Context
Every Shorthand story used rectangular media. While clean, this uniformity made it harder for brands to express visual identity. Customers with rounded brand aesthetics or editorial styles were asking for more options.
How might we add shape variety without creating visual chaos or making the editor more complex?
Process
- Audited brand guidelines from key customers to understand shape usage
- Explored technical approaches for cross-browser shape support
- Designed a minimal UI for shape selection and corner customization
- Tested edge cases with different image compositions
- Created presets matching common brand styles
Solution
Media elements can now have customizable corner radii—from subtle rounding to full circles. Users choose from presets or dial in exact values, with live preview showing how shapes interact with their content.
Outcomes
- Feature used in 25% of new stories
- Enabled several enterprise deals where brand consistency was a blocker
- Reduced custom CSS requests by 35%
Learnings
- Subtle options (slight rounding) were used more than dramatic shapes
- Consistency controls (apply to all media) saved significant time
- Shape choices often reflected broader brand refresh initiatives