What is GIS?

Redesigning the web's #1 resource for understanding GIS

The Client

The Client

Esri

Esri

My Role

My Role

Art Direction UX/UI Design Content Strategy Storyboarding

Art Direction UX/UI Design Content Strategy Storyboarding

Project Team

Project Team

Amanda McKinley Andrea Massey Carl Bender Daniel Gill 422South

Amanda McKinley Andrea Massey Carl Bender Daniel Gill 422South

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"I believe the outcome is the best web site we have ever produced. With this, we’re helping people to truly start to understand what GIS is all about. Plus, we are providing an exceptional first impression of Esri to anyone who visits the pages."
"For years, we've desperately looked for a way to introduce people to GIS, and he could never find quite the right thing. Now, with this site, there's an engaging way of helping people understand the power of GIS."
About this project

The Goal

Redesign WhatIsGIS.com to help newcomers actually understand what GIS is

GIS (Geographic Information Systems) is a powerful technology used by businesses, governments, and organizations around the world to solve complex problems. As the market leader in GIS, Esri owns the top search result for "What is GIS?" and attracts more than 300,000 visitors annually. The site represented a critical opportunity to introduce new audiences to the technology, but engagement metrics suggested the experience wasn't delivering on its promise. Our goal was to maintain the #1 search ranking, improve engagement, and explain GIS in a way that anyone could understand.

The Problem

Complex ideas need room to land

There's a running joke in the GIS community that nobody can explain what GIS actually is. User research suggested the joke exists for a reason. Participants consistently struggled to understand the content, often leaving with little clarity about what GIS is or why it matters. The information itself wasn't wrong, but it was overwhelming. Dense technical copy, information-heavy layouts, and visuals that explained rather than illuminated created an experience that asked people to absorb too much, too quickly.

The challenge wasn't really about simplifying the technology, but more about designing an experience that matched the way people actually learn.

The Solution

Design for learning, not just information

Drawing from my background in education, I approached the redesign as a teaching problem rather than a marketing problem. Research shows that people learn complex concepts best when information is introduced progressively, supported visually, and reinforced through multiple formats. Instead of treating the site like a repository of information, we designed it as a guided learning experience.

Complex ideas were broken into digestible concepts, visual storytelling reduced cognitive load, and short-form animations helped explain foundational topics before introducing more advanced ones. This approach became the foundation for stakeholder alignment and ultimately transformed the experience from a technical explanation into an educational journey.

The Impact

This new approach now influences how Esri explains GIS everywhere.

The redesign won a Digiday Content Marketing Award and Gold Addy. In the first 90 days:

97%

increase in visitors

130%

increase in page views

23%

decrease in bounce rate

About this project