Optimizing Product Discovery Through IA Redesign
Project Summary
This project focused on redesigning Popcorn Van’s feed using sales data to optimize product visibility throughout the day. By strategically adjusting the feed’s structure, the goal was to increase sales, improve findability, and enhance exposure for both popular and underperforming items. Popcorn Van, now rebranded as Feed, was a start-up e-commerce app that positioned itself as a “7-11 on wheels,” offering 24/7 delivery of snacks, essentials, and quality goods straight to customers' doors.
My Roles
- Product Design
- User Research
The Team
- Data Analyst Daiki Minaki
Impact & Results
Reduced product findability time from
5 to 1 min
Increased sales during peak hours by consolidated app categories from
42 to 15
TOOL KIT
Discovery
1. Heuristic Analysis
- Gained familiarity
- Exposed general concerns
- Major issues with findability & credibility
2. Usability Tests & Interviews
- Users liked the variety of products
- Category titles didn't meet user expectations
- No consistency between vertical & horizontal scrolling experience
3. Concept Testing
- Tested different search experiences
- 8 minute average to find 3 products with category search
Core Questions
- What are peak sale hours?
- What products are selling best during these hours?
- What categories are performing best/being clicked into most during X time ranges?
- Do users typically know what they are looking for before opening the app? and how can I test this?
- Who are Popcorn’s main users?
Findings
usability Tests
uncovered that...
- Categories were not always intuitive nor consistent
Cocept Testing
uncovered that...
- Users had issues finding products regardless of how they searched for them
Interviews
uncovered that...
- Too many categories
Problem Definition
Information Architecture restructuring
How can I help Popcorn Van increase sales, change public conception, and better the experience for users?
Solutioning
Card Sorting
I asked 12 people to sort through our 50 existing categories of products. The virtual card sorting gave light to:
- 15 total categories
- 32 subcategories
- 9 marketing banners
Qualitative Research
After better defining the categories, I wanted to get a better understanding of how each product and category was performing historically. This information would help assess the order of categories and which products should be highlighted in each category.
Define & Design
I observed that product sales fluctuated based on the time of day—some items performed well at certain hours while others lagged behind. To optimize visibility and increase sales, I identified peak selling times for specific products and designed a rotating category system. This dynamic approach prioritized showcasing the right products at the right times, maximizing engagement and revenue.
This rotating feed design would also meet our business goal to reframe Popcorn Van’s popular conception of a “7-11 on wheels” by show casing a wider variety of products and placing an emphasis on our higher quality, fresh goods.
This rotating feed design would also meet our business goal to reframe Popcorn Van’s popular conception of a “7-11 on wheels” by show casing a wider variety of products and placing an emphasis on our higher quality, fresh goods.
Designing with Intent
While redesigning the information architecture of Popcorn Van’s new product feed and new rotating category experience, it was important that I ensure consistency across the navigation of sub categories and category card consistency matching up across all parts of the feed.
Results
Successes
- Redesigning the main feed significantly improved product findability, reducing the average search time from 5 minutes to just 1 minute. This was validated through pre- and post-design testing, where users completed tasks to locate various products using both search and category navigation
- Total number of categories was significantly reduced from 42 to 15
- Consistency amongst categories and subcategories throughout the platform increased usability validated through qualitative research
Challenges with this redesign
Due to resource constraints and leadership’s concerns about disrupting users, I wasn’t able to validate or explore this as deeply as I had hoped. Given the opportunity, I would have…
- Done A/B testing of a new category feed - validate designs
- In-app surveys & product surveys to help validate time-sensitive categories
- Developed Popcorn Van’s personas further
- Answered my primary question --> what type of shoppers are our users (see mock)
- Explored ways to up sales in the middle of the day/during low hours
