Optimising the checkout process on a shoestring.
Fresh after getting approval from the directors on our roadmap proposal the first item on the list was to completely rebuild the functional but ageing (non-responsive) checkout for this omnichannel retailer.
The beginning of the process was to convince the E-commerce manager that we needed to define the problems not by our point of view, but by customers. Then get him to approve a simple and cheap method of defining the problems with customers via user testing a small sample of customers (as per Jakob Neilson's methodology). Which has never before happened at this company.
By offering valuable insights into the problems and providing simple assets to show our key stakeholder AKA the IT Director, this helped sell the methodology of testing.
During the ideation steps of the process, we continually experimented with different ideas that we tested internally, to get a quick feedback loop. Until we had a set of prototypes we felt comfortable (not sure if any designer ever feels truly comfortable with people testing their designs) with spending more money on user testing with customers.
After spending a long time building this slick new checkout process we again user tested it but due to the lack of funds it could only be done with internal staff, but lucky for us we have a vast pool of people to use due to the large warehouse and distribution center onsite.
Finally, time to Implement this new checkout came round. It proceeded without a hitch for a few days, but of course, something is always overlooked! And this time it was a simple decision thankfully nothing that could not be solved.
There is no better feeling than when you launch a product that you spent a long time designing and pitching for and then watching the data show such a quick increase (with an avg increase of 38% conversion rate), plus the social comments being all glowingly positive. The power of continually testing and getting feedback even on a shoestring budget can never be overstated in my option.