User Accounts
Nextbite, Direct-to-Consumer

User Accounts

User Accounts (MVP) on the Nextbite direct-to-consumer (DTC) platform allows customers to sign up or log in, manage their contact information, save preferred addresses, and view their order history.

As the product designer on this project, I was responsible for designing the user experience and user interface for the web experience on desktop and mobile web. I worked on the DTC team consisting of a PM, engineers, and the lead designer. This work is slated to launch in August 2022.

Problem

DTC was launched in August 2021 and did not manage user accounts at the time. Our analytics showed that we had repeat customers, but we weren’t able to easily track trends for those customers. Also, users would not be able to save their information for the future because the product didn’t offer that capability.

Goals

My goals were to offer a more complete e-commerce experience that would reward returning customers and facilitate a more seamless ordering experience that didn’t impede the food discovery or checkout experiences.

Process

Landscape Analysis

Looking at other compaies in e-commerce, I found that their experiences provided

• Incentive sign up through loyalty (discounts, coupons, free treats or trials)
  
• Eased checkout and discovery with features like saved addresses, contact information, and payments
  
• Displayed a history of orders, some with the option to re-order
  
• Gave the user control over their personal information and preferences

Process

Requirement Gathering

Based on my landscape analysis and knowledge of our business model, these were the first set of features I believed our Accounts should have and would enhance the checkout experience. 

• Sign up/log in experiences
• Profile
  
• Addresses
  
• Order History
  
• Payments
  
• Communication Preferences
  
• Incentives
  

Process

Ideation

I then compiled a list of and sketched wireframes where the current experience, inside and outside our platform, would be impacted to uncover more questions and work through flows. 

Process

Defining Scope & Refining Design

With these assets, I met with the PM and lead engineer to clarify MVP requirements and surface constraints. Our discussions around the designs and technical constraints distinguished what would be essential and reasonable for the MVP versus future developments. From here, I worked with the PM to write a spec based on the designs.

After reviewing the designs with engineers and other designers, I iterated and we quickly moved into development. I paired with engineers on the design, gave feedback on the build of the designs, and thoroughly reviewed the testing environment.

Solution

User Accounts allow users to create an account, manage personal information, and have a more personalized experience. For the MVP, the design consists of these main features: Create an Account/Log in, Order History, Addresses, and Profile.

Create an Account/Log in

Creating entry points for user accounts was a clear requirement for this project. For MVP, the sign up interface wasn't highly customized, but we made sure we offered multiple entry points into the sign up flow.

In future iterations, the product will be able to bring the sign up UX closer to Nextbite's branding and serve as a reminder of account benefits.

Order History

Order History allows users to view the receipt of their orders with statuses, like "In progress" or "Canceled". 

This opens up our product to support re-ordering and reconciliation tools (e.g. cancellations, refunds) in the future.

Addresses

Collecting a user's address is key to our business model, to match users with concepts. Saved Addresses allows users to save their preferred addresses and store their delivery preferences, while skipping the address search step.

Profile

Profile provides users with the tools to manage their account and contact information.

This provides the foundation for future initiatives, like linking accounts and setting communication preferences.

Laying a foundation for future developments

The MVP User Accounts work will see much more potential impact in future initiatives that drive revenue, like saved payments, re-ordering, and loyalty. This work is the beginning and will allow Nextbite to further customize the experience and analyze user behavior.