Building Support That Actually Scales
Building Support That Actually Scales
Redesigning a customer support platform to handle 10x the traffic while cutting response times in half.
My role
My role
UI/UX Designer
UI/UX Designer
Audience
Audience
External users +
Internal support team
External users + Internal support team
01
Overview
User Frustration: 3-5 min wait times, unclear ticket status, repetitive questions
Agents were losing time to a clunky interface that didn't reflect how they actually worked.
Scaling Issues: System crushed under peak loads, conversations often lost
Zero Data: No insights into common issues or agent performance
Part 1 of 2 | External UX
Reducing time-to-answer for customers
Problems
The default chat input field was too large in height and left little room for viewing messages.
The send button lived inside the field, making the interface feel heavy and unintuitive.
Users reported it took a long time to find answers to questions that turned out to be relatively simple.
Solutions
Reduced the default input height to 40px. The field grows vertically only once typed content reaches the maximum line width.
The send button was removed from inside the field and repositioned below it to create a cleaner visual hierarchy.
Introduced a "Quick Help" screen that appears immediately when the chat widget is opened.
Part 2 of 2 | Internal Agent Experience
Giving support agents back their time
Problems
The chat panel showed no visual distinction between active chats and chats waiting in queue.
Agents had to click into conversations individually to check whether they had responded, a significant time drain managing multiple chats
Agents had no way to pause incoming chats when stepping away.
Solutions
Added clear visual status indicators to each chat entry in the panel.
Agents can now scan their full queue without opening a single conversation.
Introduced an agent availability toggle that allows support team members to set their status to "Away" to pause incoming chats during breaks.
03
What changed
Without formal post-launch metrics, success was measured through team feedback, observed behavior changes, and reduction in recurring complaints.
Faster self-service resolution
Reduced agent cognitive load
Improved agent wellbeing
Fewer repeat complaints
Building Support That Actually Scales
Building Support That Actually Scales
Redesigning a customer support platform to handle 10x the traffic while cutting response times in half.
My role
My role
UI/UX Designer
UI/UX Designer
Audience
Audience
External users +
Internal support team
External users + Internal support team
01
Overview
User Frustration: 3-5 min wait times, unclear ticket status, repetitive questions
Agents were losing time to a clunky interface that didn't reflect how they actually worked.
Scaling Issues: System crushed under peak loads, conversations often lost
Zero Data: No insights into common issues or agent performance
Part 1 of 2 | External UX
Reducing time-to-answer for customers
Problems
The default chat input field was too large in height and left little room for viewing messages.
The send button lived inside the field, making the interface feel heavy and unintuitive.
Users reported it took a long time to find answers to questions that turned out to be relatively simple.
Solutions
Reduced the default input height to 40px. The field grows vertically only once typed content reaches the maximum line width.
The send button was removed from inside the field and repositioned below it to create a cleaner visual hierarchy.
Introduced a "Quick Help" screen that appears immediately when the chat widget is opened.
Part 2 of 2 | Internal Agent Experience
Giving support agents back their time
Problems
The chat panel showed no visual distinction between active chats and chats waiting in queue.
Agents had to click into conversations individually to check whether they had responded, a significant time drain managing multiple chats
Agents had no way to pause incoming chats when stepping away.
Solutions
Added clear visual status indicators to each chat entry in the panel.
Agents can now scan their full queue without opening a single conversation.
Introduced an agent availability toggle that allows support team members to set their status to "Away" to pause incoming chats during breaks.
03
What changed
Without formal post-launch metrics, success was measured through team feedback, observed behavior changes, and reduction in recurring complaints.
Faster self-service resolution
Reduced agent cognitive load
Improved agent wellbeing
Fewer repeat complaints
Building Support That Actually Scales
Building Support That Actually Scales
Redesigning a customer support platform to handle 10x the traffic while cutting response times in half.
My role
My role
UI/UX Designer
UI/UX Designer
Audience
Audience
External users +
Internal support team
External users + Internal support team
01
Overview
User Frustration: 3-5 min wait times, unclear ticket status, repetitive questions
Agents were losing time to a clunky interface that didn't reflect how they actually worked.
Scaling Issues: System crushed under peak loads, conversations often lost
Zero Data: No insights into common issues or agent performance
Part 1 of 2 | External UX
Reducing time-to-answer for customers
Problems
The default chat input field was too large in height and left little room for viewing messages.
The send button lived inside the field, making the interface feel heavy and unintuitive.
Users reported it took a long time to find answers to questions that turned out to be relatively simple.
Solutions
Reduced the default input height to 40px. The field grows vertically only once typed content reaches the maximum line width.
The send button was removed from inside the field and repositioned below it to create a cleaner visual hierarchy.
Introduced a "Quick Help" screen that appears immediately when the chat widget is opened.
Part 2 of 2 | Internal Agent Experience
Giving support agents back their time
Problems
The chat panel showed no visual distinction between active chats and chats waiting in queue.
Agents had to click into conversations individually to check whether they had responded, a significant time drain managing multiple chats
Agents had no way to pause incoming chats when stepping away.
Solutions
Added clear visual status indicators to each chat entry in the panel.
Agents can now scan their full queue without opening a single conversation.
Introduced an agent availability toggle that allows support team members to set their status to "Away" to pause incoming chats during breaks.
03
What changed
Without formal post-launch metrics, success was measured through team feedback, observed behavior changes, and reduction in recurring complaints.
Faster self-service resolution
Reduced agent cognitive load
Improved agent wellbeing
Fewer repeat complaints

