Carlingo.com

Redesign and conversion optimization.

Role: UX Designer, UI Designer, User Research, User Testing

Tools: Axure, Sketch, Illustrator

CarLingo.com is a start-up based in Atlanta, GA. Their business model is based on revolutionizing the car buying process. They want to help consumers through all the steps from choosing the right vehicle to negotiating with the dealership.

 

Discovery

 

My research began with analyzing the existing website and brand. I looked at the goal and value of the service and how it was communicated to the customer. I identified the core elements of the CarLingo brand to be used throughout the design process.

The current website was getting traffic but there was a low rate of conversion. To find out where the drop-off points were, my team looked at the Google analytics and identified where customers were exiting the site. The data demonstrated that many customers are leaving at the Home page, and 76% of visitors leave before reaching the Price page or the prompt for email sign up.

 

The Project Goals: Boost Registration, Increase Conversion Rate, Improve Number of Cars Saved, Improve Number of Deals, Decrease Bounce Rate

 

Challenges: Messaging is Not Consistent, Process is Not Clear, Users Don't Know What To Do Next, Sign Up Option Comes Late in the Process, Sign Up Form is Confusing, New Brand – Lack of Trust, Cannot Delete Account, Need Access to Phone Number

 

Solutions: Communicate Value of Service on Home Page, Communicate Process in Multiple Places, Home Page, "How It Works" Page, Dashboard, Communicate Next Steps Along the Way, Add Sign Up Options Earlier in Process, Change Form to Ask for Email Address Only, Explain Benefits of Signing Up

Brand and gaps 

CarLingo is a new company and doesn't have a history with their customer, which was one of their core problems with customers leaving the website. I researched ways to create a sense of trust with their web presence and communicate the brand goals. 

First I identified what people were saying when they went to the website and then compared this with what the brand wants people to think.

I saw that the use of language was a way CarLingo could communicate what they are and the service they offer. I created a chart of user needs, the gaps in the current site and how the new site would fill these gaps.

Competitive and comparative

Using online and in-person surveys to understand our demographic, I looked for patterns in car buying. 

87% of the people surveyed said they used online research for car buying.  To understand the market and competition I did analysis of the most popular car shopping and research websites. 

I looked at functions of the other websites and how they communicated trust with their brand. 


 
 

Persona development

Using the survey results and in-person interviews I developed three personas to represent the users' needs and provide a context for the user journey. The personas all have different backgrounds and represented different pain points our users had. I enjoy creating the narrative for the user so that I can connect and understand their unique needs to the product and service. 

The personas were the Planner, the Seasoned Buyer and the Urgent Buyer. The question was how to meet all of their needs through the CarLingo process. 

 

User Journey

I decided to focus my user flow on Amy the Urgent Buyer. It is much easier to buy a car when you have lots of time to research, but when it needs to be a quick process it can get very stressful.

Amy was new to car buying and I wanted to design the flow for any kind of car buying background. 

I identified opportunities where CarLingo could communicate the value of the service and brand within the journey. 

 

Wireframes

Using AxureI created a clickable prototype the showed how Amy will move through the site. The prototype was tested and iterated on to improve the interactions. 

 

Result

This project brought me into the start-up world and I learned a lot about shopping online for a car. 

The final deliverable was a fully interactive prototype that showed the new design and task flows. After testing the prototype my team presented the work to the stakeholders.

 




 

New Design


 

Old Design