The Context
July 2022. GPC Asia Pacific, the largest automotive aftermarket parts supplier in Australia and New Zealand, wanted to improve the user experience of their e-commerce platform. The project focused on redesigning the website and identifying opportunities to improve the customer experience to enhance the commercial value of the website. The goals were to increase conversion, and sales online and support omni-channel shopping.
The Problem
GPC sought to shift gears from trend-chasing and data dependence to user-focused research. This marked its first foray into formally studying online automotive parts buying behaviour. The company aimed to improve usability and meet customer needs, not just follow market trends.
The Design Process
Repco's e-commerce platform got a makeover utilising human-centred design. We engaged in customer research, synthesised solutions, built prototypes, and tested usability. This approach aimed to improve online shopping for customers, blending research insights with creative problem-solving.
Research
One-on-one interviews uncovered Repco's customer landscape. Personas emerged from these interviews, allowing us to create detailed customer archetypes. The current journey was mapped, highlighting frustrations, delights, and opportunities for improvement. From that, we envisioned what the future might look like with ideal experiences. This dual view showed gaps that Repco could bridge, showcasing opportunities to improve customer experiences.
Additionally, workshops with Repco stakeholders revealed crucial insights. We aligned the customer journey with their business objectives and how their website integrated into their overarching strategy. These workshops also provided clarity on the site's technological requirements and constraints.
Design
As part of the website redesign, we created a new design system in Figma, for mobile and desktop. We designed the components to meet the W3C WCAG accessibility standards.
We relied on the user research conducted prior and industry best practices to inform the UI design for the enhanced website. Using the new design system helped speed up the work. We worked with the Repco Tech and Project teams and involved them in regular showcases. This created a feedback loop that helped iterate the designs and ensured they met the team's criteria. The design system was a key tool for communicating with the dev team during the build.
Validation
We recruited more Repco customers to test a Figma mobile prototype, which validated our e-commerce solutions. Usability sessions focused on core flows like cart additions and checkout. The designs improved customer experience, as shown by our NPS score taken during the testing. They also revealed minor areas for improvement that gave us direction for our next steps.
Delivery
Repco's enhanced user experience emerged from a collaborative process. Our team explored technical and business aspects with the client. We then documented the design interactions and intent behind the enhanced designs. We showed component variations. We mapped their use and gave reasons for choosing some elements over others.
This approach empowered Repco's developers. It gave them a strong framework for system behaviour in diverse scenarios. Our design followed the limits of their old tech stack. It also showed what could be achieved once they moved to a new platform. It ensured feasibility without compromising our vision.
The result: a seamless, user-centric interface born from collaborative innovation and meticulous planning.
Outcome
“For the last 18 months, our collaboration with Nomat has focused on enhancing the user experience across our eCommerce platforms. A central aspect of this effort involved crafting a unified design system for our various brands. As a result, we now have a robust design system that not only supports our development team but also enhances the overall user experience for our customers. Nomat has worked seamlessly across our brands in a flexible and collaborative manner.”
Jason Potts – GM Digital Technology GPC Asia Pacific