Online Furniture Shopping Research
Exploring user needs during the online furniture shopping experience
My Role
UX Researcher
UX Design Methods
• User survey
• User interview
• Competitive analysis
• Usability testing
Deliverables
• Research Findings and Recommendations slide deck
Problem
Costco’s Furniture Buying Team felt their online category and product pages lacked features that would help users find furniture and drive sales.
Objectives
(1) Understand what users value when looking for furniture online.
(2) Look for trends in the features offered by other retail websites.
(3) Provide recommendations that match user needs and desires.
Research
Research Questions
(1) How do users shop for furniture in-store vs. online?
(2) Where do users look online for furniture?
(3) What information is important to users?
(4) How do users know if the pieces they select fit in their home?
User Survey
To find answers to the research questions, I sent a 5-10 minute online survey to Costco members who had recently purchased furniture from Costco.com. A total of 187 people responded.
User Survey
Usability Testing
Survey respondents answered the questions based on memory recall, so I investigated how perception aligned with actual user behavior. I invited six of the survey respondents to participate in an in-person usability test where I asked them to walk through two tasks:
(1) Look for a sectional that they would consider buying on Costco.com.
(2) Look for a sectional that they would consider buying on another website.
I asked them to talk-aloud about what they were doing as they completed the tasks. After they had finished each task, I asked what they liked and disliked about the experience and whether anything else would have helped them decide to purchase the sectional.
Transforming Research Insights into Recommendations
Over 50% of users surveyed said they normally shop for and purchase furniture in-store, so the following recommendations aimed to provide users with the same kind of information they could obtain from an in-store shopping experience.
Include a variety of high quality furniture images
Our survey asked users what information was most important to them while shopping for furniture. Images was the second most common answer after reviews. During usability testing, more than half of the users engaged with the image carousels on product pages, where they clicked through and commented on pictures.
Users also value particular types of images. In the survey, 58% of users said in-store displays influenced their past furniture purchases, so images of the furniture in a staged environment are important when shopping online. In addition to staged photos, images of the furniture alone and from different angles help give users a full visual overview of the product.
Variety of images from Overstock
Swatch request form from Crate & Barrel
Provide the option to request a swatch
Material and color were two of them most common survey answers when I asked what information is most important while shopping for furniture. Additionally, one third of the usability test participants mentioned the need to request a swatch before making a purchase online because it helps them determine any discrepancies between what they see on the screen and the true material and color. This is especially valuable when shopping online.
Allow users to select more than one filter at a time
Allowing users to select multiple filters at a time from a category page gives them more control over customizing their results. During the usability tests, a participant wished Costco offered this functionality so she could view her search results more efficiently rather than having to set filters one at a time.
Multi-select filter options from Wayfair
Dimensions shown on image from Macy’s
Represent dimensions on images
Users also reported dimensions as important information to know when shopping for furniture. During the usability test, all users navigated to the dimensions breakdown. A third opened a dimensions document associated with the item they were viewing. Images with dimensions help users visualize the size of a piece and determine if it will fit in their home.
End Result
Many of the recommendations I made are now included on Costco.com’s furniture category and product pages. The images below show some of the updated features.
Images show the furniture both staged and alone
Users can now select more filter at a time
Images show dimensions