Designing the Newsletter Subscription Experience

    • Led UX design for the newsletter web experience and subscription flow

    • Collaborated closely with PMs and engineers through iterative design and reviews

  • 2 Product Designers, 2 Engineers, 1 Product Manager, 1 Technical Architect, 1 Product Delivery Lead

  • Jun – Aug 2023

Overview

Redesigning the newsletter as a web content asset—from understanding to conversion

Consistent subscription CTAs and a structured newsletter archive were designed across devices to help users understand the content before subscribing and move naturally toward conversion.

As a result, the newsletter evolved from a one-time email touchpoint into a reusable web content asset that supports long-term discovery and engagement.

Solution at a Glance

One connected flow from content discovery to subscription

A unified subscription flow was designed around a newsletter archive, allowing content exploration and email subscription to happen within a single space.

Context

The newsletter was important—but underutilized on the web

Think Global Health is a global health publishing platform run by the Council on Foreign Relations. Its weekly newsletter served as a key reader touchpoint.

However, on the website, subscription and content discovery were not well supported. The newsletter lacked structure as web content, making it difficult to manage and preventing it from functioning as a sustainable web asset.

Problems

Solutions

Establish consistent CTA principles across devices

Clear CTA visibility rules were defined for all devices, and hidden CTAs were moved into primary areas. This clarified the subscription entry point and created a more conversion-friendly flow.

Design a newsletter archive

An archive was created to display all past newsletters in one place. Date-based browsing allows users to understand the content and value of the newsletter before subscribing.

Structure newsletters as a web content type

The placement and structure of newsletters within the website were clearly defined. This removed the need for repeated editorial decisions and enabled more consistent operations.

Impact

Beyond subscription UX—connecting operations and business value

These improvements connected content understanding (Archive) and conversion (CTA) into a single flow, transforming the newsletter into a business-supporting web asset.

What I Learned

Subscription UX is a structural problem—not just a button

Improving subscription UX is not about adjusting button placement. It requires designing how content is discovered, understood, and connected to conversion within a clear structure.

This project demonstrated that UX architecture can influence not only user experience, but also business outcomes and operational efficiency.