Supporting women-owned brands with ethical & sustainable premium products.
Let's take a bird's-eye view
Confidants is an e-commerce marketplace that showcases premium sustainable brands led by women entrepreneurs. Cart abandonment rates were 45% above the industry average. I spearheaded the implementation while collaborating with the C.E.O. to deliver measurable business impact, resulting in a 32% increase in completed purchases.
Research says....
“How do I get back? It doesn't give you the option. I guess I must redo it.”
During checkout flows, users needed to modify and save cart items easily. Usability testing revealed that 87% of participants failed these critical tasks. The data confirmed key friction points in the edit and save interactions, directly impacting conversion.
The business needs & our persona
According to the evaluation
“I can’t save my favorite items, so I don’t know what I’ve looked at.”
• The lack of save-for-later functionality created a pain point for users, resulting in lost revenue (1)
• A rigid checkout flow prevented users from modifying cart contents, leading to a 32% cart abandonment rate (2)
The fashion maven
“When I shop, I want to know I'm making a difference by supporting ethical/sustainable brands”
The fashion maven cannot save curated selections and abandoned purchases, driving a 42% drop in average order value. The checkout process blocked cart modifications, resulting in lost sales from buyers who require seamless cart management.
What they're: doing, thinking, saying
Let's look at the competitors
Leading retailers like Banana Republic and Barnes & Noble increased sales through the wishlist feature, validating the direct sales impact of save-for-later functionality.
Comparative
Target's mobile app increased checkout completion rates through flexible cart management, letting shoppers modify quantities and product variants seamlessly during payment flow.
What's the problem?
“It would be easier, and I would save time if I had items saved. I had to refill the information, and it wasn’t easy to navigate back.”
Digital users' navigation constraints caused a drop in conversions due to two critical failures:
• The lack of a "wishlist" feature blocked customers from saving items, driving a 37% abandonment rate
• A friction payment flow prevented cart modifications, causing 63% of users to exit before purchase completion
Hear me out, this is what I'm proposing
Without implementing the wishlist and cart editing features, we saw significant revenue loss in the following metrics:
• Cart abandonment: Forsee 67% of users to abandon due to the inability to save items
• Loss of revenue: Project a 42% decrease in average order per customer
Customer Retention: Anticipate a 38% drop in repeat purchases
Risk indicators:
• Users exit at the payment stage 73% more frequently without cart modification options
• Quarterly revenue loss from abandoned carts in the hundreds of thousands
• 52% of customers switch to competitors offering save-for-later functionality
Work it out!
Adding features to save favorites and edit the cart is expected to reduce cart abandonment, driving an increase in conversion rates. These enhancements empower users to easily update their baskets before proceeding to the shipping and payment stages, streamlining the checkout process and improving the overall shopping experience.
Low-level wireframes
Iterate. Iterate. Iterate...and if needed..repeat
Through iterative design, I refined and validated both the hypothesis and the problem statement in greater detail. User testing revealed a clear need for additional CTA buttons and screens, leading to an improved and more seamless user experience.
Mid-level wireframes
Style Guide
Creating a design system has been a valuable learning experience. Initially, I focused on designing individual icons, only to realize the need to go back and build components later. This taught me the importance of starting with a comprehensive design system, which will streamline the process and reduce unnecessary iterations in the future.
High fidelity frames
Final testing of the prototype revealed a few challenges at the checkout stage, which were promptly addressed to refine the experience. The final product received rave reviews from the client, and target users praised the seamless shopping experience and the convenience of saving items for later. These improvements contributed to a significantly better user experience, an increase in sales by 36%, and a decrease in abandonment at the checkout by 64%.
The prototype, along with the MVP
Usability testing, user flows, and research identified two MVP features that drive sales:
• Save items to favorites
• Edit the cart at checkout
• Save items to favorites
• Edit the cart at checkout
Confidants implemented the proposed "Add to Favorites" feature on their e-commerce site, delivering a simpler and more user-friendly experience. This improvement resonated with users, reducing cart abandonment by 64% and driving an increase in conversion rates by 36%, showcasing both business impact and enhanced customer satisfaction.
Next steps
The redesign successfully met its goals, driving increased sales and fostering higher retention rates. Given more time, I would incorporate a "share finds with others" feature to further enhance user engagement and encourage repeat interactions.
Reflections & takeaways
This client project was a truly rewarding experience. I’m proud that Confidants supports women-owned businesses. The redesign led to a more efficient and enjoyable shopping experience for users, driving positive business results and enhancing customer satisfaction.
