geotab.com usability study
Geotab.com navigation user study and insights 2026. Does Geotab.com's navigation align with how our customers think? This is a long one, stay a while.
FOCUS
USER RESEARCH
TIMELINE
4 MONTHS
TOOLS
FIGMA, QUALTRICS, AI TOOLS
geotab.com usability study
Geotab.com navigation user study and insights 2026. Does Geotab.com's navigation align with how our customers think? This is a long one, stay a while.
FOCUS
USER RESEARCH
TIMELINE
4 MONTHS
TOOLS
FIGMA, QUALTRICS, AI TOOLS
geotab.com usability study
Geotab.com navigation user study and insights 2026. Does Geotab.com's navigation align with how our customers think? This is a long one, stay a while.
FOCUS
USER RESEARCH
TIMELINE
4 MONTHS
TOOLS
FIGMA, QUALTRICS, AI TOOLS
Contents
Contents
Use these quick links to get around quick. If I were you, I would skip right to the insights.
Use these quick links to get around quick. If I were you, I would skip right to the insights.
Overview
Geotab.com is the primary discovery surface for new buyers evaluating a fleet management platform. Before a prospect ever speaks to sales, they're on the website trying to determine whether Geotab solves their problem. If the navigation doesn't get them there, they leave.
This study outlines results from multiple navigation-focused usability tests conducted on Geotab.com. The goal of our findings is to determine if the existing navigation structure and labeling conventions align with users' mental models, while identifying any usability and Ul related issues.
My Role
Partnering with a UI/UX designer, I led the end-to-end research process-from study design and participant recruitment to video analysis and behavioral data synthesis.
Working together, we translated these insights into actionable recommendations and prototypes, incorporating stakeholder feedback to refine the final output.
Overview
Geotab.com is the primary discovery surface for new buyers evaluating a fleet management platform. Before a prospect ever speaks to sales, they're on the website trying to determine whether Geotab solves their problem. If the navigation doesn't get them there, they leave.
This study outlines results from multiple navigation-focused usability tests conducted on Geotab.com. The goal of our findings is to determine if the existing navigation structure and labeling conventions align with users' mental models, while identifying any usability and Ul related issues.
My Role
Partnering with a UI/UX designer, I led the end-to-end research process-from study design and participant recruitment to video analysis and behavioral data synthesis.
Working together, we translated these insights into actionable recommendations and prototypes, incorporating stakeholder feedback to refine the final output.
Overview
Geotab.com is the primary discovery surface for new buyers evaluating a fleet management platform. Before a prospect ever speaks to sales, they're on the website trying to determine whether Geotab solves their problem. If the navigation doesn't get them there, they leave.
This study outlines results from multiple navigation-focused usability tests conducted on Geotab.com. The goal of our findings is to determine if the existing navigation structure and labeling conventions align with users' mental models, while identifying any usability and Ul related issues.
My Role
Partnering with a UI/UX designer, I led the end-to-end research process-from study design and participant recruitment to video analysis and behavioral data synthesis.
Working together, we translated these insights into actionable recommendations and prototypes, incorporating stakeholder feedback to refine the final output.
Our Guiding Question
Does our navigation align with how our customers think?
Our Guiding Question
Does our navigation align with how our customers think?
TLDR
Geotab.com's labels structure don't match customer mental models, hindering product discovery.
This study aims to align the navigation with how users actually search.
TLDR
The pattern: concrete nouns with narrow, unambiguous mental models outperform abstract corporate concepts. "Maintenance" has one meaning. "Optimization" has many.
TLDR
The pattern: concrete nouns with narrow, unambiguous mental models outperform abstract corporate concepts. "Maintenance" has one meaning. "Optimization" has many.
Hypothesis
Our key assumptions about why our navigation is failing users. Spoiler, both were confirmed.
01
Ineffective Labels & Taxonomy
Our navigation labels do not resonate with the business needs of our customers, preventing them from easily understanding our business offerings.
02
Misaligned Structure
Our navigation is not structured in a way that surfaces pages most relevant to customers-hindering discovery.
Project Goals
What we set out to evaluate, test, and validate.
01
Assess Resonance
Uncover any usability and Ul related issues users may experience by conducting a usability audit, and gather feedback from external and internal users. Are there scalability issues? How responsive is the navigation?
02
Evaluate Browsability
Uncover whether the navigation structure and labelling conventions resonate with users' mental models. What type of naming structure or categorization are users thinking of when they are browsing? How can we align our pages to those mental models?
03
Identify Usability Painpoints
Understand if the navigation encourages users to browse and learn more about our products and solutions. Are we surfacing important information and pages property in the navigation? Is the navigation too overwhelming for users?
Project Goals
What we set out to evaluate, test, and validate.
01
Assess Resonance
Uncover any usability and Ul related issues users may experience by conducting a usability audit, and gather feedback from external and internal users. Are there scalability issues? How responsive is the navigation?
02
Evaluate Browsability
Uncover whether the navigation structure and labelling conventions resonate with users' mental models. What type of naming structure or categorization are users thinking of when they are browsing? How can we align our pages to those mental models?
03
Identify Usability Painpoints
Understand if the navigation encourages users to browse and learn more about our products and solutions. Are we surfacing important information and pages property in the navigation? Is the navigation too overwhelming for users?
Methodology
The study was conducted through Qualtrics using an unmoderated behavioral framework - just real people navigating a live website in real time.
User Scenario: Participants were primed with a fleet manager scenario: 100+ vehicles, a need for scalable software, and real tasks around safety, costs, and vehicle tracking.
Task breakdown: 7 direct navigation tasks, 1 exploratory perception task.
Navigational Constraints: Participants were told to browse using main navigation only, and share reactions out loud.
Participant Locations: United States.
The study was conducted through Qualtrics using an unmoderated behavioral framework - just real people navigating a live website in real time.
User Scenario: Participants were primed with a fleet manager scenario: 100+ vehicles, a need for scalable software, and real tasks around safety, costs, and vehicle tracking.
Task breakdown: 7 direct navigation tasks, 1 exploratory perception task.
Navigational Constraints: Participants were told to browse using main navigation only, and share reactions out loud.
Participant Locations: United States.
Participants
A strategic sample of 12 users split across varying tiers of domain knowledge. 12 participants total:
New Prospects: 9 Participants (75%)
Existing Customers: 2 Participants (17%)
Industry Experts: 1 Participant (8%)
This cohort was weighted heavily toward New Prospects (75%).
A strategic sample of 12 users split across varying tiers of domain knowledge. 12 participants total:
New Prospects: 9 Participants (75%)
Existing Customers: 2 Participants (17%)
Industry Experts: 1 Participant (8%)
This cohort was weighted heavily toward New Prospects (75%).
Methodology
The study was conducted through Qualtrics using an unmoderated behavioral framework - just real people navigating a live website in real time.
User Scenario: Participants were primed with a fleet manager scenario: 100+ vehicles, a need for scalable software, and real tasks around safety, costs, and vehicle tracking.
Task breakdown: 7 direct navigation tasks, 1 exploratory perception task.
Navigational Constraints: Participants were told to browse using main navigation only, and share reactions out loud.
Participant Locations: United States.
Participants
A strategic sample of 12 users split across varying tiers of domain knowledge. 12 participants total:
New Prospects: 9 Participants (75%)
Existing Customers: 2 Participants (17%)
Industry Experts: 1 Participant (8%)
This cohort was weighted heavily toward New Prospects (75%).
TLDR:
Geotab.com's labels structure don't match customer mental models, hindering product discovery.
This study aims to align the navigation with how users actually search.
Observations
Observations
Task success rates told a clear story. The nav's worst-performing labels used Geotab's internal product taxonomy.
Task success rates told a clear story. The nav's worst-performing labels used Geotab's internal product taxonomy.
33% success rate
"Fleet Optimization"
Most users did not connect the problem of fuel savings to "fleet optimization". Some went to sustainability, others gave up or landed on incorrect pages.
read more
33% success rate
"Fleet Optimization"
Most users did not connect the problem of fuel savings to "fleet optimization". Some went to sustainability, others gave up or landed on incorrect pages.
read more
33% success rate
"Fleet Optimization"
Most users did not connect the problem of fuel savings to "fleet optimization". Some went to sustainability, others gave up or landed on incorrect pages.
read more
43% success rate
"Vehicle Telematics"
Most users correctly went to 'Products' at first but became lost on where to click after. Many users mistakened 'Asset Tracking Solutions' as our device page.
read more
43% success rate
"Vehicle Telematics"
Most users correctly went to 'Products' at first but became lost on where to click after. Many users mistakened 'Asset Tracking Solutions' as our device page.
read more
43% success rate
"Vehicle Telematics"
Most users correctly went to 'Products' at first but became lost on where to click after. Many users mistakened 'Asset Tracking Solutions' as our device page.
read more
50% success rate
"OEM Partnerships"
Users either had complete confidence succeeding on finding this page OR were completely lost and became frustrated and failed.
read more
50% success rate
"OEM Partnerships"
Users either had complete confidence succeeding on finding this page OR were completely lost and became frustrated and failed.
read more
50% success rate
"OEM Partnerships"
Users either had complete confidence succeeding on finding this page OR were completely lost and became frustrated and failed.
read more
Contrast Evidence
Contrast Evidence
Our contrast evidence validates our hypothesis further. Some labels did resonate with participants.
Our contrast evidence validates our hypothesis further. Some labels did resonate with participants.
67% success rate
"Fleet Maintenance"
Concrete physical noun; universal mental model (oil changes, repairs)
read more
67% success rate
"Fleet Maintenance"
Concrete physical noun; universal mental model (oil changes, repairs)
read more
67% success rate
"Fleet Maintenance"
Concrete physical noun; universal mental model (oil changes, repairs)
read more
75% success rate
"Video-Based Safety"
Hardware + function implicit; users knew cameras = hardware = product
read more
75% success rate
"Video-Based Safety"
Hardware + function implicit; users knew cameras = hardware = product
read more
75% success rate
"Video-Based Safety"
Hardware + function implicit; users knew cameras = hardware = product
read more
83% success rate
"Asset Tracking Solutions"
"Tracking" was a direct vocabulary anchor
read more
83% success rate
"Asset Tracking Solutions"
"Tracking" was a direct vocabulary anchor
read more
83% success rate
"Asset Tracking Solutions"
"Tracking" was a direct vocabulary anchor
read more
Second data source: ACE reports
Second data source: ACE reports
ACE is Geotab's internal Al assistant, and these reports captured how existing customers naturally describe their problems when they can't find something. To validate our findings further, 18 ACE Summary Reports were analyzed. The analysis confirmed every finding from the usability study and surfaced additional gaps the study hadn't covered. Below is what we found.
ACE is Geotab's internal Al assistant, and these reports captured how existing customers naturally describe their problems when they can't find something. To validate our findings further, 18 ACE Summary Reports were analyzed. The analysis confirmed every finding from the usability study and surfaced additional gaps the study hadn't covered. Below is what we found.
01
Customers Don’t Think in Our Categories
The navigation was built around internal product language, not customer needs.
read more
01
Customers Don’t Think in Our Categories
The navigation was built around internal product language, not customer needs.
read more
01
Customers Don’t Think in Our Categories
The navigation was built around internal product language, not customer needs.
read more
02
The Nav is Missing What Ppl Actually Search For
Some of the most common customer needs had no place in the navigation.
read more
02
The Nav is Missing What Ppl Actually Search For
Some of the most common customer needs had no place in the navigation.
read more
02
The Nav is Missing What Ppl Actually Search For
Some of the most common customer needs had no place in the navigation.
read more
03
The Website Has Content Gaps
Customers were relying on ACE to fill gaps the website should have covered.
read more
03
The Website Has Content Gaps
Customers were relying on ACE to fill gaps the website should have covered.
read more
03
The Website Has Content Gaps
Customers were relying on ACE to fill gaps the website should have covered.
read more
TLDR:
The pattern: concrete nouns with narrow, unambiguous mental models outperform abstract corporate concepts. "Maintenance" has one meaning. "Optimization" has many.
Insights
01
Our reliance on abstract, ambiguous vocabulary directly correlates with task failure, confirming that our current labeling is not resonating with customers.
read more
02
Our navigation is built for industry insiders who already know industry jargon, creating a barrier for a broader audience of potential customers.
read more
03
Our navigation organization force an intuitive guessing game on our visitors, confirming that our current information architecture actively resists user expectations.
read more
04
While our 'Platform' branding successfully conveys a unified ecosystem, it simultaneously acts as a navigational blind spot for concrete shopping tasks.
read more
Insights
01
Our reliance on abstract, ambiguous vocabulary directly correlates with task failure, confirming that our current labeling is not resonating with customers.
read more
01
Our reliance on abstract, ambiguous vocabulary directly correlates with task failure, confirming that our current labeling is not resonating with customers.
read more
02
Our navigation is built for industry insiders who already know industry jargon, creating a barrier for a broader audience of potential customers.
read more
02
Our navigation is built for industry insiders who already know industry jargon, creating a barrier for a broader audience of potential customers.
read more
03
Our navigation organization force an intuitive guessing game on our visitors, confirming that our current information architecture actively resists user expectations.
read more
03
Our navigation organization force an intuitive guessing game on our visitors, confirming that our current information architecture actively resists user expectations.
read more
04
While our 'Platform' branding successfully conveys a unified ecosystem, it simultaneously acts as a navigational blind spot for concrete shopping tasks.
read more
04
While our 'Platform' branding successfully conveys a unified ecosystem, it simultaneously acts as a navigational blind spot for concrete shopping tasks.
read more
Insights
01
Our reliance on abstract, ambiguous vocabulary directly correlates with task failure, confirming that our current labeling is not resonating with customers.
read more
02
Our navigation is built for industry insiders who already know industry jargon, creating a barrier for a broader audience of potential customers.
read more
03
Our navigation organization force an intuitive guessing game on our visitors, confirming that our current information architecture actively resists user expectations.
read more
04
While our 'Platform' branding successfully conveys a unified ecosystem, it simultaneously acts as a navigational blind spot for concrete shopping tasks.
read more
TLDR:
The pattern: concrete nouns with narrow, unambiguous mental models outperform abstract corporate concepts. "Maintenance" has one meaning. "Optimization" has many.
Hypothesis
Our key assumptions about why our navigation is failing users. Spoiler, both were confirmed.
01
Ineffective Labels & Taxonomy
Our navigation labels do not resonate with the business needs of our customers, preventing them from easily understanding our business offerings.
02
Misaligned Structure
Our navigation is not structured in a way that surfaces pages most relevant to customers-hindering discovery.
Actionable Reccomendations
Actionable Reccomendations
These recommendations come directly from our study findings and ACE report analysis. They cover three layers of the navigation problem: the language on the labels, the structure those labels sit in, and the design philosophy that produced both. Some are immediate fixes, and some require deeper evaluation. Together they represent a complete brief for what a redesigned navigation needs to get right. These are just a couple!
These recommendations come directly from our study findings and ACE report analysis. They cover three layers of the navigation problem: the language on the labels, the structure those labels sit in, and the design philosophy that produced both. Some are immediate fixes, and some require deeper evaluation. Together they represent a complete brief for what a redesigned navigation needs to get right. These are just a couple!
rec 1
Vocabulary Alignment Audit Across All Solution Labels
read more
rec 1
Vocabulary Alignment Audit Across All Solution Labels
read more
rec 2
Rename Labels Using User Vocabulary, Not Geotab Taxonomy
read more
rec 2
Rename Labels Using User Vocabulary, Not Geotab Taxonomy
read more
rec 3
Fix the False Attractor on "Sustainability & EVs"
read more
rec 3
Fix the False Attractor on "Sustainability & EVs"
read more
rec 4
Restructure Solutions Labels to Lead with the Problem, Not the Product Name
read more
rec 4
Restructure Solutions Labels to Lead with the Problem, Not the Product Name
read more
rec 5
Evaluate Whether Products/Solutions Needs to be the Primary Nav Split
read more
rec 5
Evaluate Whether Products/Solutions Needs to be the Primary Nav Split
read more
rec 6
Eliminate Competing Vocabulary Paths
read more
rec 6
Eliminate Competing Vocabulary Paths
read more
rec 4
Restructure Solutions Labels to Lead with the Problem, Not the Product Name
read more
rec 5
Evaluate Whether Products/Solutions Needs to be the Primary Nav Split
read more
rec 6
Eliminate Competing Vocabulary Paths
read more
Actionable Reccomendations
These recommendations come directly from our study findings and ACE report analysis. They cover three layers of the navigation problem: the language on the labels, the structure those labels sit in, and the design philosophy that produced both. Some are immediate fixes, and some require deeper evaluation. Together they represent a complete brief for what a redesigned navigation needs to get right. These are just a couple!
rec 1
Vocabulary Alignment Audit Across All Solution Labels
read more
rec 2
Rename Labels Using User Vocabulary, Not Geotab Taxonomy
read more
rec 3
Fix the False Attractor on "Sustainability & EVs"
read more
rec 4
Restructure Solutions Labels to Lead with the Problem, Not the Product Name
read more
rec 5
Evaluate Whether Products/Solutions Needs to be the Primary Nav Split
read more
rec 6
Eliminate Competing Vocabulary Paths
read more
Hypothesis
Our key assumptions about why our navigation is failing users. Spoiler, both were confirmed.
01
Ineffective Labels & Taxonomy
Our navigation labels do not resonate with the business needs of our customers, preventing them from easily understanding our business offerings.
02
Misaligned Structure
Our navigation is not structured in a way that surfaces pages most relevant to customers-hindering discovery.
Project Goals
