The Ask
1-800-Flowers, America's largest Floral and Gifts retailer, wanted to expand its reminder service to include premium features that will attract more engagement.
My Role
Product designer - responsible for researching, proposing a solution, and building a mobile version of the MVP solution for the client using the website's established design system.
Research
We looked into two points when conducting user research - What kind of pain point exists with a conventional gift buying experience, and general use cases for reminder tools.
From user research and surveys, we have found out that some of the actionable pain points are shopping around for the right gift, putting effort into gifting for a person or an occasion that is just for formalities, and downright forgetting to prepare a gift before it's too late.
We have also found out that eCommerce-specific reminder tools were not favored over general calendar apps like Google Calendar if the feature offering is similar.
From user research and surveys, we have found out that some of the actionable pain points are shopping around for the right gift, putting effort into gifting for a person or an occasion that is just for formalities, and downright forgetting to prepare a gift before it's too late.
We have also found out that eCommerce-specific reminder tools were not favored over general calendar apps like Google Calendar if the feature offering is similar.
Solution
Create a tool that allows users to easily set up gift giving in advance, with a tool to narrow down great gift options for them to choose from.
Flow map
Rough idea sketch
For Set and Forget, I had to consider various use case scenarios. Within the constraints of time and resources for the MVP version, the three top use edge cases I decided as top priorities were
1. Setting up Set and Forget, and the user chooses a gift
2. Setting up Set and Forget, and the user lets the recipient choose a gift
3. Setting up Set and Forget just for reminder only (decisions on gift and detailed recipient info will be collected later).
1. Setting up Set and Forget, and the user chooses a gift
2. Setting up Set and Forget, and the user lets the recipient choose a gift
3. Setting up Set and Forget just for reminder only (decisions on gift and detailed recipient info will be collected later).
I made an intentional design decision to utilize a card for the lion's share of the flow, instead of redirecting them to a new page. This was so that we make the whole process look as light and streamlined as possible, and give users a sense that this is an easy process that can take place on the same screen.
Choosing an occasion impacts the product selection users will see later, should the user decides to choose gifts themselves. Giving it a custom occasion will show "best selling" as a default product selection.
These product selections, of course, can be changed by users later as well.
These product selections, of course, can be changed by users later as well.
Here, users can decide to choose a gift themselves, let the recipient choose from a range of gift options, or simply set it up as a reminder.
If the user decides to choose the gift themselves, they must enter the mailing address and choose the location type first, as it impacts the range of products available.
If the gift the user chose becomes unavailable, they will be notified immediately via email for them to take appropriate action.
If the user decides to choose the gift themselves, they must enter the mailing address and choose the location type first, as it impacts the range of products available.
If the gift the user chose becomes unavailable, they will be notified immediately via email for them to take appropriate action.
The biggest back and forth I had with the client was what kind of product selection we should present to the users. We have ultimately decided to give them a quick selection of best sellers for each occasion upfront, with the flexibility for users to shop from the full store as an option.
Once the user selects the gift, they must provide the contact info of the recipient, and optionally leave a default note. This default note can be reviewed and changed each time the gift is sent out for this occasion.
Payments will be made through the user's default payment method. If they do not have one set up, they will simply go through the checkout before the gift is sent out.
Payments will be made through the user's default payment method. If they do not have one set up, they will simply go through the checkout before the gift is sent out.
If the user decides that the recipient will get to choose the gift, they will be able to provide a range of prices and product collections for them to choose from.
For reminder only, the user will receive an email two weeks prior to the date of the occasion, and the user can choose to follow through with purchasing a gift.
For reminder only, the user will receive an email two weeks prior to the date of the occasion, and the user can choose to follow through with purchasing a gift.