The Challenge (Phase 1)
Cause Cart is an e-commerce start up looking to give their website a facelift
and improve the UX/UI as a proof of concept to investors. The limitations of
the current marketplace builder prevent some key UI elements from being
updated.
The Solution (Phase 1)
Initially, I was a part of a 3 person team of UX students.
We chose user interviews and testing with the current site as well as competitive analysis to familiarize ourself with the problem space. Over 3 week long design sprints, we improved
the navigation to make the shopping process seamless while encouraging
the cause based aspect at each step.
From talking to online gift shoppers, we found that reviews had a large impact on the conversion rate. We included reviews and more readily available item descriptions and information.
We cleaned up unused filters that were cluttering the page as well as improving the UI components for Page Layout, Item Cards, and
Checkout flow.
For users looking for a deeper dive on who they are shopping for, we added a blog
section dedicated to the makers of the products featured on the site. Articles that covered the causes they supported were also made available.
Overall, we prototyped a new home page, navigation, and style guide to improve the
usability and desirability of the marketplace to entice investors and new vendors.
Results (Phase 1)
Cause Cart was able to use our prototype and brand guide to work with development to further demonstrate the potential of it’s marketplace to investors. They are currently working on phase 5 of Cause Cart with the help of UX and Development Interns and Students.
The Challenge (Phase 2)
I was hired as a freelance designer by the client after phase 1 had completed.
Cause Cart wanted to update the usability and visual design of the current site with it’s current limitations.
There is a need for overall visual cohesion across the site including product images, vendor banners, and article images.
The current marketplace builder is limited in functionality and customization capabilities so we had to prioritize what we were able to change.
The Solution (Phase 2)
Following WCAG AAA Guidelines, I updated font and color choices to improve readability and accessibility site wide.
Hand made illustrations provided an updated cohesion to the site which improves user trust.
Removed unused links and other visual clutter.
Results (Phase 2)
Cause Cart now has a standard image size across the site for banners, product images, and article images. They are currently building the next version of Cause Cart using the brand guide and Prototype as a north star as they increase their user base and vendors.