Enhancing the discoverability of creatives on Patreon
UX
Prototyping
UI
Memorisely Bootcamp
INTRODUCTION
What is Patreon and how does it work? 🤷♀️
Patreon is a platform where creators from various fields can receive financial support from their fans (patrons), primarily through different monthly subscription tiers that grant access to exclusive content.
Finding creators you love should be an intuitive and engaging experience. However, the current discovery process on Patreon has limitations, which is why we set out to redesign it.
BACKGROUND
The Brief 📝
The current discovery process on Patreon primarily relies on a basic search input field, allowing potential patrons to find creators. The task we were assigned was to research, ideate, and redesign the 'Find Creators' experience, making it more engaging, personalized, and effective in connecting patrons with creatives that match their interests.
USER INSIGHTS
The homepage is confusing and unintuitive
We performed generative user interviews to understand new users content preferences, discoverability expectations, and perceived barriers.
One thing that stood out among the interviewees' answers was that they felt unsure about what to do when they opened the homepage.
USER INSIGHTS
Free content and trials are missing
Another key insight from the interviews was that, before making a financial commitment, users wanted to familiarize themselves with the creator and evaluate their content. However, the current platform does not provide a way for users to do this effectively.
USER INSIGHTS
When users don’t know what they’re looking for 👩💻
Our interviews revealed that users prefer platforms like Instagram or YouTube because they make content easy to discover, even when you don’t know exactly what you’re looking for. Unlike Patreon, these platforms let users browse freely without requiring an account, and surface content based on user behavior, preferences, and trends.
That insight led us to ask an important question early in the project:
Based on these insights, we set clear goals and prioritized them strategically to stay focused within our time constraints. Our 🥇 priority was the homepage, improving the layout and enhancing search. But we didn’t stop there. To better support exploration, we also planned changes to creators’ personal pages, aiming to make the full journey from discovery to subscription more fluid and intuitive.
IDEATION & EXPLORATION
Full speed ahead! 🚀
We began sketching and testing ways to improve the homepage, focusing on navigation and search, but something still felt off. The improvements were solid, but they didn’t fully address what users had told us about discovery.
That made us take a step back and rethink our approach. That’s when a new idea emerged:
What if users could discover creators based on their current mood instead of relying on a traditional search input field?
IDEATION & EXPLORATION
Refine or rethink? A tough decision 😵
Mid-Fidelity wireframes drawing showing the first concept for "Mood Search"
THE SOLUTION
Mood-based discovery: Rethinking how users find creators
Instead of taking the safe path, we decided to explore uncharted territory. At first, this felt daunting, but the benefits of organizing our content this way were too compelling to ignore.
Structuring content based on mood addressed several key issues we had uncovered during our interviews, including:
No visibility for trending content or creators
No recommendations for similar creators
No curated lists from staff or creators
No free content, trials, or previews
Difficulty finding and exploring creators by category
To bring our vision to life, we created an interactive prototype that demonstrates how mood-based discovery enhances the user experience. Below are four key areas of the system, each explained through a short walkthrough video.
Searching & Filtering by mood
Instead of relying on traditional search, users can discover creators by selecting a mood that matches their current interests. This approach encourages exploration and makes discovery more intuitive.
Beyond search, we designed dedicated mood-based pages such as Bold Adventures and Cozy Creativity, where users can explore hand-picked content aligned with their emotions.
Personalized mood pages for creators
Mood-based discovery extends beyond browsing, it also enhances creator pages. One example is HarmonyWithKate, a musician featured in the Cozy Creativity category. This page provides a seamless transition from discovery to engagement.
BEYOND THIS PROJECT
Future opportunities 🚀
While this project introduced significant improvements to creator discoverability, there are still many areas that could be further refined and expanded. If the project were to continue, we would focus on:
Integrating mood-based discovery with search – Enhancing the search field to allow a seamless blend between traditional search and mood-based exploration.
Improving the subscription flow – Streamlining the process to make supporting creators as seamless as possible.
Exploring additional Creator Profile features – Refining the Shop, Membership, and Recommendations sections to further support engagement.
Enhancing the account creation experience – Simplifying the onboarding process to make signing up for Patreon more intuitive and frictionless.
This project opened up new ways of thinking about discoverability, and it’s exciting to imagine how these ideas could continue to evolve.