Chainletter
Chainletter is a blockchain-based platform that allows universities to have their degrees and certifications be verifiable to any and all outside organizations with just the original file.
For this project, I was tasked with redesigning the administrator-facing part of the application, the first real MVP for the product, to make it usable, clear and scalable. The end goal: help university admins upload student degrees without needing to understand anything about blockchain.
The Problem
The first version of Chainletter had a lot of issues — visually, functionally, and structurally.
Issue #1: UI Design
The UI felt outdated and disconnected. There was no brand consistency and no real design system.
Issue #2: Unintuitive Interactions
Basic interactions were unintuitive and required lots of guesswork
Issue #3: Microcopy & Terminology
Terminology throughout the app was inconsistent and often too technical.
Issue #4: Blockchain Unfamiliarity
Blockchain introduced permanent, irreversible actions and the interface did little to prepare users for that.
Target Audience
Our MVP was built specifically for university administrators, the people responsible for managing and verifying academic records.
We imagined someone 40–50+, possibly not tech-savvy, with basic digital literacy and possibly some visual impairments. This made clarity, accessibility and low-friction UX absolutely essential.
Discovery
Because the product was early-stage, we didn’t do formal user interviews or create full personas, but we did have a clear understanding of the user’s mindset.
We also conducted a quick competitor review and relied on the Chainletter team’s deep knowledge of university workflows.
During the project, I led two syncs per week with the team (designer, devs, founder, ops) to gather feedback and align on direction. These sessions were especially helpful when it came to naming things and navigating blockchain-specific limitations.
My Role & Process
I led the project as both UX/UI Designer and Product Manager. The whole project took around 7-8 weeks.
Designed all lo-fi and hi-fi screens in Figma, using a Bootstrap UI kit as the base
Customized the components to align with Chainletter’s brand and accessibility needs
Worked closely with Oleksii (our dev) on implementation. Daily asyncs and live calls
Held weekly design reviews with the full team
We intentionally avoided heavyweight frameworks like Agile and kept things lean and fast-moving.
Core UX Challenges & Solutions
1. Terminology & Mental Models
The biggest challenge was explaining blockchain interactions to non-technical users — without using blockchain terminology.
You can’t just say “it works like Google Drive” when stamping a collection permanently uploads that data to the blockchain, but going full crypto-speak wasn’t an option either.
Solution:
Defined a simple internal glossary that served as an abstraction on blockchain-related terminology (e.g., Collections, Files, Stamps)
Iterated on terminology with the team until it felt clear and trustworthy
Reinforced concepts with tooltips, contextual help and warning modals across the UI
2. Permanent Actions
Quite a few actions within the UI had permanent consequences and needed to communicated to be as such in a way that empowers users, not burden them.
Solution:
Split the collection creation flow. Step 1: Internal name and description (editable). Step 2: External name and description (permanent once stamped).
Added warning modals and non-editable fields post-stamping
Used plain, direct language to explain consequences up front
3. File Upload UX & Error Handling
The upload flow was hidden, lacked context on accepted file types, and gave poor feedback when something went wrong.
Solution:
Made the file upload UI always visible and clearly labeled
Grouped errors into two buckets: to be shown before upload and after upload
Displayed error tables in modals, so users could understand and fix issues quickly
Tradeoffs & Scope Decisions
To stay on deadline and deliver a solid MVP, we scoped tightly and cut the following:
Advanced filtering and search across Collections and Files
Multi-file selection and batch actions
Admin permission management / user roles
Settings/account page
We intentionally avoided heavyweight frameworks like Agile and kept things lean and fast-moving.
Creating Collections
Uploading Files
Stamping and verifying them
Viewing status clearly
Viewing Getting help when neededstatus clearly
Outcomes
Huge visual and UX improvement over the original design.
Positive feedback from stakeholders and team.
A clean, scalable design foundation for the team to grow from.
A UIthat made blockchain functionality feel simple, trustworthy and usable even for a non-technical audience.
Reflection
This was my first time designing for a blockchain-based product, and it pushed me to re-evaluate some core assumptions about how interfaces should behave.
Permanent, public and irreversible actions aren’t common in everyday UX and figuring out how to make that feel safe and understandable was a rewarding challenge.
Even with limited time and resources, we delivered something that’s both functional and thoughtfully designed a strong step forward for Chainletter.