Helping an overwhelmed bakery
Overview
In April 2020 the UK went into lockdown, and an Tough Mary's Bakehouse chose to offer local delivery to their customers. This sudden change to ways of working along with public panic-buying led to staff burn-out, mistakes being made, and food waste.
I provided a concept that encouraged fair ordering, reduced staff admin, and would ensure the bakery made enough profit without drowning in orders.
Process
To understand what was contributing to the bakery being overwhelmed, I interviewed staff to identify the business goals, read feedback and mapped the user journey to understand user needs, and reviewed website traffic to see how technology affected decisions.
The research unearthed a full list of requirements, but the key issues to solve were:
- Customers missed the experience of visiting the bakery
- A lot of staff time was spent dealing with customer enquiries
- Lots of orders were cancelled and refunded as customers did not follow guidance
Through rounds of card sorting and usability testing, an information architecture was defined to ensure everything was where customers would expect to find it. User personas were also created based on customer feedback and staff insights, guiding the design process to address all identified user needs.
Information architecture definition and testing
The user flow was then mapped out, breaking down the journey into distinct paths such as eligibility checking, product selection, and inquiries. I also undertook a competitor analysis to see how online retailers were communicating any changes in their service due to COVID-19.
Sketches and wireframes were created with a mobile-first approach, given the majority of customers were visiting on mobile devices. One of the biggest challenges was deciding how to convey important policies to the users before they start shopping. These included changes due to Coronavirus, an appeal to encourage fair shopping, and eligibility for delivery.
Sketch wireframes
Rounds of first-click testing and iteration led the designs to a point where finding and buying products is made easy for the user, putting important information about the products and changes to the business up-front. The new proposal puts the user in control and means that the bakery staff receive fewer enquiries, and have more time to fulfil more orders.
Mobile mockups
Desktop mockup
Outcomes
- Concept proved the value of eCommerce to the bakery
“I really like how up-front the changes due to the pandemic are. It helps customers understand what’s changed and solves a lot of issues with delivery, but how the news is delivered to the customer is super friendly, which is what we want we’re all about.” — Bakery owner
“The help section, product filters and allergen information would really help to reduce the amount of calls and emails we’re getting. We’re working flat out as it is, so less enquiries would mean we spend more time fulfilling orders.” — Front of house manager