Jennifer Jones
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UX Designer
Case Study - Hatched
Case Study - Hatched
GETTING STARTED
Hatched sells high-end organic children’s clothing and
eco-conscious toys in the Jamaica Plain neighborhood of Boston. This was a solo, concept project and with a two-week turnaround I created mid-fidelity wireframes in Axure, with a focus on:
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Information Architecture
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Navigation Design
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User Interface
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Design Process
recruitment & Interviews
Out of 44 participants I interviewed 4 people and tasked 7 people with completing an open card sort. I identified
my target audience in the following way:
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People who buy gifts for children 10 and younger
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Those who are comfortable shopping online
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People who appreciate eco-friendly and organic child products and are willing to spend more on these items
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People who shop at local small businesses
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Those who are willing to meet for an interview and were able to interview within the next five days
I started preparing for interviews by creating a concept map, this is a technique I use a lot to help me brainstorm. I was able to identify many talking points for a discussion guide. My goal was to find out what participants thought were important features for an eco-conscious website that sells children’s clothing and toys. I wanted to know what motivated these priorities and which parts of the issue they felt most strongly about.
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Why is eco-consciousness so important to you?
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Was there anything in particular that led you to develop these views?
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Is there anything that would prevent you from shopping for eco-conscious goods?
task analysis
feature inventory
Competitive Analysis
During this time I also did a competitive analysis in the form of a task analysis and a feature inventory on three competitors; 2 direct and 1 analogous. It was helpful to see what features each of these three websites implemented and the flow of how they did so.
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The Hanna Andersson site was the only one of the three that calculated the tax and shipping amounts in the cart and didn’t force you to go to checkout to find this information.
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I observed some of the negative aspects my research identified, such as websites that return a large set of results when browsing, and made a note to ensure this would not be the case in my design.
More importantly, I learned that the identified users have a very strong set of values that guide them as they shop and make purchases at stores like Hatched. They care deeply about the planet, education, and the well-being of other human beings; and they want to purchase from stores that are in alignment with these strongly held values.
Affinity Mapping
After finishing all of the interviews I did an affinity mapping exercise so I could make sense of all the information. I learned a lot about people's preferences and frustrations when they are shopping for children, and when shopping online in general.
“Fast fashion is an awful thing that is ruining our environment, it’s a serious concern that no one seems to actually take seriously.”
“I’m likely to spend more money on clothing that will last for a long time and can be passed down and won’t only last a season before it falls apart.”
Synthesis
After analyzing all my research the insights I gained are as follows:
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Users want to know that the company is in line with their personal values, it should be immediately obvious and users want to be continually reassured throughout the shopping process
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Important information should be shown on the product page, such as the materials the product is made from, where the product is made, and what defines the product as eco-conscious or responsibly produced.
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Users want to be able to easily shop for children by age group
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Card sorting results helped confirm how inventory should be organized but were ultimately unsurprising.
Users shop for eco-conscious children’s items because they have a strong set of values. I designed this so the users are continually assured that this company is aligned with those values.
design process
GETTING STARTED
I started by creating a site map and identifying two different task flows to design for. The competitive analysis and the results of the card sort were both helpful in determining the information architecture of the site.
Task Flows
In the first flow I have identified a typical user action, the process of finding the desired item and purchasing it. This flow includes:
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Product Discovery
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Add to Cart
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Create Account
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Checkout
In this second flow, the user can shop by age, a need that was mentioned often during user interviews. In addition, I have created a fun way to allow users to easily build an entire outfit. This flow includes:
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Shop by Age
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Create an Outfit
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Add to Cart
Iterations
As I progressed from sketching to low-fi prototypes and so on, I continued to be mindful of the user's commitment to their value system. I gave special attention to the product page, where the user would be making the decision to purchase. I chose a conversational approach to the product description that allows the user to feel as if they are talking with a trusted friend.
Final Results
Flow 1
Home
Listings
Product
Cart
Account
Checkout
Confirmation
Flow 2
Home
Shop by Age
Product
Create Outfit
Cart
Next Steps
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Usability Testing - Unfortunately, this project took place during the busy December holiday season, so finding available people to do the testing was not possible. I'd be particularly interested to know what people think of the 'Create an Outfit' option. Is it actually useful? Is it fun?
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Adding more assurances regarding eco-conscious and educational values, the 'Overalls & Rompers' and 'Create an Outfit' pages would benefit from this.
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More communication with the store regarding their practices. Do they use recycled materials for shipping? If so, that could be noted in the cart or checkout process.