Whim Local Site Redesign
Overview
Whim Local, a startup connecting local retailers and artists with shoppers in the San Francisco Bay Area, required a redesign of its Minimum Viable Product (MVP). The central product challenge was to enhance the user experience to increase platform adoption and engagement among both local shoppers and retailers in the competitive Bay Area market.
Problem: Enhance the MVP's user experience to improve engagement and increase adoption by local shoppers and retailers.
Business Goal: Increase user engagement and adoption of the MVP.
Team: CEO, 3 Product Designers, Advisor
Duration: 4 Months
To address potential critical issues before launch, the design team initiated a heuristic evaluation of the website. We systematically applied the 10 Usability Heuristics by Nielsen-Molich and used a feedback capture grid to consolidate our analysis, culminating in a formal presentation of the findings to the CEO.
Problem
Due to limited resources, the team focused on synthesizing market research and raw data to create two proto-personas. I was responsible for developing Jovial Josephine, a shopper persona representing an older local hesitant to shop in public due to the pandemic. These personas served as the foundation for creating user flows and optimizing the product design for a better user experience.
Research
Leveraging the developed proto-personas, we defined and optimized user flows and shared them with the development team and CEO for refinement. Following this, we used the Crazy 8's method to rapidly explore various homepage layout solutions that would best serve the needs of our target audience and align with the desired user journeys.
User Flow
To address the lack of a strong visual identity, we conducted a thorough competitive analysis to identify opportunities for differentiation. We presented the CEO with two distinct brand options, ultimately proceeding with the one focused on a welcoming and sophisticated aesthetic. This involved crafting a detailed style guide and a UI component library to ensure legibility, consistency, and quick delivery of new features, such as local online holiday markets, while maintaining a cohesive and appealing brand.
Visual Brand Identity
Throughout the project, the design team executed multiple iterations. Key activities included: refining features based on the style guide and research; creating low and high-fidelity mockups for a redesigned feed and optimized user flows; and sharing these mockups via Figma with the development team. The final implementation of the new visual brand and UI component library helped differentiate Whim Local and resulted in the quick delivery of new features.
Iterations
The project was a significant success, achieving a 20% increase in active users and a 10% increase in new user sign-ups, and the new visual brand contributed to a 10% increase in social media engagement. This demonstrates the positive impact of a focused UX strategy. A key learning was the value of dedicated user research; future steps would include in-depth user interviews and extensive A/B testing to further validate and optimize design decisions based on real user behavior.
