Ufurnish.com

Research and iterative design of the customer-centric search experience.

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Ufurnish.com

Research and iterative design of the customer-centric search experience.

Return to home page

Ufurnish.com

Research and iterative design of the customer-centric search experience.

The client

Ufurnish.com is a trusted online destination for furniture search and discovery, bringing together the widest range of retailers – from 100+ high street names to smaller independents – all in one place, giving customers the confidence that they’ve found the perfect item.

It is the furniture and furnishings website with the ambition to revolutionise the way people search and discover things for their home.

The challenge

Ufurnish.com have built and designed the MVP platform, and were looking for a partner to take their search experience to the next level, ensuring even greater experience for visitors and increasing returns and subscribers.

They were also looking at the future of the platform, ensuring it's answering and exceeding customer expectations and being designed and built for the future of retail.

Evaluating the as-is experience

In order to understand where the site could be improved, we set about evaluating the as-is experience in detail:

We carried out an expert review of the site focussing on the communication of the proposition, ease of use, effectiveness of search and accessibility. This enabled us to identify some quick usability wins, areas of structural improvement and topics to explore in research.

We ran a research study of 1-to-1 interviews with current and potential Ufurnish customers. Our participants included people with disabilities, as is standard practice for any user research we carry out.

Clarifying the proposition

In the interviews it became clear that the overall proposition of Ufurnish.com was very welcome and perceived as innovative, yet not fully understood. Following the research, we designed and tested a homepage that communicates the core value of the site and the quality and breadth of Ufurnish.com's partners in its entirety.

Clarifying the proposition

In the interviews it became clear that the overall proposition of Ufurnish.com was very welcome and perceived as innovative, yet not fully understood at all times. Following the research, we designed and tested a homepage that communicates the core value of the site and the quality and breadth of Ufurnish.com's partners very well.

Redesigning the search experience

Ufurnish felt that their search experience could better serve the users looking to find the products they needed or get inspiration for their homes.

Our research showed that users needed to fine-tune their search yet did not use filters all that often due to the complexity of the interface and the hidden nature of the filters on mobile.

We designed and tested a new mobile-friendly chip pattern that is more proactive in suggesting filters to use and reorganises the filter groups into a more coherent set of categories. Users readily engaged with the filters after a text search and were able to easily narrow down their results.

Redesigning the search experience

Ufurnish felt that their search experience could better service the users looking to find the products they needed or get inspiration for their homes.

We ran a research study of 1-to-1 interviews with current and potential Ufurnish customers. Research showed that users needed to fine-tune their search, but did not use filters much, possibly due to the overall complexity of the interface.

We designed and usability-tested a new mobile-friendly chip pattern that is more proactive in suggesting filters to use, and reorganised the filter groups into a more coherent set of categories.

Introducing a design system

When you're launching an MVP, you move fast and do what you can to get a product live. Ufurnish.com's reference design materials were quite screen-based, which is good for the first stage of the product but doesn't have enough modularity to enable scaling the platform. We reviewed the site and design files and put in place a clear, responsive and component-based design system.

Introducing a design system

When you're launching an MVP, you move fast to get a product live. Ufurnish.com's reference design materials were quite screen-based, which is good for the first stage of the product but doesn't have enough modularity to enable scaling the platform. We reviewed the site and design files and put in place a clear, responsive and component-based design system.

Designing a future vision

The search project was a great success, and so we have been appointed to continue to help the business with defining the future direction of the product, as well as the narrative around it.

Through a series of future-facing and collaborative workshops, we distilled a set of features and requirements that we then payed back in a very visual and engaging ways for prospective investors to be able to imagine the future.

Designing a future vision

The search project was a great success, and so we have been appointed to continue to help the business with defining the future direction of the product, as well as the narrative around it.

Through a series of future-inspired and collaborative workshops, we distilled a set of features and requirements that we then payed back in a very visual and engaging ways for prospective investors to be able to imagine the future.

"Timelines were met. Feedback was welcomed. There were regular check-ins to ensure that the project was meeting our expectations and any adjustments made to ensure that the final result was not only on time but also in line with our expectations."

Deirdre Mc Gettrick

Co-Founder & CEO, Ufurnish.com

Let’s work together

Drop us a line to see how we might collaborate

Let’s work together

Drop us a line to see how we might collaborate