Community Page Navigation Redesign

Information architecture and navigation behavior rebuilt around how renters scan community pages—not internal taxonomy.

Reduced cognitive load by prioritizing reviews, media, and floor plans in tab order and mobile patterns while keeping every business section reachable.

Role
Sole product designer
Timeline
Research through launch
Platform
ApartmentRatings.com

UX Research · Information Architecture · Interaction Design

Community page navigation redesign

Overview

Community pages sit mid-funnel: renters validate trust before contact. Navigation had grown by org structure, not scan behavior—so high-intent content was hard to predict and slow to reach on mobile. I reordered the IA from analytics-ranked intent, consolidated media, and designed overflow so priority tabs stay scannable without hiding secondary sections.

Problem

Renters treated tabs like a search task: they could not predict where reviews, floor plans, or media lived. Wrapped labels and flat hierarchy raised cognitive load and broke mobile scan paths.

Renter behavior

  • Scanned horizontally for cues—not explored every tab
  • Abandoned when labels did not match mental models
  • Needed faster paths to reviews, photos, and plans

IA constraints

  • All CMS sections must remain reachable in V1
  • Same priority order on mobile and desktop
  • Tab overflow without losing discoverability
  • Partner-facing pages still demo full inventory

Information architecture

Tab order is the primary hierarchy on community pages. I mapped org-driven navigation against renter intent, then locked a before/after structure for reviews, media, floor plans, and supporting content.

Before · org structure

  1. Overview
  2. Amenities
  3. Photos
  4. Videos
  5. Reviews
  6. Floor Plans
  7. Map & Area
  8. …more tabs

After · renter intent

  1. Reviews
  2. Photos & Videos
  3. Floor Plans
  4. Overview
  5. Amenities
  6. Map & Area
  7. …overflow · scroll

Mobile: same labels and priority order—collapsible pattern, not a shortened list. Priority tabs stay visible; overflow scrolls with clear active state.

Key Insights

From analytics on tab engagement, session replays, and moderated findability tasks—not feature requests.

  • Renters scanned for trust signals first; they compared tab labels before committing to scroll depth.
  • Users could not predict content locations—reviews and floor plans felt “on the page somewhere,” not in a known place.
  • When tabs wrapped on mobile, hierarchy collapsed; high-interest sections competed with low-traffic labels in one flat row.
“I know reviews are on this page—I can't tell which tab takes me there.”Usability synthesis

Journey Map

Renter path from landing to next step—where skim behavior and unpredictable tabs eroded confidence before reviews, media, or floor plans.

  1. 01

    Discover

    FeelingSkeptical · fast scan

    Goal

    Worth a deeper look?

    Actions

    Scan hero and tab row before scrolling.

    Friction

    Unpredictable tabs. No clear entry to reviews or media.

    Design opportunity

    Intent-led tab order. Reviews, media, and plans lead the row.

  2. 02

    Evaluate

    FeelingImpatient · low confidence

    Goal

    Enough trust to stay in the set.

    Actions

    Hunt for reviews and rating themes.

    Friction

    Reviews buried mid-row. Bounce before the first meaningful click.

    Design opportunity

    Reviews first. Trust content in the primary scan path.

  3. 03

    Compare

    FeelingOverloaded

    Goal

    Stack up against alternatives.

    Actions

    Jump between plans, photos, and overview.

    Friction

    Split media tabs. Comparison slows when visual proof is scattered.

    Design opportunity

    One media destination. Stable tab order across breakpoints.

  4. 04

    Decide

    FeelingFatigued · exit-ready

    Goal

    Confirm fit—or exit quickly.

    Actions

    Revisit tabs; scroll for buried details.

    Friction

    Mobile wrap. Hierarchy collapses; low-intent labels compete.

    Design opportunity

    Overflow as IA. Scrollable row, strong active state.

  5. 05

    Contact / Convert

    FeelingCautious · disengaged

    Goal

    Contact, save, or leave with clarity.

    Actions

    Convert—or bail if wayfinding cost is too high.

    Friction

    Wayfinding tax. Friction at the bottom of the funnel.

    Design opportunity

    Shorter path to CTA. Trust content connects to the next step.

Key journey insight

Content wasn’t missing—navigation forced hunt-and-peck before confidence could form.

Strategy

Each move targets cognitive load, content prioritization, and discoverability—mobile-first, with scanability over tab count.

Intent-led tab order

User problem

Priority sections sat mid-row; renters scrolled past them hunting by label.

UX decision

Reviews → Photos & Videos → Floor Plans → supporting sections—order matches analytics-ranked intent.

Expected outcome

Faster first click to trust and layout content; less horizontal hunting.

Consolidate media

User problem

Separate Photos and Videos tabs split attention and duplicated mental models.

UX decision

Single Photos & Videos destination with shared depth.

Expected outcome

One scan target for visual proof; fewer tabs in the primary row.

Overflow as IA, not failure

User problem

Wrapped tabs looked like equal choices and hid active section on small screens.

UX decision

Horizontal scroll, strong active state, and consistent labels when the row exceeds viewport.

Expected outcome

Secondary sections stay reachable without flattening priority tabs.

Mobile parity

User problem

Mobile users needed the same hierarchy—not a reduced or reordered subset.

UX decision

Collapsible navigation with identical labels and order as desktop.

Expected outcome

Predictable wayfinding across breakpoints; no “mobile surprise” tabs.

Solution

Before

Community navigation before redesign
  • Tab order followed internal taxonomy
  • Reviews and floor plans buried mid-row
  • Photos and video split across tabs

After

Community navigation after redesign
  • Priority content left-aligned in scan path
  • Media grouped; fewer competing labels
  • Overflow keeps secondary sections one gesture away
Mobile community page navigation
Mobile — same IA priority; collapsible pattern preserves order

Impact

+11%

Community page visits

More renters reached community pages after navigation clarified entry to priority sections.

+15%

Priority tab engagement

Higher interaction with reviews, combined media, and floor plans vs. pre-reorder baseline.

Lower wayfinding friction

Fewer support and research reports about “finding reviews” or plans on the page.

Reusable IA pattern

Intent-led tab model carried to later community work and partner demos.

Reflection

Ranking sections from behavior and analytics before visual design kept the IA honest. The win was structural—predictable hierarchy and mobile parity—not cosmetic tab styling. Next I'd instrument time-to-first meaningful tab click and compare scan paths on wrapped vs. overflow patterns.