM, 1 UX Researcher, 12 Mobile Devs, 2 QA Engineers

Platforms: iPhones and Android phones

Evernote’s History

One of the first apps on the iPhone, Evernote has been around for a while.

Some users have been using the app for over 10 years. Around 8 million people use the mobile app monthly. This meant any small changes had a big impact. We wanted to improve the app but also had to be considerate of existing user flows that users were accustomed to. People don’t always like change!

Two different apps

Built by two separate teams, the iOS and Android apps had a different designs. We were now building one app that was going to be rendered on both platforms so the two needed to be consolidated. They had some major differences in overall visual language, navigation and interactions.