Visual & UX/UI Designer — Team of 3 — 3 weeks
Intro
The goal of this project was to improve the wheelchair buying process by creating a simple, easy-to-use, and supportive e-commerce site.
Only 15% of assistive product sites researched in a competitor analysis have a way for the user to purchase a wheelchair online.
Problem
Buying a wheelchair online is limited; users typically need to print, fill out, and send in a form which causes delays and confusion. Support for the user can vary which creates friction when users need to supply crucial information to choose the right product.
Solution
An intuitive and cohesive buying process that will allow for user success and satisfaction. Implementation of key areas of support to include; a quiz for users to quickly find the right product, a chatbot for instant support, contact information on every page and a streamlined checkout.
Challenges & Constraints
The site needs to be accessible by users who 1) may not typically use a computer 2) have limited internet connection and 3) may have a disability.
Some constraints include; limited funding and technical knowledge of website manager.
What does the user need?
Multiple professionals were interviewed, including a wheelchair user. Competitor and comparator analysis was conducted to determine who the purchaser is, how the purchase is obtained and factors that influence the purchase. Important questions to answer are:
How do users find relevant information?
How do users know what wheelchair they need?
Interviews with OT’s
How are wheelchairs currently purchased?
What are the major friction points?
Occupational therapists (OT’s), who work directly with users to purchase wheelchairs, were interviewed. They all stated that current assistive product websites are hard to navigate and cluttered. Many users need help purchasing online from a caretake or loved one who may not be very tech savvy or have great internet connection. Some users may know what they already need while others may have no idea. The site needs to have information for user, caretakers and therapists.
When asked… What is one of the top functions you would like to see in the new site?
“Easy. Simple. Not complicated. Not too many choices.”
User journey
The proposed design solution starts by leading the user to browse through the products on the homepage. A large button under the hero image will direct the user to take a quiz. The quiz is a tool to aid in determining the product most suited for the user. Once the optimal product is determined the users has the ability to view more details before continuing to check out.
Designing a solution
Support for the user before the purchase on the homepage
Image carousel that shows the product in use
All 4 products displayed with a short product description
Call to action button for the quiz
Chatbot for instant support
Support for the user during the purchase on the product page
Product image carousel giving multiple views of the product
Additional product details includes; specs and key features
Product info and selections of size, color and fabric of chair
Short product demo videos to show how product is used
Check out flow
Ability to sign in/up for quicker checkout
Phone and email for contact and confirmation
Bare minimum form (only ask for needed information)
Easily viewable review order
Took away the header so the user stays on task to finalize purchase
The results
MVP 1 was made to be a flexible and inexpensive solution in anticipation of the product launch.
Homepage — Product page
The goal is to the keep attention of users focused on the products and information about the products. Colors were kept to a minimum to limit distractions while this burgeoning company is in its early stages of development.
Quiz
A standard design practice that helps customers find which product(s) meet their needs.
The client doesn’t have all of their content squared away so for the quiz we gave them a layout of what each screen and the results page should look like. **This is design dependent on the actual content.
Checkout flow
By extensively researching e-commerce checkout flows and using expected design patterns a pleasurable and intuitive experience was created. We streamlined the forms by only creating information fields that were absolutely necessary. Side note… Forms suck… they are all too often lengthy and filled with mandatory fields that are not necessary so we simplified it as much as possible.
Conclusion
Working on a team among other designers who have different backgrounds can be challenging but is also an enlightening experience. With more time I would like to solicit more user feedback on the design to ensure maximum proficiency. I believe users will find the site intuitive but I want to make sure we are making enough information about the product available to the user. It is key that we make sure there is a way for our client to gain feedback from the user by setting up analytics to see the journey users are taking and also sending users who complete a purchase, “comment cards”, when sending their confirmation email. This will give us the ability to make changes when friction points arise.
Our client is looking to use our design when they start manufacturing and selling products in 2020.
Additional points worth discussing in person:
Wireframe annotations
Expanded explantation of research and usability testing
Design critiques and feedback
Remaining wireframes
Next steps
Contact information: (317) 332-5348 — ccbarth00@gmail.com