Case study

Making it easier for people to ask for help.

Redesigning Mozilla's support forum so people who needed help could actually get it, instead of giving up and going to Reddit.

ClientMozilla
RoleInformation Architect and UX Writer
Timeline16 weeks
Result400% increase in forum submissions

The challenge

Mozilla's support site provides help articles and a support forum for customers around the world. It hosts 15 products and growing.

Support agents noticed that while many support questions and complaints were being posted to Reddit and Twitter, Mozilla's support site was getting only 5 to 10 questions a day.

The problem was twofold. The "Ask a question" option was hard to find. And once someone found it, the flow required five steps — including account registration and category selection — before they could even submit their question. Most people gave up.

The old "ask a question" flow: 5 steps before you could submit
1
Find the link
Buried in navigation, easy to miss
2
Create account
Required before asking anything
3
Select product
Long list, unclear categories
4
Select topic
Another layer of categorization
5
Write question
Most people never made it here
Result: users went to Reddit instead. Mozilla's forum received just 5 to 10 questions per day.

The existing flow required five complicated steps, and the entry point was hard to find.

Some of the questions that did come through were angry and abusive, which made the volunteer support community feel unsafe. The broken experience was not just losing users. It was hurting the people trying to help.

The process

I learned through surveys that visitors were frustrated with the support forum experience. Working with a visual designer, support agents, and engineers over 16 weeks, I focused on three things.

1
Simplify the structure
Replaced the multi-step wizard with a single, clear form. Instead of clicking through five pages, people could describe their problem on one page with a simplified dropdown for categories.
2
Make entry points visible
Added "Ask the Community" cards throughout help articles and a "Still need help?" bar so people could find the forum from wherever they were on the site, not just from a buried navigation link.
3
Write empathetic brand content
The old experience was purely functional. The new one included community-focused messaging that set the tone for respectful interaction, directly addressing the problem of abusive messages to volunteers.
Brand voice: before and after
Before
"Ask a Question"
Purely transactional. No warmth, no community signal, no indication of what happens after you post. Set no expectations for how people should treat each other.
After
"Our community is here to help. Kindness is at the heart of what we do."
Sets the tone before anyone posts. Signals this is a community, not a ticket queue. Reduced abusive messages by establishing norms before people started typing.

Empathetic brand writing set expectations for respectful interaction before people posted.

The result

The redesign addressed four key areas.

Before
Entry point
Buried nav link
Only accessible from one place on the site.
Flow to ask a question
5 steps including registration
Most users gave up before submitting.
Brand tone
Purely functional
No community norms established, leading to abusive posts.
Alternate help paths
None
Users who could find an existing article had no way to discover it from the forum.
After
Entry point
Multiple entry points across the site
Accessible from help articles, a "Still need help?" bar, and navigation.
Flow to ask a question
Single page with simplified dropdown
Removed registration barrier and category complexity.
Brand tone
Warm, community-focused messaging
Set expectations for respectful interaction before anyone posted.
Alternate help paths
Article search box on the form
People who could find an existing answer did not need to post at all.

Four targeted changes removed the friction stopping people from asking for help.

New entry points added throughout the site
Help articles
Ask the Community
Cards embedded in help articles so people could move to the forum without backtracking.
Bottom of every help page
Still need help?
A persistent bar that appeared when an article did not solve the problem.
Forum form
Search before you post
An article search box so people could find existing answers without submitting a new question.

New entry points throughout the site made the forum discoverable from wherever someone was.

Shortly after launch, questions in the forum increased by 400%. The new design also made it easier for scammers to post messages, so we had to implement a new secure sign-in.

400%
Increase in forum submissions after launch

Key lessons

Brand voice makes a difference, especially in spaces where visitors are likely stressed out. When someone is frustrated enough to ask for help, the tone of the content around them determines whether they engage respectfully or lash out. Empathetic content is not just nice to have. It shapes behavior.

What this shows

I understand how to redesign content experiences for people who are stressed and need help. I can simplify complex flows, write content that builds trust and safety, and create entry points that meet people where they are. The result is not just better metrics. It is a better experience for everyone involved, including the community volunteers who support the product.

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