ElleBanks Agency

I'm interested in what makes an experience work.

I'm Latravia Banks, an information architect, UX researcher, and systems strategist with a B.S. in Information Science from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

I design the logic underlying experiences — how information is organized, how people find what they need, how they move through systems, and what happens when the structure behind an experience doesn't match how people actually think or behave.

Long before I had formal language for information architecture and experience design, I was doing versions of this work in the real world.

Across regulated operations, service environments, and client-facing work, I kept finding myself in the same position: organizing complex information, translating between people and systems, identifying where expectations were breaking down, and creating clearer ways to move forward.

Different environments. Same instinct.

Find the friction.

Understand what is causing it.

Make the system make more sense.

Today, I bring that instinct into information architecture, UX research, service design, and experience strategy. My work begins beneath the interface — with mental models, information structures, behavior, relationships, and the systems operating backstage.

I'm especially interested in experiences that help people find what they need, understand where they are, and connect to the right next step.

That perspective shapes both sides of my practice — digital systems and experiences beyond the screen. I call my beyond-the-screen work Connection Architecture: designing experiences that create stronger connections among people, organizations, and opportunities.

I also remain connected to the academic community that helped give this work a voice through service on the UNC School of Data and Information Sciences Alumni Board, where I support Student Professional Development Events.

How I think

I start with structure, not screens.

I ask what people expect to happen, how the system is actually organized, where the two diverge, and what needs to change to close that gap.

Because a beautiful experience can still be confusing. A well-intentioned process can still create friction. And sometimes the problem people feel on the surface began somewhere they cannot see.

That's usually the part I want to find.