Self checkout app for in-store shopping experience designed for a wholesale brand -
Mexico, A
Company
Problem Statement
Sam’s Club, Mexico wanted to improve their in-store shopping experience as there were huge queues at the checkout counters with long wait times.
Business Objectives:
1. As a business, Sam’s Club wants to improve their shopping experience by tackling traffic in the stores as less rush in the store equals to more business. 2. As a business, The stores would want people to discover Sam’s Club mobile app and order online. 3. As a business, Sam’s Club wants their users to adapt to digitisation by enabling their digital wallet and transact.
Success Metrics:
User experience metrics: Reducing time to checkout by 50% Business metrics: Increased sales by 10% Overall long term cost to business reduced by hiring lesser staff
Storyboard
Design Process
Here’s how I went about coming up with the final solution.
Business Alignment
Sam’s Club stores have a huge foot-fall and loyal customers come to buy from the stores on a weekly or bi-weekly basis to stock up their goods for their households or for their businesses.
Sam’s Club needed a solution to attend to the existing customer base and also scale to the rapidly growing customers who sign up for the loyalty programs.
Research
Both Qualitative and Quantitative research was conducted for the stores that was essential to design a system of shopping that would help Sam’s Club sustain its store operations.
Quantitative Research objectives:
1. Know about the demographics, behaviour, mindset of our target audience in context of shopping
and purchase decisions.
2. Time spend of average user at the checkout counters and overall store.
3. Identify who would be the user base who would adopt to the app first and
what does it take to onboard everyone.
Key Insights from Quantitative study
97%
customer come to the store to shop as its a family activity.
3%
trust online channel to make a purchase and get things delivered
40%
Customers are hoteliers and restuarant owners who purchase groceries from Sam’s club.
50-50
ratio of customers going for cash vs card payments, also cards have a 2% service fee.
75-25
75% customers are businesses loyal since an avg of 3 years and 25% family with an average of 4 members per family.
60%
have facebook, 12% Twitter, 20% youtube and 1 of 5 have Costco membership.
Qualitative Research objectives:
1. Find out shopping behavior of customers at Sam’s Club across categories.
2. What are the current issues do they face while finding items till checkout.
3. Identify who would be the user base who would adopt to the app first and
what does it take to onboard everyone.
Key Insights from Qualitative study
Personal Hygeine
A behavior was observed that people do not like to use physical scanners in supermarkets as they were touched by other people and may be unhygeinic.
Avoid self checkouts
Self checkouts is a tidious system where users have to scan all items and pay by themselves. Non-tech savvy people are hesitent in using as its complex and percieve it as time consuming.
Distrust in Online payment
Mexico is majorly a cash dominant market, Customers transact in cash and don’t trust credit card or debit card in fear of fraudulent activity. Some use credit to avail special discounts.
Concept stage
At this stage, I used user personas and created journey maps to empathize with the target users based on which wireframes for the flow can be build.
Personas
Young couple
Purchase Attitude
Lifestyle
Traits & demographics
- 36 - 65 yrs - 13% have babies - 51% of children have an average age of 20 years old - 62% have facebook, 13% twitter, 44% google+, - 26% youtube
Enjoy shopping
“Shopping is a family entertainment, I normally spend more money that I should.”
Good selection
“I like going to stores where I can find everything I need.”
Proven service
“I prefer stores with good service” “I prefer shopping at stores that are recommend by a friend or acquaintance”
Time is relevant
“It is better to buy larger presentations so you don´t have to go so many times to the stores.”
Responsible & Respectful
“I am responsible of my own destiny” “It is very important to respect partners/ family and friends”
New experiences, new people
“I like experiencing new things” “I am always informed about social events”
Stand out
“I consider myself an extroverted/ uninhibited person”
Hotels and restuarant chains
Purchase Attitude
Lifestyle
Traits & demographics
- 25-35 yrs old - Avg of 11 employees - Kids average age is 19 years old - 1 out of 3 have a Costco membership - 69% have Facebook, 15% twitter, 37% google+, 20% youtube
Planned / organised purchase
“I usually make a list of all products and services I need”
Brand oriented
“It is worthy to pay more for well-known brands”
Service is the key
“I always search for places that give me a preferential /special treatment”
Whim happens
“I normally spend more money that I should”
Updated
“I am aware of what is up to date and what is not” “I am always searching for cutting edge technology” “I love having big screen/ TVs at business”
Extroverted & Social
“I consider myself an extroverted/ uninhibited person” “I spend time with my friend at clubs, bars or home”
User task flows
Visual design and interaction
Styleguides
Styleguide was shared in the form of invision documents with flows being annotated and each elements put together in a single style sheet to serve as a single source of truth for HTML and CSS.
Identities
Colors
UI elements
Usability testing
A usability plan was build, goals set and user profiles selected to conduct those tests. The idea was to test hypothesis on usability bahavior and revalidate that the final experience would endure the intended emotions, tasks are easy done and user delight was the center of everything.
