TL;DR
I led a UX investigation after our Sales team flagged a surge in disqualified leads, 94% were invalid.
Using behavioral analytics and cross-functional collaboration, I discovered that deaf users were accidentally entering our B2B lead funnel while interacting with our accessibility plugin on reality show voting sites.
A small redirect fix reduced invalid leads to zero, protected the sales team’s time, and preserved the plugin’s accessibility integrity.
Impact:
94% drop in disqualified leads.
Sales workflow restored.
Plugin usability maintained.
Company
Hand Talk
Scope of work
UX Research
Behavioral Analysis
Optimization
About Hand talk
Hand Talk is an award-winning accessibility platform that uses AI to translate digital content into sign language through virtual avatars.
Hand Talk was acquired by Sorenson, which is a global language services provider and the leader in communication solutions for the Deaf and hard-of-hearing communities.
Problem
Analysis
The plugin had two redirect paths to the landing page, where Google Analytics tracked every redirection event.
Loading Screen
Access through "Developed by Hand Talk"
About Us Screen
Access through the "Hand Talk" Button.
Redirection Volume
From the total redirects to the landing page in November
96% were via the loading screen
4% were via the About section
All traffic appeared legitimate — real users, not bots
Top 5 Referring URLs
Top 5 Referring URLs to the Plugin LP
website 1 (21.91%)
website 2 (7.58%)
website 3 (4.04%)
website 4 (3.64%)
website 5 (3.64%)
Website 1 = largest enterprise client
Website 2 = entertainment site hosting a reality show’s voting platform
Google Analytics Chart
Line chart from Google Analytics comparing daily traffic for 5 different websites over a one-month period.
Behavior Patterns
Traffic peaked every Thursday:
November 3
November 10
November 17
November 24
These were the live voting days for the reality show, heavily trafficked by deaf users using the plugin to translate voting instructions.
User Misunderstanding Flow
Users weren’t spamming. They were just confused.
User Assumption
What Actually Happened
I’m voting on The Reality Show
Plugin embedded on external voting site
I need to translate the voting buttons
Plugin opens and shows “Made by Hand Talk“
This link must confirm my vote
User clicks → redirected to lead-gen landing page
Raise hand = vote confirmation
User is logged as a B2B lead
Why This Happened (Context)
According to the World Federation of the Deaf (WFD), an estimated 80% of deaf people globally face challenges with literacy and formal education. This is often misunderstood by hearing communities, but it’s essential context when designing accessible experiences.
Most of these users were deaf and interacting with the plugin as a translator, not as potential clients.
The confusion came from:
The “Made by Hand Talk” label appears during plugin load
The slow load time, which made users think they needed to “continue”
The lack of context, leading to misdirected clicks
Redirects vs. Leads
We plotted leads against plugin redirection activity, and found that:
Disqualified leads peaked on the exact same days as the traffic from website 2
The surge in numbers came from accidental engagement, not from legitimate interest
Google Analytics Chart
Line chart from Google Analytics showing daily traffic for one website compared to total traffic across all sites, over a one-month period.
Inside Dashboard Chart
Line chart comparing daily prospects for a single website, tracked over one month.
Solution
Loading Screen Redirect
Now points to the main Hand Talk homepage, where users can learn more about the product and interact at their own pace
About Section Redirect
Remains directed to the Lead Generation LP, preserving the original purpose for users with stronger intent
Lead Source Comparison
Different ways, different reasons
Disqualified Lead Rate dropped -84 percentage points
Source
Qualified?
Notes
Plugin Loading Screen
❌ No
100% disqualified leads
Plugin About Section
✅ Yes
High-intent users
Direct Access
✅ Yes
Manual traffic, converted well
Results
From the loading screen, disqualified leads dropped from 94% to 0%
Valid plugin-based leads now come only from the About section, as the loading screen directs to the home page.
Lessons Learned
I understood how deeply some external factors on a B2B project (like a TV show’s voting schedule) can influence internal product metrics, which can even shape or reroute our teams. The insight didn’t come simply from screen analysis, but from behavioural pattern detection and environmental awareness.
Not all traffic is good traffic; context and intent matter.
