Seamless Curbside
CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE | APP DESIGN | CARPLAY
This is a 9-month team project by Junyi Zeng and Yolanda Xu.
I worked as the lead UX Designer, mainly being in charge of brainstorming, sketching, prototyping and product requirement generating. Collaborating with UX Researcher, I was also contributing to the exploratory user research and prototype testing.
Duration: Aug 2022 - May 2023
Problem Domain
The Home Depot has a decrease 📉 in the curbside pick-up order volume.
How might we assist The Home Depot in acquiring and retaining curbside customers by making the experience easier and faster?
Understanding the Problems
Stakeholder Interviews
Note: Sampled 118 curbside pick up users including 81 Home Depot Curbside Pickup users)
Note: Interviewed 5 stakeholder in total
Visibility of system status is essential because users would prefer to stay informed.
Error prevention is crucial during curbside pickup because users will make mistakes under unfamiliar circumstances.
Match between system and the real world is important because users need to switch between online and offline services.
Note: Tried curbside pickups at Target, Macy’s, Chick-fil-a and compared with the Home Depot’s service
Curbside pick-up, a method where customers order online and retrieve their purchases at the store, has gained immense popularity during the pandemic and remained a must-have during the post-pandemic era.
It offers a contactless and convenient shopping experience, as customers simply drive to the store, have an associate bring out their order, and load it into their trunk.
To get a general sense of this problem, we started out by interviewing internal stakeholders within the Home Depot, including PMs, Designers, and Operational Team members. In the meantime, we also spread out a survey to current curbside pickup users (not limited to the Home Depot) to understand users’ expectations and pain points for this service.
Long-term Goals
• Promote Mobile App Usage
• Provide a service that competes effectively with other retailers.
Customer Segmentations
• Pro & Personal Customers
• Current CPU services: Personal Customers
Curbside Challenges (Assumptions)
• Long wait time
• Bulky items are hard to handle for both customers and associates
Customer Interviews: What are customers expecting from curbside pickup service? (View Full Version)
To get closer to the existing users, we started by sending out surveys and recruiting users for semi-structured interviews. We did an in-store observation and contextual inquiries with both associates and customers. By observing the curbside pickup activities and asking follow-up questions, we were able to collect feedback in the real context.
What are things that currently make the Home Depot’s curbside experience not as easy or fast as we supposed?
Users choose curbside pickup because…
• it is easier than picking up in-store
• it is faster than shipping to home
However, users are currently experiencing…
• longer waiting time than expected
• inefficient communication with associates
Customer Survey
Note: Conducted 5 semi-structured interviews with users
Gathering Real User Feedback
Competitive Analysis
In-store Visit (View Full Version)
Higher efficiency is needed for curbside pickup.
Accessible tools and ways should be available to customize all associates in carrying bulky items.
Transparent information should be available among associates and between customers and associates.
Note: Conducted a 3-hour in-store visit and interviewed 3 associates & 5 customers
Design Implications
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Information transparency
Allow more information to be communicated among associates and customers within the system.
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Responsiveness
Add step by step instant feedback to alleviate customers’ anxiety.
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Effectiveness
Ensure order delivery quality and correctness.
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Smoothness
Provide smooth transition between the design system and real-world experience.
Our goal is to streamline the curbside pickup process,
resulting in a faster, smoother, and more convenient experience.
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Building on the existing Home Depot app design, we made revisions and added new features.
Brainstorming & Concept Validation
We moved on to the ideation phase where we generated and shared various ideas that addressed these pain points. Once all ideas were presented, we engaged in a thorough discussion to evaluate each one based on our design requirements and usability heuristics. To evaluate our concepts with users and stakeholders, we conducted several concept feedback sessions.
Bulky item processing conveyor belt
Centralized info display in store
Pizza Tracker
CarPlay Connection
Updated User Flow
After carefully considering our design recommendations and the feedback we received, we have decided to merge the "pizza tracker" and CarPlay ideas. We have continued to finalize the user flow into three stages: before arrival, check-in, and order completion.
Storyboarding & Mid-Fi Prototyping
According to the new user flow, I created a storyboard together with a mid-fidelity prototype (View Full Version) to optimize the combination of two platforms (mobile app and CarPlay system). The overall design style is following the existing design system with modifications according to design implications.
Key Takeaways from Feedback Sessions (View Full Analysis)
Customers preferred real-time updates on their orders to feel secure and relaxed.
The Home Depot representatives also emphasized the importance of features that can help improve delivery accuracy.
Customers also preferred the mobile app and CarPlay system for convenience and safety.
Note: Conducted feedback sessions with 5 customers, 3 stakeholders and 3 associates
Usability Testing & Heuristic Evaluation
We conducted rigorous testing of our prototype, seeking validation from both experts and users to ensure that it meets all our design requirements. Concurrently, we dedicated efforts to refining heuristics, aiming to enhance the design's usability and practicality for a wider audience.
Feature description:
This includes details on how curbside pickup works, vehicle recommendations, order-ready time, and more. Users can also set up or modify their delivery method and pickup information both before and after checkout.
Feature: Check-out
Re-design the information hierarchy of the checkout page
Need more information about curbside pickup before checkout
Include more specific bulky item pickup suggestions
Feature: Confirm delivery
Provide order details such as visually-listed pictures, to help confirm the order delivery
We need to include more sustainable rating options
Key Takeaways from Usability Testing (View Full Analysis)
Feature: Checkout
Note: Tested the prototype with 2 customers and 3 experts.
Feature: Pizza Tracker (New)
Feature description:
The progress bar is updated in real-time, providing users with timely notifications on the status of their order. In addition to the progress bar, users can also view the associate's name and photo, allowing them to easily identify the right person when they arrive at their car for curbside pickup.
Users’ quotes:
“It is good to know when to pick up items. This is the most important thing that I care about.“
“It’s always important to understand how curbside work before I go to pick it up.“
Feature: Pickup Notification
Feature description:
Users will receive a “ready for pickup” notification, and they will be able to select multiple orders to pick up at one store. The feature includes a "Bulky Order" reminder and a "Days Left" reminder for each order, helping users stay organized and on top of their pickup schedule.
Users’ quotes:
“I’d like to pick up multiple items at once… you know I am lazy and it is always good to have something that is more convenient.”
Feature: Connect to CarPlay (new)
Feature description:
Once users have entered their vehicle information, they can initiate navigation to the store. With CarPlay, users can access turn-by-turn directions to the store while simultaneously viewing order details. Associates will start preparing the order once the customer is 1 mile away from the store.
Users’ quotes:
“The whole process is smooth.”
Feature: Parking Guide (new) & Check-in
Feature description:
Once users have arrived at the designated curbside parking area, they can easily transition from CarPlay back to the app. The app will guide them through the check-in process, which involves confirming their parking spot.
Users’ quotes:
“I really like that this design will directly guide me to the designated curbside parking area because I always find it hard to find the right place to park.”
Users’ quotes:
“It has a lot of information and that is what I need to know. It is really complete.”
“I trust it.”
Final Deliverables
Building upon the existing Home Depot app design, we meticulously revised and introduced new features while seamlessly integrating the CarPlay system. Every feature underwent thorough modifications in alignment with the design requirements and feedback received from the testing sessions. Our approach ensured that the app not only met its intended goals but also provided an enhanced user experience for all our customers.
Feature: Confirm Delivery (new)
Feature description:
The "Confirmation Code" feature provides a unique barcode with a 4-digit code for users to confirm their orders during pickup. Customers will also be able to see the list of their buying products to help confirm the order delivery.
Feature: Instant Rating (new)
Feature description:
Once users have completed the pickup process, they will have the opportunity to quickly rate their pickup experience by selecting a star rating. Users can also choose to provide additional feedback by filling out a survey.
Users’ quotes:
“It is very likely for me to rate here because it is not an email that is being sent a day or a week later after my purchase.”
Design System
Users’ quotes:
“It is a good way to confirm that you are getting the right thing.”
“It is more flexible than checking IDs.”