AI WEBSITE BUILDER
A plug-and-play AI website builder to help early-stage businesses launch online — driving a 25% boost in renewals.
PROJECT OVERVIEW
This was built in under 3 months.
I led design end-to-end from early research and scoping to wireframes, prototypes, and final UI. I worked closely with a product manager and a team of 4 engineers.
The goal was to drive adoption and conversions by helping Neo users launch a professional website instantly with AI.
Neo is a communication suite for small businesses, combining Mail, Calendar, and Contacts in one focused space.
Current Neo Site (V.01)
CURRENT SITE
When Neo launched Site V1 in 2023, the goal was simple - see if businesses wanted a bundled product of Email along with a simple one page website on our FREE "yoursite.co.site" domain.
It was a basic one-page site with limited options, just enough to test the waters. Here’s what it looked like:
Why Neo Site V2?
DATA SHOWED
It was time for an upgrade. We wanted to transform our one-page website to help early-stage small businesses launch their brands with beautiful landing pages, stores, professional profiles - all in one place.
30%
.co.site orders in the last 4 months published a Neo Site.
8%
more renewals when a Neo order included a published Site
50%
PMF survey responses asked for a better one-page site
24%
cancellations cited missing Neo Site features
Who are we building for?
RESEARCH
To understand who we were building for, we analyzed 832 old sites. I led a team of four to categorize each site by industry, sub-industry, and service type to identify key archetypes.
We dug deeper to assess the need for features like Appointment Booking, Payments, Testimonials, Galleries and more using industry trends and social media presence as indicators.
THIS HELPED US DEFINE:
Who our users were?
What will the Site consist of?
User goals and Business goals
Defining the goal
I listed down expected goals and challenges for this project.
USER GOALS
Launch their business online quickly with a website and email
Getting leads and growing their business
DESIGN & UX GOALS
Stand out in a crowded market
Make mobile effortless
Help non tech savvy users shine
BUSINESS GOALS
Boost retention
Improve ‘.co.site’ renewals
What goes in the site?
After diving deep into V1 websites built by our users, a few key sections kept showing up across different personas. We decided to make lego like building blocks for our users to create their websites.
Making mobile effortless
In V1, the builder was a modal in the mail app—fine for quick sites, but limiting for V2. Users now need a dedicated space for ongoing edits.
Option 1: In-app, but opens in a drawer (similar to V1 approach)
✅ Pros:
Easy access for users already familiar with the app
Encourages site builder adoption among existing Neo Mail users
❌ Cons:
Limited space for a complex builder experience
Might not feel like a dedicated, full-featured tool
Option 2: As a standalone mobile web experience
✅ Pros:
Works independently, making it easier to scale
No need for users to install or log into an app
Users can edit their site from any device, just like desktop
❌ Cons:
Might require users to switch between the app and browser
Could feel disconnected from other Neo tools
Option 3: As an In-App web view (Hybrid Approach)
✅ Pros:
Feels like a native experience while using web capabilities
Avoids the complexity of integrating it fully into the app
Provides flexibility for future updates
❌ Cons:
Could introduce performance issues compared to a fully native solution
SELECTED OPTION
SELECTED OPTION
Test, Iterate, Repeat
WHAT NEXT?
We went on with the 3rd option keeping bandwidth in mind. Here I still wasn’t sure of the mobile experience, so I turned to user testing. I ran tests with five colleagues.
I tested two different flows to see which one felt more intuitive and helped users complete tasks faster.
GOALS OF THE TEST
Understanding terminology we've used for sections
Mobile UI comparison
Real world simulation: Can a business owner, like a cleaning service provider, easily create their website?
Prototype 1 - Half screen
Prototype 2 - Full screen
Key insights from the test
Participants missed the preview in the half-screen layout, as the keypad blocked it while typing.
Participants missed the preview in the half-screen layout, as the keypad blocked it while typing.
They struggled with Block names like Neo Bookings and Spotlight Button
They struggled with Block names like Neo Bookings and Spotlight Button
Minimize and preview weren’t intuitive, causing navigation confusion.
Minimize and preview weren’t intuitive, causing navigation confusion.
Participants navigated and edited sections easily, even without chevrons.
Participants navigated and edited sections easily, even without chevrons.
SELECTED OPTION
SELECTED OPTION
Knowing our users weren’t designers or tech-savvy, we saw AI as key to building a product that felt empowering.
HOW WOULD AI HELP?
AI removes the guesswork of starting from a blank page by generating content and layouts tailored to the user's business.
Many users aren’t designers or writers—AI bridges that gap by handling the heavy lifting, enabling anyone to create a polished, professional site.
So how would AI work?
STEP 1: SELECT YOUR BUSINESS INDUSTRY
STEP 2: CHOOSE THE DESIGN YOU LOVE
AND VOILA... CUSTOMISE YOUR SITE AND PUBLISH!
Neo didn't just provide a good-looking website. Users were able get leads and convert them into clients with contact forms. They could also track performance of their site with built-in analytics.
Some more features with AI
GENERATE DESIGN & CONTENT WITH AI
Creates layouts, text, and images tailored our users business, so their site is ready in minutes.
GENERATE TEXT WITH AI
Generates tailored headlines, descriptions, and copy to fill the users site with ready-to-use content.
Helping non designers shine
CHOOSE FROM PRE-BUILT TEMPLATES
Users can choose from a wide range of professionally designed templates catered to our persona.
STOCK IMAGES FOR STUNNING VISUALS
They can access a curated library of high-quality images without the hassle of sourcing photos.
CHANGE COLOUR THEMES
Users can switch between curated colour palettes to match their brand’s style and personality.
…AND FONT PAIRS
Allows them to pick from designer-approved font combinations to give their site a polished, professional look.
Business impact and metrics
3 MONTHS DATA
We rolled out Neo Site V2 in phases—starting simple, then adding AI features. By tracking user behavior and session recordings, we continuously refined the experience. Here’s what we saw 3 months in:
1108
Live sites
acme.co.site
Live
125 K
Unique site visitors
151 K
Site visits
972
Contact form submissions
Email address
Message
Submit
24.5%
Increase in M3 renewals for users who published their site
20%
Decrease in Publish rates. Hypothesis - it takes longer to make Site V2
Users loving Neo Site
“Your platform played a major role in my professional growth. It gave my business credibility, boosted my brand visibility, and left a lasting impression through its sleek design and layout — earning me consistent compliments on the website’s professionalism. Please do not close down; your impact is real.”
“The AI-driven features of Site are impressive, guiding me through the design process with smart suggestions that perfectly matched my vision.”
“I was able to design a well outstanding website for my blog website which brings conversion, highly recommend this website for you”
“I've struggled with web design for years and tried countless solutions. Neo Website Builder has completely transformed my experience. It's incredibly intuitive, allowing me to explore multiple design alternatives.”
“I was completely new to the concept of making a webpage for myself, and Neo made it not only possible, but fairly easy and even kind of fun!”
“I am enjoying the fact that I have a professional email and website together. Provides me with a professional look and feel for my business”
“l've been trying to get a website churned out for 8 months now! I've tried GoDaddy, Wix, a couple other competitors in the space....and nothing but freaking headache and heartbreak! The fact that I was able to have an actual website put together at ALL, let alone 8 hours, is a great testament to your product!”
“Your platform played a major role in my professional growth. It gave my business credibility, boosted my brand visibility, and left a lasting impression through its sleek design and layout — earning me consistent compliments on the website’s professionalism. Please do not close down; your impact is real.”
“The AI-driven features of Site are impressive, guiding me through the design process with smart suggestions that perfectly matched my vision.”
“I was able to design a well outstanding website for my blog website which brings conversion, highly recommend this website for you”
“I was completely new to the concept of making a webpage for myself, and Neo made it not only possible, but fairly easy and even kind of fun!”
“I've struggled with web design for years and tried countless solutions. Neo Website Builder has completely transformed my experience. It's incredibly intuitive, allowing me to explore multiple design alternatives.”
“I am enjoying the fact that I have a professional email and website together. Provides me with a professional look and feel for my business”
“l've been trying to get a website churned out for 8 months now! I've tried GoDaddy, Wix, a couple other competitors in the space....and nothing but freaking headache and heartbreak! The fact that I was able to have an actual website put together at ALL, let alone 8 hours, is a great testament to your product!”
We got signs to launch new projects
FUTURE SCOPE
Site only offering - Making a standalone product where users come with the intent of creating their site and upselling Email.
Site for custom domains - We also released Neo Site builder to users who have their own domains.
With this initiative, I learnt the concept of ‘Progress over perfection’ – Launching in phases let us learn and improve quickly rather than waiting for a “perfect” version.
Here you'll only find
isha.designworks@gmail.com