Using UX evaluation to inform a high-risk SaaS partnership decision
PROBLEM STATEMENT
The company was considering a partnership with a third-party email security platform to expand its existing email product offering.
Before signing the contract, the team needed to understand whether the solution would be easy for customers to activate, configure, and use independently.
My role was to evaluate the partner platform from a UX perspective and identify risks that could affect adoption, support effort, and the overall customer experience.
OUTCOME
The evaluation showed that the platform had significant usability and configuration issues, especially for non-technical users.
These findings, combined with technical feasibility concerns from the engineering team, helped leadership decide not to proceed with the partnership.
This prevented the company from adding a product that could increase customer friction, create support dependency, and negatively impact the existing product experience.
IMPACT
•Supported a strategic product decision with UX evidence.
•Identified customer experience risks before contract commitment.
•Helped avoid future rework, support overload, and poor adoption.
•Positioned UX as part of early-stage product and business decision-making.
DESIGN PROCESS
A) UNDERSTANDING THE OPORTUNITY
I started by analysing how the partner solution would fit into the existing email product ecosystem and what value it was expected to bring to customers.
Because the evaluation happened before contract approval, the focus was on identifying early product risks rather than redesigning the interface.
B) MAPPING THE ACTIVATION JOURNEY
I mapped the customer activation and configuration journey to understand the steps users would need to complete before using the service.
This revealed a fragmented setup experience, with unclear guidance, technical terminology, and limited feedback during key moments of the flow.
C) EVALUATING USABILITY RISKS
I conducted a heuristic evaluation and usability walkthrough to assess clarity, consistency, error prevention, feedback, and cognitive load.
The analysis showed that the platform relied heavily on technical knowledge, which could make activation difficult for the expected customer profile.
D) TRANSLATING FINDINGS INTO A PRODUCT RECOMMENDATION
I consolidated the findings into a clear recommendation for stakeholders, connecting UX issues with business risks such as low adoption, increased support dependency, and reduced customer trust.
The recommendation helped the team make a more informed decision before committing to the partnership.
Mapping the setup flow helped identify where customers could face friction, confusion, or technical barriers during activation.
This infographic summarises how usability, activation, and scalability risks were translated into business evidence to support the final partnership decision.
Mapping the setup flow helped identify where customers could face friction, confusion, or technical barriers during activation.
