Unread Today

Unread Today began as an inbox. Seven categories, one per weekday, each story arriving like a new email with a blue unread dot, and a countdown to the next one. Young Mongolian readers loved the ritual.

Then Unread Media grew into events, communities and seven new original series that fit none of the seven days. Readers got used to the format and started to find it predictable, and when the schedule slipped they asked where the new story was, because the timer said it was due.

The original site had one article template: cover image, headline, text. I designed a set of layouts editors could choose from, each built around how its series is actually read.

The homepage had to show that Unread was entering a new chapter without hiding what readers came for. The original weekday spotlights got their own card style, so they read as the familiar core, while the new series sit around them as things to explore. The countdown timer went: a strong identity piece, but a promise the new schedule couldn’t keep.

The first app was the website in a wrapper with offline saving. The redesign made it reader-first: notifications by category, a quick switch between Unread and its sister platform Posted, a “continue reading” entry on the home screen, and sharing on every story. Every card follows the same pattern, so scanning for the next read is fast.

What I’d change. Infinite scroll between articles lowered the friction to the next story, but long reads made it heavy: nobody wants to scroll through three features to reach the footer. Today I’d use a “next up” module, topic trails and recommendations based on the session instead.

I was UX designer on the redesign, working with a senior designer, the creative director and the development team, from August to December 2019.