Top Cards
Top Cards sits at the very top of the “Top” channel in SmartNews Japan edition, surfacing real-time, local, and personalized updates that help users stay in sync with what’s happening now. Designed as a non-intrusive alternative to push notifications, it delivers timely content—like weather, live events, or nearby offers—directly within the app experience, making the Top channel both dynamic and personally relevant.
My Role
As the Lead Designer, I worked closely with PMs, engineers, the content delivery team, and data scientists. I led a UX audit and established a design guideline to unify the look and feel of all Top Cards, which had become inconsistent as more cards were added. I also designed new time-sensitive cards, such as sports and Olympic LIVE cards, allowing users to instantly access live updates the moment they opened the app. My work shaped both the visual and experiential direction of the Top Cards framework.
Initially, tapping on a Top Card opened an overlay called Morning Package, where users could view a few detailed cards—like hourly forecasts for weather. However, data revealed this extra layer reduced overall time spent in the app. To improve engagement, we redesigned the flow so users could tap directly into detailed pages, like Weather or related news, without added friction.
After launch, user data showed that over half of Top Card clicks were for Weather and Rain Radar, confirming that real-time, location-based updates were the most valued. The introduction of live content, such as the Olympic LIVE card, became one of the most engaging features during the Tokyo Games and contributed to an increase in both frequency and DAU.
This project proved the importance of speed, clarity, and consistency—showing that when users can instantly see what matters to them, they feel more connected and confident using SmartNews.
Check on SmartNews Japan