Scout Loading Animation
Branding, Animation, UI
Yext Scout is a product that gives companies location-level insight into competitor performance, delivers targeted recommendations, and uses agents to take action at scale. As part of the launch, I designed the loading screen animation shown while a brand's SEO visibility report is being generated. Rather than treating this wait time as dead space, I used it as an opportunity to reinforce visual branding and messaging at a key moment in the user flow.
Concept Exploration
I explored several directions for bringing the Scout mascot to life, drawing on imagery tied to the subject matter — like maps to represent local business data — and experimented with gamified approaches inspired by Pac-Man and the famous Google dinosaur run. I also considered using the loading screen as an educational moment, weaving in copy about SEO and AI search.
The final animation below leaned into this educational angle, prioritising the copy as a valuable takeaway for users while adapting Scout's pose across different positions to create a seamless, playful flow through the screens.
Final loading animation within the Scout UI