Pair Up
I designed a user-friendly and visually appealing e-commerce app concept, Pair Up, by applying insights from UX research to ensure a seamless and engaging user experience.
Problem
The most frequent complaint I've heard while working in footwear design has been that some shoppers can never find the shoes they want in their size. Most feminine footwear lines only offer up to a size 11. Since most brands manufacture smaller quantities of these larger sizes, they have the tendency to sell out quickly.
Until the industry shifts to include more footwear in extended sizes, I found it important to create a reliable way to connect users to the styles that are in stock in their size. There is no e-commerce platform specifically designed to help femme shoe wearers with large shoe sizes find stylish shoes in their size.
To gain insight into the target audiences’ values, motivations, feelings, and shopping habits, I prepared an interview script with 22 open-ended questions and conducted 11 user interviews. This information from the respondents was then gathered, grouped by theme, then narrowed down by the use of an affinity map to help arrive at key findings.
Solution
I built a customized shopping experience that allows shoe shoppers with large feet discover and purchase shoes in their size, while helping brands receive more distribution of shoes in large sizes. PairUp facilitates the flow of communication between consumers with similar footwear fit characteristics, enabling them to be less likely to make a purchase that results in an item return.
Based on the findings from user interviews, I constructed a user persona that served as a reference throughout the duration of the design process.
Initial Sketches
I began the design process by brainstorming solutions with quick sketches. These sketches were generated based on key insights from the user interviews I conducted, the business goal, and the heuristic evaluation.
Competitive Analysis
I examined other e-commerce companies who offer shoes in larger sizes to see what features are of importance to the user and to determine if we can fill a void where a potentially helpful element for the user might be missing.
User Flow
I created a user flow to map out the steps the user would take to get to the end goal. This initial architecture was reiterated upon during the research and design process.
Wireframes
I used Figma to transform my low fidelity sketches into wireframes that would serve as the map for all screens.
Usability Testing
I created a low fidelity prototype for initial usability testing with 5 testers. After reiterating on any major issues our testers ran into, I created a fully-functional, high-fidelity prototype that was then tested by a new group of 4 testers. The process was then continued to iterate on any problems the users experienced.
Problem
Community Moodboard is a 'nice to have' but not helpful
I created the community moodboard concept as a way to uplift and inform the user by featuring images of other users wearing the shoes that they purchased; but as testing went on, it became clear that although users want fit feedback from other users, most do not want to view images of the shoes on other user's feet.
Solution
Replace Community Moodboard with more in-depth User Profile
I eliminated the moodboard concept and replaced it with a way for users to gain more in-depth fit information from other users.
Moodboard & UI
The inspiration for PairUp's UI design was derived from the sense of emerging out of the shadows. I wanted the app to exude an uplifting feeling of darkness coming to light, a nod to bringing comfort and options to our underserved target user.
High Fidelity Prototype
One of my key learnings from the interview process, was the exact sentiment concerning footwear shopping experiences from our target user. I learned how frustrated and uncomfortable most users felt while shopping for shoes. To remedy this, I set out to create a personalized digital experience for these users. The objective was not only to help connect these users with brands who offer extended size, but to create a digital environment that feels luxurious, refreshing, and uplifting.
Sign up and Log in
Users can either sign up, log in, or skip the sign up process in order to proceed directly to browsing footwear styles. The onboarding process centers around gaining specific fit information from our users, so that they can receive results that are tailored to their individual fit. Users can also set up customized alerts like when their shoe size becomes available in their favorite brands. At the end of the onboarding process, users then receive a welcome into their product showroom.
Product Filtering
After several iterations based off of feedback from usability testing, I created a more streamlined filtering process for the user.
Product Page and Community Feedback
The product page allows the user to see more details about the selected style. A community feedback section informs the user on specific fit characteristics for each style. The user can then access a social feed where they can interact with other users and reference comments from other users who might have similar foot characteristics.
Next Steps
- Conduct more user research to create iterations that offer different functionalities based on our user's most prioritized needs.
- Gain a deeper understanding of the verification and security process as it pertains to the social feed aspect of the app. The community feedback section should be a way to create community and educate users rather than a way to scare them away through unwanted messaging and fake user profiles.