Streamlining e-commerce's site navigation to reduce bounce rates by 37% and site conversions by 59%
Solo Web Designer
Alterations by R.C. is a small garment alteration business on the Upper West Side. Two week prior to their grand opening, they reached out to ask for an e-commerce website that would serve both their B2B and B2C customers. Within the limited time frame I, a baby designer, scrabbled to create an MVP that would inform customers of the basics— services and prices.
A month later, we began to see a drop in new customers and site activity had plateaued. Additionally, I noticed that the inbox was filled with customer service requests asking for information already listed on the site. I immediately knew that there was a navigation issue. After confirming my theory with data pulled from the site manager, I proposed the clients to redo the site navigation and architecture.
The result? A refreshed site with scalable UI components and easier navigation that increased site conversions by 7%, reduced bounce rates by 13%, and completely eliminated customer support requests.
By leading the redesign of the navigation system, I decreased site bounce rate 13% and rcompletely reduced customer support inquires related to navigation and business services.
At the time, Alteration’s by R.C. heavily relied on their website as online presence. They did not have socials set up and did not have the budget to do social media marketing. Hence, the site has the go-to place for customers to learn more about the business, it’s services and prices.
However, the current navigation was not helping users find relevant information. The menu hid many of the links and create unnecessary user friction. As a result, users were lost on the homepage and after a while they would leave the site.
Navigation and UI issues translated tangibly in the form of reduced customers. The location of the business was on a busy street and anyone looking for an alteration center nearby could easily miss Alteration’s by R.C. Hence, the importance of online presence.
But, the website with faulty navigation was hindering people from coming in store. Additionally, it was also affecting the business’s ability of creating leads.
A few months after publishing the first site, the clients and I began to notice that nothing was happening. The amount of customers coming into the store had plateaued and the business was not seeing a growth in return customers. Additionally, the business was receiving messages from potential customer asking for information that was already listed on the site.
Taking advantage of the website builder’s tools, I was able to gather information on user behavior, and I learned that 65% of new users remained on the homepage. Of those 65% new users, only 11% became leads.
Additionally, I noticed that many users did not move past the homepage. 43% percent of users dropped off after visiting the homepage.
This eventually translated into customer support requests. Over 50% of messages in site'sibox were related to navigation issues— customers were unable to find information available on other pages.
The main pain point for users was not being able to find relevant information easily which equated into more customer support requests and phone calls asking the staff about pricing and the type of services offered. If these were not clear to customers, customers would not only not come into the store, but would likely lose trust in the business. I had to make this information easy to find and transparent to customers.
For an alterations business, the number of people who book fittings can directly translate into sales. Hence, one of my tasks was to make it easier for customers to book appointments.
Early versions of the site had a three tiered structure for content placement. Most tailoring websites relied on images and videos to convey information about the business to potential customers. I wanted to do the same for Alteration's by R.C.'s website. Including videos and iage about the business's services would help users connect with the business. Another important design choice that I arrived on was to limit the nuner of CTA buttons on the homepage. I did not want to make the users feel pressured.
Two features that I wanted to include in the site were log-in portals for users and localization. The user portal feature would allow user to track and see the progress of their clothes.
The early iterations considered the many possible uses for the site, usig I beyond a simple landing page. I wanted to allow the customers to be part of the alteration process beyond simply dropping off their clothes.
The new site was meant to be interactive and bring customers closer to the business.
The website’s navigation played a big role on the site’s bounce rates. The hamburger menu was not intuitive for users and as a result many of them stayed on the homepage, searching for more information. Although there were buttons that directed customers to other parts of the website, the information on those pages was not relevant.
Because the website did not have many pages, it wasn’t necessary to rely on usability testing and tree card sorting. Instead, I leaned on data gathered via the site manager and mapped out a new navigation system. I quickly noticed that after visiting the homepage, users preferred to visit the prices and services page.
Using this data, I made the navigation menu links visible through a horizontal menu and placed each link in the order of importance. I also moved more relevant information up on the homepage below the hero section.
Lastly I added CTA’s to sections that contained relevant information.
Another problem of the initial site was the UI and colors. The initial site colors were dark and heavy, which created visual heaviness on the site. This heaviness aged the site and dissuaded younger customers from doing business with Alterations by R.C.
To figure out which colors attracted a wider demographics, I conducted A/B testing with an different UI components and different colors.
The simple change of colors (from deep burgundy and gold) to vibrant reds and greens, attracted 20% more customers and 10% younger customers to the store. Additionally, the updated UI comp
The last solution to the redesign had to do with CTA buttons. While the new navigation system will allow users to easily go through each page not he website, the CTAs would help bolster online bookings.
For an alteration’s shop, online bookings for fittings measured not just conversions but also potential sales. Fittings are an essential part to the garment alteration process, however, on the initial site, the CTA for this action was tucked in the top right corner of the homepage. As a result, not many customers were booking fittings.
However, by moving the booking button to the hero section, I was able to increase site conversion and drive sales. Another CTA placement that was important was the view more button. This button was placed in the newly designed section for prices and services.
It was imperative to let users know the types of services the business offered. So, just below the hero section, I created a popular services section which listed out the commonly requested services. If users wished to know more, they could simply View more services. This provided users with two avenues of finding important and relevant information.
As designers, I am sure we’ve all been asked to create an MVP (minimum viable product). As a new designer, I did not take the MVP as seriously as I should have and made a lot of mistakes in the process (like not testing before launch). However, if it were not for those early mistakes, I would have not approached the redesign with the objectivity necessary to critique and push my designs further.
An MVP should solve the problem presented by the clients, but it should also solve problems that the client can’t foresee.
New visuals and navigation menu increases site conversions and sales
After implementing theses changes, the results were immediate.
Bounce rates on the site decreased steadily to a little over 13% decrease in bounce rates in one month and 37% in four months.
The clients and I saw in an increase of site conversions of 59% in six months, and nearly 100% decrease in customer support requests relating to navigation issues.
As designers, I am sure we’ve all been asked to create an MVP (minimum viable product). As a new designer, I did not take the MVP as seriously as I should have and made a lot of mistakes in the process (like not testing before launch). However, if it were not for those early mistakes, I would have not approached the redesign with the objectivity necessary to critique and push my designs further.
An MVP should solve the problem presented by the clients, but it should also solve problems that the client can’t foresee.
