Syneffa - An Ecommerce Jewelry Store
Overview of the Project
During the pandemic, I put my entrepreneurial skills to a test. This project is especially close to my heart because I created a side company to allow me to sell my handcrafted jewelry online. Syneffa has produced profitable financial performance since its start in 2018 and was in running for 4+ years. I personally designed the website and mobile application to market my products.
Bangalore, Karnataka, India
2018
E-commerce
Challenge
This project was undertaken to capture the essence of Syneffa's mission – curating fashion pieces that leave an enduring impact, characterized by their versatility and memorability. The project's focal point was addressing the challenge of effectively conveying the company's ambitious vision to the viewers. Through this endeavor, the goal was to bridge the gap between Syneffa's aspirational goals and the audience's perception, bringing to life their brand identity and intentions.
Results
The website's warm color palette aligns with the objectives of the business, and the typeface is fashionable and complements the floral products that the company sells. By designing the website with the company's objectives in mind, I wanted to bring the brand identity to life.
Tools
Miro
Figma
Adobe XD
Wix
Team
1 UX Designer/Artist
1 Photographer
2 Stakeholders
My Role
UI/UX design
UX research
Product manager
Product designer
Timeline
Overall: 8+ weeks
Discovery & Research: 2+ weeks
Design & testing: 6 weeks
Maintaining the Website: 4 years
Design Process
User Interviews
In order to develop new personas and guide the design, interviews were performed as part of the project's ideation phase. Then, an interview script with 18 open-ended questions was created, focusing on the beliefs, motives, and daily habits of our target consumers. In 4 days, 7 remote user interviews were done. We referred to the findings of the user interviews throughout the whole design process.
The key takeaway from the interviews was understanding how individuals style their jewelry and the occasions they wear it to.
They liked using the product for a variety occasions, both formal and informal settings.
People enjoy giving jewelry as gifts since it is seen as a well-liked and customized present.
User Personas
We aimed to get a deeper understanding of the goals, requirements, experiences, and behaviors of our potential clients. Therefore, we created 4 personas for each of our user categories. We kept updating them as new information came in during the project; they were based on user interviews and surveys. We took on these personas anytime we wanted to deviate from and evaluate our initial thought process.
User personas helped understand the customer needs and the demographic I was working with.
The information that was unique to each client encouraged me to think about how the design could be enhanced each time a different type consumer was seen.
Additionally, some users were drawn to customized designs. A new page was created where people could get in touch with the artist and place their orders.
User Journey
While keeping the business goal in mind, it was assured that customers had no trouble reaching the checkout screen. A map of the user experience following rendering was created after a month in release to identify potential areas for improvement. By eliminating some steps from the design, we were able to drastically speed up the checkout process and raise conversion rates.
The journey map clearly showed the user's best and worst experiences.
Through many iterations of the steps, the path map was tested and validated, allowing for the removal of unnecessary steps and the fixing of errors.
Uncertainty over how to modify their cart was one of the users' complaints. This was addressed by including an edit button that allowed users to change their products before making a purchase.
Card Sorting
Six remote card sorting sessions were conducted to ensure sure the information architecture of the site matched user expectations. Finding more manageable, logical groupings for the 19 current product categories was our aim. We came up with 5 clearly identifiable key groups after categorizing the data.
The Open Card Sorting method was used to group products and data into the appropriate sections of the website.
The cards were grouped with similar other products to add into categories and include in filters.
I learned that even if a product's designer or artist may believe it to be entirely distinct from another, a person with fresh eyes may see the similarities between the objects.
With its redesigned structure, the website is now simple and user-friendly.
Sketches
I started the design process with low-fidelity sketches and wireframes in order to speed up decision-making through visualization without wasting time. The preliminary user interviews, the business goal, and the heuristic evaluation served as the foundation for my illustrations. This highlighted how the flow had too many interruptions. Throughout the whole design process, we frequently went back to the sketches to make sure we didn't lose sight of the main objective.
These sketches were created with the intention of presenting the draft to stakeholders and receiving their feedback.
The differences between the various versions were based on what the target audience for the products preferred.
Because the artist's main objective was to sell the products they had made, the version we selected only included customization as a small element of the major products displayed in the store.
On the home page layout, you may get a brief overview of the products, a sneak peek at them in the shop, and details on how to deliver the products as gifts.
High Fidility UI Design
After resolving the usability issues, I proceeded to create the final screens in Figma. My objective was to create a visual design that is consistent with the brand's principles with smooth UI interface.
The products were designed in a style that reflected real life. I deliberately used warm, subtle hues in the design to evoke the similar feeling.
I used basic guidelines to make essential UI components to promote marketing and sales with the brands.
I designed a webpage for Syneffa and an mobile application for phone users.
Users should feel as though they recognize a piece of themselves in my final design since that is how the product speaks to them.
Conclusion
It is evident that crafting a seamless and captivating website interface, while emphasizing user experience, greatly improved the jewelry purchasing journey, resulting in a 20% increase in sales YoY. The adoption of a user-centric mindset, exemplified through the minimalistic checkout process, profoundly contributed to a customer-friendly and efficient experience. These insights highlight the significance of prioritizing user needs in design, resulting in enhanced satisfaction and functionality.