Checkout & Purchase Flow Optimization

Our goal with this project was to redesign the checkout experience to improve usability, eliminate friction, and achieve better business outcomes. For consumers, the focus was on creating a checkout process that was seamless, intuitive, and personalized by breaking it into logical steps that matched their behavior.

Our historical analytics revealed a significant drop-off in the add-to-cart conversion rate during checkout. To understand why, we conducted customer interviews and discovered that new customers (especially first timers coming from marketing campaigns) found the our one-page checkout overly long and confusing. They struggled with the lack of clarity about their progress through the process and felt overwhelmed by the mix of what seemed to them like unrelated actions—personalizing orders, entering delivery details, and making payments—all crammed into one page.

For the business, the primary objective was to simplify the journey from product selection to payment (reducing as much friction as possible), boosting conversion rates while also introducing innovative, user-centric features like the "I don’t know the address" option. This not only solved a common gifting pain point but also helped differentiate our experience from competitors. Initially, we aimed for a 7% improvement in conversion rates, but we ultimately achieved an impressive 16% increase.

To achieve these ambitious goals, we reimagined the checkout flow from the ground up.

We went about solving this problem in the following ways:

Step-by-Step Breakdown:

• Transformed a previously lengthy, one-page checkout process into a three-stage flow focused on clarity and relevance.
• The stages were split into Personalization, Delivery, and Payment, matching user behavior and decision-making at each point.

Personalization:

• Enabled users to customize their gifts by adding card messages, toppers, and accessories. This was presented as the first stage, keeping the focus on the emotional intent of gifting.

Delivery:

• Introduced the groundbreaking “I don’t know the address” feature, which allows users to enter the recipient’s name and phone number. This information is privately retrieved by our team, ensuring both convenience and privacy while eliminating potential blockers for users unsure of delivery details.

Payment Optimization:

• Dynamically adjusted payment methods based on the user’s device (e.g., Apple Pay for iOS, Android Pay for Android) and location (e.g., KNET for Kuwait-based users).

Streamlining the User Journey:

• Ensured the navigation between steps felt natural, with clear progress indicators and actionable CTAs throughout.

The redesigned flow significantly impacted both user experience and business performance. We achieved two major zones of success:

Consumer Impact:

• The step-by-step process eliminated the feeling of being overwhelmed by a cluttered checkout page.
• Features like dynamic payment methods and address retrieval gave users the tools to focus on their intent (gifting) instead of logistics, making the process feel tailored to their needs.

Business Results:

• The checkout redesign achieved a nearly 16% increase in add-to-cart conversion rates, far surpassing the original goal of 7%.
• The "I don’t know the address" feature became a standout differentiator, earning positive user feedback and reducing drop-offs by tackling a common gifting pain point.
• Dynamic payment options reduced friction at the payment stage, particularly for mobile users, resulting in higher completion rates.

This project underscores the importance of blending consumer empathy with data-driven design decisions to create a checkout flow that delights users and drives tangible business results.