ZumShop

Pet Supplies Online Recommended by Vets

Overview

My Role

Full-time UX Design Lead

Duration
6.5 Months

Platform
Web & Responsive App Design

Tools used
Pen & paper, Google Documents, Mural,
Adobe Suite, FigJam & Figma

Responsibilities
Project Research, Ideation, UX Interface Design, Wireframe, Prototyping, Design System, Creative Direction, Testing

Background

ZumShop is the e-commerce division of ZumVet, a leading online veterinary service. It aims to offer a carefully curated selection of premium pet care products, informed by the expert recommendations of ZumVet's trusted veterinarians. The product range encompasses nutrition, diet, hygiene, and overall wellbeing for each lifestages.

The Goal

To develop an e-commerce platform that focuses on medical and health-led product discovery.

The Challenge

BRAND: To stand out from the saturated pet e-commerce industry.
PRODUCT: To design an intuitive and userfriendly end-to-end purchase flow.

Discover & Define

Through a comprehensive market research and competitive analysis of our competitors' goals, key product features, and brand positioning, we were able to analyse the insights and learnings to gain a deep understanding of both domestic and international pet product markets, identifying opportunities for a distinctive brand positioning and approach that would differentiate our offering within the competitive landscape.

We conducted user interviews with 8 individuals who were/are pet owners, both ZV users and non-users to understand more on their purchasing habits, behaviours and considerations when shopping for pet products. We synthesized the data gathered using affinity mapping to identify common themes and patterns.

We learnt that users are:
1. Price sensitive across diet, lifestyle, supplements and preventative options
2. More likely to purchase products that are recommended by their friends & other pet owners
3. Meticulous in their research & would want detailed information about what they are buying
4. Savvy shoppers who would consider bulk purchases in order to get Free Delivery
5. Less likely to purchase lifestyle products from ZumVet
6. Less confident when it comes to purchasing medical products online
7. More likely to shop on a new platform if there are incentives (lower price, loyalty points, free delivery, community cause beneficial like rescue groups,etc)
8. Loyal to their current brands/vendors and would be less likely to actively search for new platforms unless needed (E.g.Product is oos)
9. More engaged when presented with promotions or offers (via instagram or eDMs)

With the data and insights we discovered from the research & interviews, we were able to define and design the main persona that will help guide the project.

We came up with a problem statement for Audrey to help convey what the primary need is when it comes to shopping for pet products online.

...

Audrey needs an economical way to search and purchase products suitable for her pet’s routine needs.

...

‍Leveraging on the insights discovered from our market research and the extensive medical data accumulated from ZumVet consultations over the past three years, working closely with our veterinarian team, designed a comprehensive sitemap that prioritizes the most prevalent health conditions and symptoms frequently encountered by pet owners.

Develop and Deliver

Using the research data, findings and insights while focusing on pet owner’s main needs and experience and ZumShop business goals, we brainstormed and mapped out a feature prioritization table based on it’s percieved value and impact.

After discussing and in agreement with the different stakeholders, we focused on developing features that would bring the highest impact and value for both user and business — Phase 1: (A) Recommended Products (B) Lifestages,Symptoms & Conditions filter (C) Search Bar (D) Live Chat/Smart Chat Bot (E) Discount Code/Voucher Application (F) Secure Checkout

Phase 2: (G) Subscription Plan (H) E-Pharmacy (KIV)

Our team planned for ZumShop to be built and rolled out in phases with the first being focused on creating a MVP where the e-commerce end-to-end journey of product search to secure check out and delivery of order. ZumShop is also envisioned to be part of the ZumVet eco-system where it would serve as a dispensary & e-pharmacy.

Sketching & Rapid Wireframing

With the outline and main deliverables of Phase 1 ZumShop determined, we went into the sketching and wireframing process.

After 2-3 rounds of internal feedbacks, iteration and testings, we finalised the first version of wireframes that would make the MVP of ZumShop for the launch.

The Results (Phase 1)

ZumShop, veterinary-curated platform specializing in premium pet supplies features a clean, modern, friendly and professional design style that is prominent in it’s distinctive branding allowing it to be easily differentiated among it’s competitor and also attracts new and existing customers who are in search of the best products for their pets. By strategically designing our landing page with multiple entry points and incorporating relevant search and discovery terms, our team has successfully addressed the challenge of providing an intuitive and informative shopping experience tailored to the specific medical and health needs of pets.

By enabling consumers to establish subscription plans for any product, we not only achieve our business objectives of recurring revenue, increased traffic, and enhanced customer retention but also effectively address logistical and supply chain challenges from both consumer and business perspectives. This approach mitigates the risk of stockouts and provides a convenient and seamless solution for procuring pet products.

Key Product Screens

Homepage

Dropdown Menu

⭐ KEY POINT
To address the goal of a medical and health-led product discovery.

Dropdown menu is segmented into Lifestages, Health & Wellness & Needs
Popular Categories focuses on health and medical use cases
Top Vet Curated Products segment with vet recommended products are featured with more priority in the homepage scroll
Vet teleconsult banner to assist customers if they require more professional advice

Phase 2

Phase 2 is focused on two main monetization features (E) Subscription, now known as Autoship & (F) E-Pharmacy.

Discover & Define

The business objective for Autoship was to promote repeat purchase and constant revenue for the business. Encouraging a long term partnership and commitment with the users, resulting in revenue longevity and to convert casual consumers into loyal consumers.

We conducted a focus group discussion with 40 users that are made up of pet owners and existing ZumVet users to learn the goals, expectations, hesitations, behaviors and gaps in the user journey involving subscriptions. We were able to analyze the gathered data to identify common themes and patterns.

We learnt that users are:
1. More likely to purchase a subscription for Diet & Treats.
2. Majority purchase pet diets & treats monthly.
3. Majority purchase Supplements & Medications quarterly.
4. Making their purchases online.
5. Most sensitive to price when deciding to purchase a product

Additionally, we conducted both competitive and comparative analysis from direct and non-direct competitors and businesses that have subscription models. We were able to gain valuable insights from each brand, allowing us to adopt and build our own subscription model that was aimed to better serve our target audiences needs.

Develop and Deliver

Using the research insights and findings, our team brainstormed and outlined the basic functionality and userflow of the Autoship user journey.

With the user flow, we moved on to rapid wireframing & held internal feedback sessions with stakeholders from marketing, customer service and engineering to further iterate and improve the UX.

The Results (Phase 2)

The Autoship subscription enhancement allowed users to have a more compelling reason to create a subscription for their pets and introduces added convenience into their pet care journey. With price being the top considerations for users when making a purchase, the UI aims to highlight the price difference and savings with prominent placing, bolded and color styling. Autoship USPs were also prioritised for to support marketing efforts and increase subscriptions.

Autoship management was also vital in not only allowing users to have full clarity on the subscription terms but also allowing flexible and customisable abilities in delivery, order frequency and payment mode. Combined cart checkout for autoship & non-autoship purchases was deprioritised due to technical limitations but would be revisited in the future. E-Pharmacy feature would be launched in Phase 3.

Key Product Screens

Product Description (Autoship Enhancement)

⭐ KEY POINT
Users are price sensitive and are more motivated by dollar stretching incentives like savings and discounts.

Allowing the users to be able to view the Autoship pricing and savings upfront allows transparency and encourages customers to adopt a long term planning mindset which would ideally motivate them to sign up for a subscription.
No-strings-attached marketing one liners with clear benefits aims to promote & educate users about the Autoship plan.
Highly customisable delivery frequency feature allows user to tailor the subscription to suit their lifestyle.

Autoship Checkout

⭐ KEY POINT
Users are price sensitive and are more motivated by dollar stretching incentives like savings and discounts.

Clear communication on how the subscription plan works with emphasis on the saving value helps to reassure users about their decision and lower drop out rates.
Saved Shipping information reduces the effort needed for returning customers to checkout, allowing for a more seamless process.

Account Management

⭐ KEY POINT

Users are able to have multiple Autoship subscriptions and are able to easily manage their subscriptions.

Highly customisable settings (Skip delivery, Edit frequency, Edit payment & Cancel Subscription) allow users to tailor the subscription base on their lifestyle and to accomodate special circumstances.

Mobile Resposive

Outcome & Impact

~90 Active Autoship subscriptions (last update Sep 2024)
12% growth in Autoship revenue bookings MoM

Next Steps

Taking into account that this was the MVP of the e-commerce platform, it definitely would need more improvements and enhancements. Moving forwards, we plan to continue making iterations and run experiments to test our hypothesis and see what performs best to our target audience. I would also like to do a round of usability test to get the System Usability Scale (SUS) scoring of ZumShop. We would also like to continue working towards the planning and development of the E-Pharmacy to support users in their pet care journey by allowing them an alternative way to access prescription medication and help increase revenue. We would also like to explore the idea of earning rebates or a loyalty point system so as to incentivise return customers and increase brand commitment.

Learnings & Reflections

1.
︎︎︎Due to time constraints, there wasn’t much time allocated to test out design solutions & I believe there were many lost opportunities for learning and gaining valuable feedbacks and insights. In future, it would be beneficial to factor in more time for user testings in the project timeline before rolling out to development.

2.
︎︎︎Digitilising our inventory and producing a detailed product mapping that would help in the product discovery and navigation of the site was a high effort and time consuming task however it was also vital in the planning and IA of the product. In future, it would be more efficient to kickstart the product mapping a few weeks before the design solution process so as to avoid having to delay the project timeline.

3.
︎︎︎When it comes to payment design, transparency and clarity should be prioritised over speed so as to build and maintain trust with the customers.