House2Home Design Sprint
This was a 5-day solo design sprint challenge while at Springboard.
House2Home (H2H) is a fictitious e-commerce website that sells home decor items and accessories.
Role
Product Design, UX Research
Industry
E-commerce
Platform
Web
Timeline
04/2023
Project Overview
Decorating our home can be easy and quick
To meet the needs of customers who have recently moved into new apartments and want to decorate their new spaces, I designed a user flow to help them quickly find a convenient "starter kit" that includes multiple items. By conducting rapid research and prototyping exercises, I developed a high-fidelity prototype of this flow.
Problem Space
Many of their customers, especially Generation Z and millennials, have recently moved into a new home and want to decorate their homes with multiple items without exceeding their budget.
However, they struggle with putting everything together and selecting items that match their preferred style. These customers need a professional and efficient solution to help them finish their decoration projects quickly.
User Story
"As a new resident, I want to decorate my new place with my favorite styles while staying within my budget."
The Solution
Find all your home decor needs in one place
This flow helps new resident acquire home decor that reflects their preferred style in a convenient and affordable manner. All items are available in one place for easy online shopping.
Key steps that users can take:
📃 Take a style quiz to indicate their preferred style and needs
📷 Upload a photo of their own place, which helps users visualize how the decor items fit their space
🎨 Customize the decor kit that is recommended by the system
How would I measure the success of my solution?
Overall, measuring the success of H2H requires a combination of quantitative and qualitative metrics that reflect both financial performance and customer satisfaction.
Conversion rate
A high conversion rate indicates that House2Home is effectively engaging visitors and convincing them to make a purchase.
Average order value (AOV)
A high AOV indicates that customers are purchasing more items or more expensive items, which can contribute to increased revenue.
The Research Highlights
Achieving the desired look within a budget can be overwhelming
After reading the research highlights, I gained a deeper understanding of the problems encountered by the target users. The key pain points are as follows:
Stucked at recreating favorite styles
Budget and space constraints
Unsure if all small pieces will fit together in their space
Learn about the user group
I also created a persona to design a flow that fits into the target users' lives and encourages specific behaviors. With this persona as a guide for my design, I can create a product that is tailored to their preferences and improves the overall user experience.
Approach the Problem
Day 1 - Mapping
After reviewing the challenge brief and primary research highlights, I gained an overview of users' pain points and goals. To meet their needs for decorating a new home, I mapped out a possible end-to-end user experience, as shown below.
Day 2 - Sketching
Lightning demos
As I did this design sprint alone, I researched sites selling home decor kits and e-commerce patterns to understand the challenges and opportunities I face.
Crazy 8's
To brainstorm ideas within a tight time limit, I conducted an exercise to explore a wide range of layout possibilities and find unexpected solutions.
A three-panel board
I consider the screen that provides users with multiple options of "decorative kit" based on their favorite styles to be the most critical. This screen contains the most essential information about the decor kits and helps users achieve their primary goal of finding a home decor kit.
Day 3 - Decide
I created a 12-panel storyboard to showcase the expected user flow.
The proportion of visuals and product information plays a significant role in deciding which solution to move forward with.
Day 4 - Prototype
As I translated my sketches into a high fidelity prototype, I aimed to fulfill the main business goal, which is to sell home decor starter kits, while also reducing users' cognitive load when designing the process of collecting users’ preference data.
Day 5 - Validate
Users want more customization options but also value data privacy
To test my flow, I conducted five usability sessions with users between 20 to 35 years old who have experience buying home decor online. Participants understood the product concept and successfully found and purchased a home decor kit on the website.
Key pain points
However, there are still noticeable issues related to the content of the call-to-action and the order of steps to collect users' data.
Users found the term "decorative kit" in the CTA on the homepage confusing.
Users might hesitate to upload pictures of their homes due to privacy concerns.
Users were unaware of how much budget they need for achieving their desired home decor styles.
Optimize the quiz & customization process
Based on the first round of usability testing, I refined my design by addressing the pain points.
Revised the CTA copy on the homepage
Users will be able to understand exactly what "home decorative kits" mean and the context in which they are used.
Allow users to choose multiple styles
It provide users with unlimited options to choose from multiple styles that best reflect their preferences.
'Upload images of places' became an optional step
This respects users’ privacy concerns and rights.
Users can move around the suggested items
This allows users to evaluate how well the items fit into their new spaces.
Final High-fidelity Prototype
Visualize how items fit in users’ new space
This will help them get a better sense of whether all the decor items look good together in their home.
Customize the recommended decor kit
When it comes to home decoration, most people prefer customization that allows them to express their personal style and make their living space unique.
Reflections
Set realistic expectations
H2H can increase incentives for users to upload room pictures. This will make them more confident in the suggested items, increasing the likelihood of final purchases and achieving desired home decor styles.
Encourage creativity
Participants in usability testing wanted to customize decor kits to collect their favorite pieces or styles. By offering a flexible and affordable way to be creative with home decor projects, H2H could increase user interest in purchasing decor kits instead of individual items.
Increase data privacy
H2H should protect users' personal information and prevent unauthorized use of photos. Uploaded photos often contain sensitive information that could be misused if hacked.
What would I have done differently?
As many young people enjoy collecting photos of their favorite styles on the internet, I propose adding a feature that allows users to upload photos of their favorite styles.
Next Steps
Below are the key next steps that would make this flow more user-friendly and also satisfy House2Home’s business goal:
Iterate on budget and pricing option
Optimize the process of taking a style quiz
Create multiple versions of the product detail page that feature the home decor kit
More projects
House2Home Design Sprint
This was a 5-day solo design sprint challenge while at Springboard.
House2Home (H2H) is a fictitious e-commerce website that sells home decor items and accessories.
Role
Product Design, UX Research
Industry
E-commerce
Platform
Web
Timeline
04/2023
Project Overview
Decorating our home can be easy and quick
To meet the needs of customers who have recently moved into new apartments and want to decorate their new spaces, I designed a user flow to help them quickly find a convenient "starter kit" that includes multiple items. By conducting rapid research and prototyping exercises, I developed a high-fidelity prototype of this flow.
Problem Space
Many of their customers, especially Generation Z and millennials, have recently moved into a new home and want to decorate their homes with multiple items without exceeding their budget.
However, they struggle with putting everything together and selecting items that match their preferred style. These customers need a professional and efficient solution to help them finish their decoration projects quickly.
User Story
"As a new resident, I want to decorate my new place with my favorite styles while staying within my budget."
The Solution
Find all your home decor needs in one place
This flow helps new resident acquire home decor that reflects their preferred style in a convenient and affordable manner. All items are available in one place for easy online shopping.
Key steps that users can take:
📃 Take a style quiz to indicate their preferred style and needs
📷 Upload a photo of their own place, which helps users visualize how the decor items fit their space
🎨 Customize the decor kit that is recommended by the system
How would I measure the success of my solution?
Overall, measuring the success of H2H requires a combination of quantitative and qualitative metrics that reflect both financial performance and customer satisfaction.
Conversion rate
A high conversion rate indicates that House2Home is effectively engaging visitors and convincing them to make a purchase.
Average order value (AOV)
A high AOV indicates that customers are purchasing more items or more expensive items, which can contribute to increased revenue.
The Research Highlights
Achieving the desired look within a budget can be overwhelming
After reading the research highlights, I gained a deeper understanding of the problems encountered by the target users. The key pain points are as follows:
Stucked at recreating favorite styles
Budget and space constraints
Unsure if all small pieces will fit together in their space
Learn about the user group
I also created a persona to design a flow that fits into the target users' lives and encourages specific behaviors. With this persona as a guide for my design, I can create a product that is tailored to their preferences and improves the overall user experience.
Approach the Problem
Day 1 - Mapping
After reviewing the challenge brief and primary research highlights, I gained an overview of users' pain points and goals. To meet their needs for decorating a new home, I mapped out a possible end-to-end user experience, as shown below.
Day 2 - Sketching
Lightning demos
As I did this design sprint alone, I researched sites selling home decor kits and e-commerce patterns to understand the challenges and opportunities I face.
Crazy 8's
To brainstorm ideas within a tight time limit, I conducted an exercise to explore a wide range of layout possibilities and find unexpected solutions.
A three-panel board
I consider the screen that provides users with multiple options of "decorative kit" based on their favorite styles to be the most critical. This screen contains the most essential information about the decor kits and helps users achieve their primary goal of finding a home decor kit.
Day 3 - Decide
I created a 12-panel storyboard to showcase the expected user flow.
The proportion of visuals and product information plays a significant role in deciding which solution to move forward with.
Day 4 - Prototype
As I translated my sketches into a high fidelity prototype, I aimed to fulfill the main business goal, which is to sell home decor starter kits, while also reducing users' cognitive load when designing the process of collecting users’ preference data.
Day 5 - Validate
Users want more customization options but also value data privacy
To test my flow, I conducted five usability sessions with users between 20 to 35 years old who have experience buying home decor online. Participants understood the product concept and successfully found and purchased a home decor kit on the website.
Key pain points
However, there are still noticeable issues related to the content of the call-to-action and the order of steps to collect users' data.
Users found the term "decorative kit" in the CTA on the homepage confusing.
Users might hesitate to upload pictures of their homes due to privacy concerns.
Users were unaware of how much budget they need for achieving their desired home decor styles.
Optimize the quiz & customization process
Based on the first round of usability testing, I refined my design by addressing the pain points.
Revised the CTA copy on the homepage
Users will be able to understand exactly what "home decorative kits" mean and the context in which they are used.
Allow users to choose multiple styles
It provide users with unlimited options to choose from multiple styles that best reflect their preferences.
'Upload images of places' became an optional step
This respects users’ privacy concerns and rights.
Users can move around the suggested items
This allows users to evaluate how well the items fit into their new spaces.
Final High-fidelity Prototype
Visualize how items fit in users’ new space
This will help them get a better sense of whether all the decor items look good together in their home.
Customize the recommended decor kit
When it comes to home decoration, most people prefer customization that allows them to express their personal style and make their living space unique.
Reflections
Set realistic expectations
H2H can increase incentives for users to upload room pictures. This will make them more confident in the suggested items, increasing the likelihood of final purchases and achieving desired home decor styles.
Encourage creativity
Participants in usability testing wanted to customize decor kits to collect their favorite pieces or styles. By offering a flexible and affordable way to be creative with home decor projects, H2H could increase user interest in purchasing decor kits instead of individual items.
Increase data privacy
H2H should protect users' personal information and prevent unauthorized use of photos. Uploaded photos often contain sensitive information that could be misused if hacked.
What would I have done differently?
As many young people enjoy collecting photos of their favorite styles on the internet, I propose adding a feature that allows users to upload photos of their favorite styles.
Next Steps
Below are the key next steps that would make this flow more user-friendly and also satisfy House2Home’s business goal:
Iterate on budget and pricing option
Optimize the process of taking a style quiz
Create multiple versions of the product detail page that feature the home decor kit
More projects
House2Home Design Sprint
This was a 5-day solo design sprint challenge while at Springboard.
House2Home (H2H) is a fictitious e-commerce website that sells home decor items and accessories.
Role
Product Design, UX Research
Industry
E-commerce
Platform
Web
Timeline
04/2023
Project Overview
Decorating our home can be easy and quick
To meet the needs of customers who have recently moved into new apartments and want to decorate their new spaces, I designed a user flow to help them quickly find a convenient "starter kit" that includes multiple items. By conducting rapid research and prototyping exercises, I developed a high-fidelity prototype of this flow.
Problem Space
Many of their customers, especially Generation Z and millennials, have recently moved into a new home and want to decorate their homes with multiple items without exceeding their budget.
However, they struggle with putting everything together and selecting items that match their preferred style. These customers need a professional and efficient solution to help them finish their decoration projects quickly.
User Story
"As a new resident, I want to decorate my new place with my favorite styles while staying within my budget."
The Solution
Find all your home decor needs in one place
This flow helps new resident acquire home decor that reflects their preferred style in a convenient and affordable manner. All items are available in one place for easy online shopping.
Key steps that users can take:
📃 Take a style quiz to indicate their preferred style and needs
📷 Upload a photo of their own place, which helps users visualize how the decor items fit their space
🎨 Customize the decor kit that is recommended by the system
How would I measure the success of my solution?
Overall, measuring the success of H2H requires a combination of quantitative and qualitative metrics that reflect both financial performance and customer satisfaction.
Conversion rate
A high conversion rate indicates that House2Home is effectively engaging visitors and convincing them to make a purchase.
Average order value (AOV)
A high AOV indicates that customers are purchasing more items or more expensive items, which can contribute to increased revenue.
The Research Highlights
Achieving the desired look within a budget can be overwhelming
After reading the research highlights, I gained a deeper understanding of the problems encountered by the target users. The key pain points are as follows:
Stucked at recreating favorite styles
Budget and space constraints
Unsure if all small pieces will fit together in their space
Learn about the user group
I also created a persona to design a flow that fits into the target users' lives and encourages specific behaviors. With this persona as a guide for my design, I can create a product that is tailored to their preferences and improves the overall user experience.
Approach the Problem
Day 1 - Mapping
After reviewing the challenge brief and primary research highlights, I gained an overview of users' pain points and goals. To meet their needs for decorating a new home, I mapped out a possible end-to-end user experience, as shown below.
Day 2 - Sketching
Lightning demos
As I did this design sprint alone, I researched sites selling home decor kits and e-commerce patterns to understand the challenges and opportunities I face.
Crazy 8's
To brainstorm ideas within a tight time limit, I conducted an exercise to explore a wide range of layout possibilities and find unexpected solutions.
A three-panel board
I consider the screen that provides users with multiple options of "decorative kit" based on their favorite styles to be the most critical. This screen contains the most essential information about the decor kits and helps users achieve their primary goal of finding a home decor kit.
Day 3 - Decide
I created a 12-panel storyboard to showcase the expected user flow.
The proportion of visuals and product information plays a significant role in deciding which solution to move forward with.
Day 4 - Prototype
As I translated my sketches into a high fidelity prototype, I aimed to fulfill the main business goal, which is to sell home decor starter kits, while also reducing users' cognitive load when designing the process of collecting users’ preference data.
Day 5 - Validate
Users want more customization options but also value data privacy
To test my flow, I conducted five usability sessions with users between 20 to 35 years old who have experience buying home decor online. Participants understood the product concept and successfully found and purchased a home decor kit on the website.
Key pain points
However, there are still noticeable issues related to the content of the call-to-action and the order of steps to collect users' data.
Users found the term "decorative kit" in the CTA on the homepage confusing.
Users might hesitate to upload pictures of their homes due to privacy concerns.
Users were unaware of how much budget they need for achieving their desired home decor styles.
Optimize the quiz & customization process
Based on the first round of usability testing, I refined my design by addressing the pain points.
Revised the CTA copy on the homepage
Users will be able to understand exactly what "home decorative kits" mean and the context in which they are used.
Allow users to choose multiple styles
It provide users with unlimited options to choose from multiple styles that best reflect their preferences.
'Upload images of places' became an optional step
This respects users’ privacy concerns and rights.
Users can move around the suggested items
This allows users to evaluate how well the items fit into their new spaces.
Final High-fidelity Prototype
Visualize how items fit in users’ new space
This will help them get a better sense of whether all the decor items look good together in their home.
Customize the recommended decor kit
When it comes to home decoration, most people prefer customization that allows them to express their personal style and make their living space unique.
Reflections
Set realistic expectations
H2H can increase incentives for users to upload room pictures. This will make them more confident in the suggested items, increasing the likelihood of final purchases and achieving desired home decor styles.
Encourage creativity
Participants in usability testing wanted to customize decor kits to collect their favorite pieces or styles. By offering a flexible and affordable way to be creative with home decor projects, H2H could increase user interest in purchasing decor kits instead of individual items.
Increase data privacy
H2H should protect users' personal information and prevent unauthorized use of photos. Uploaded photos often contain sensitive information that could be misused if hacked.
What would I have done differently?
As many young people enjoy collecting photos of their favorite styles on the internet, I propose adding a feature that allows users to upload photos of their favorite styles.
Next Steps
Below are the key next steps that would make this flow more user-friendly and also satisfy House2Home’s business goal:
Iterate on budget and pricing option
Optimize the process of taking a style quiz
Create multiple versions of the product detail page that feature the home decor kit