The Challenge
This Case Study is about optimizing the conversion rate of the ASOS App. I’ll propose the necessary changes and/or improvements to enhance users engagement.
1. Objectives
The questions one should ask when looking for an e-commerce App to optimize are: How does the App help us achieve our business goals? What is the relationship between our users and the brand? We need to increase the business potential by making sure that users are finding value in our offer.
2. Working Methodology
– Conduct in-depth research to obtain quantitative and qualitative information on the brand and users (Research).
– Analyze the information to extract strengths and pain points, prioritizing them.
– Empathize with users to obtain findings and insights that will lead to actionable strategies and solutions. We will enhance the strengths of the App and soften as much as possible the pain points found.
– To evaluate the users’ commitment. We would need to monitor user participation (Netnography) and extract the customer engagement index (CEI) in order to create interaction strategies.
– To translate into wireframes the changes and improvements to be applied in the App, based on research.
3. Research
3.1 Obtaining quantitative and qualitative brand and user information
First of all, I look for basic information about the ASOS brand on Google. I find this description: “Asos.com is the UK’s largest independent online retailer of fashion and beauty products. In just over a decade it has become the world leader in British online beauty.” (Beruby.com)
On trustpilot’s website there are 5,891 opinions about ASOS.com. Of which:
● Excellent: 28 %
● Very good: 9 %
● Good: 4 %
● Bad: 7 %
● Very bad: 52 %
We will now analyze opinions from marketing4ecommerce’s website. We obtain more quantitative data on ratings and opinions:
● Endnote: 7.4
● Prices: 7.5
● Catalog diversity: 7.4
● Confidence: 7.9
● Short delivery times: 7
● Low shipping costs: 7
That’s how they describe ASOS:
“The ASOS online store is one of the most popular online fashion stores globally, second only to HM, and just ahead of another giant like Zara. The ecommerce of this British company sells all over the world and has a personalized web and app for Spain”
“HM, ASOS and Zara, the Top 3 of the world’s most visited fashion ecommerce (2018)”
“ASOS is a clothing and accessories store with a well-functioning ecommerce. The site is fast, functional, allows you to buy from mobile devices and offers several options. Therefore, and obviating the lack of a phone to contact, it is an ecommerce recommended for fashion”
Let’s go back in time to look for user information in a forum that was already talking about ASOS in 2008. It is https://moda.enfemenino.com. We get morespeech saturation that we will also evaluate in the next section.
Comments in Play Store and App Store:
– No returns management via the App. Takes you to the web.
– From the App you can’t claim or ask if there have been problems. Redirection to the web.
– Wide variety of products, updated and fashionable.
– Clothing recommendations are right.
– Complaints about lack of stock.
– Sometimes the products do not match the photos.
– Student who tries to apply discount by code sending what they were asked for but does not receive anything. She feels cheated.
– All kinds of sizes.
– Since UPS is used as a means of delivery there is no location and no delivery schedule.
– They charged for premier service without notice that it is not available in their area.
– Problems accessing the account with Facebook, Google.
– Free returns.
– Big price increase (from 19 to 30 euros) of the premium shipment.
– It has become too expensive.
– Does not warn when a product is available again.
– Problems in the Canary Islands for returns.
– Refunds are really slow.
-Missing an option to filter by favorite brands.
3.2 Installing and collecting comments and ratings on the App (iOS and Android)
We proceed to install the App from the Play Store (Android) and from the App Store (iOS).
● Installation: locating the App is easy. When I type ASOS I get the following results: asos, asos españa, asos moda, asos gratis, asos marketplace.
asos: leads directly to the ASOS installation page.
asos españa: direct match with the ASOS App.
asos moda: direct match with the ASOS App.
asos gratis: direct match with the ASOS App
asos marketplace: direct match with the ASOS App.
● Official description, rating and user comments: The first thing they mention is the 850 international brands they handle. They mention the synchronization of articles between devices.
To enter the credit card data they allow you to scan it with the camera (card scanner).
They talk about the use of social networks (WhatsApp, Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, Google+ or email) to recommend clothes.
They have catwalk videos in which a model wears the clothes for sale.
The App score is 4.7 out of 5, with 225,000 ratings and over 10 million downloads.
3.3 Analyzing the information obtained to extract strengths and pain points
After a research work of several hundreds of opinions, one can see in the negative opinions a saturation of the discourse regarding the bad customer service and the problems of shipping outside Europe. However, the mood of many negative opinions seems unreasonable.
The main pain point that is repeated is related to variations in carving (England – Spain). We also see a repetition pattern in which the product delivered does not exactly match the one shown in ASOS. Otherwise, most users of this forum recommend buying from ASOS.
Compliments:
• Effective filters and simple and fast purchasing process.
• Reliability of the products with regards to the photos.
• Free shipping costs are highly valued. Variety of clothing. Good quality of clothes. Variety of sizes and styles.
• Fast stock replacement.
• Premium 1-day delivery option well appreciated.
• Variety of sizes for all types of people.
• Repeated opinions in which they consider it the best online store they have ever tried.
Pain points:
• Problems with your delivery man (UPS and/or DHL) and the management ASOS made to solve it.
• Too long a period of time to return the money (10-15 days).
• Problems to contact them.
• Bad customer service, apparently via Twitter.
• Free shipping takes too long (almost a month in Latin America).
• Problems with order tracking, especially outside Europe.
• They don’t send it home directly.
• When you go to make the purchase there is no more stock left.
Findings:
• The brand name is well positioned and does not generate confusion or collide with other brands.
• The language is straightforward and oriented to young people, with expressions such as “trends in”.
• The synchronization improves the commitment with the user, facilitating purchases.
• The card scan aims to make the process of introducing sensitive data not a pain point. It also denotes an interest in being on the cutting edge of technology.
• Open use of social networks. This is another indicator that the ASOS target is mainly young people active in social networks.
• Video Walkthroughs: Talking to colleagues, I have confirmed that the use of video walkthroughs is something that differentiates ASOS from the competition and shows a clear intention to innovate.
• Another point of distinction is the enormous number of countries to which they are able to send products (242 countries).
• Their intention for improvement, innovation and user commitment is evidenced by their willingness to be open to suggestions. Also by offering the participation of customers as beta testers.
3.4 Creating user people to help us empathize
Alba and David will help us to put ourselves in the shoes of ASOS users.
3.5 Analyzing users’ commitment
In our case, we do not have access to ASOS usage data (how and for how long your users are in the application). We then rely on four basic assumptions that help increase user engagement. They are these:
a) Easy incorporation: this is the first interaction of the user with the application. We are primarily talking about the user registration process. An effective incorporation can increase the value of the user’s lifetime up to 500%.
b) Application surveys: especially useful for users with a low level of participation. We want to know the reason for your low participation. Do you have technical problems with the App? Do you find it difficult to use? Have you not found the value proposed by ASOS?
c) Building a communication channel: returning to segmentation, we are now focusing on users with a certain degree of commitment. We created a communication channel that connects people with the same interests and who want to share experiences.
d) Keep users close: announce new features and improvements regularly, keeping users always active and up to date. We can also involve them in testing new features of the App.
We will increase user engagement if we get them to develop a habit using the ASOS App. When they want to buy clothes online, they don’t think about “an e-commerce of clothes” but about ASOS. We need to avoid distractions and search for alternatives, controlling their attention (to monetize it) and making users get used to ASOS and not have to decide.
The commitment comes when users choose ASOS. We must give them value in return for their trust and ensure that this value is enough for them. If it is not enough they will disconnect. However, if the value is sufficient (and immediate), they will enter the activation phase. Users don’t want to waste time, they want to try a value test that corresponds to what was promised. If it does not correspond to their expectations, they will leave ASOS.
We also have to be careful with the intensity of attention and cognitive effort that we request from users. It is not by chance that the first of the four basic hypotheses mentioned above speaks of “Easy incorporation”. We need ASOS to have an interface that requires minimum effort and attention to use, as well as good learning in the activation phase. A good product should be easy to use in order to create commitment or desire to use it.
The user experience has to be designed to fit, verifying progress independently for the different user profiles (more or less active). We will test different mechanisms that will inform users of their successes and progress in ASOS, unlocking exclusive features such as offers, possibility to influence other users, etc.
The value/effort ratio should increase over time, never decrease. Motivation and emotion are necessary to create an attractive product. ASOS users will not invest in the functional part of the App, but in the emotion that the product offers them. If the App is complicated users feel stress and get bored.
Any action we want for our business must correspond with an action that moves users.
3.6 Information sources consulted
https://es.trustpilot.com
https://marketing4ecommerce.net/
https://moda.enfemenino.com
Play Store
App Store
4. Ideas / Proposals
4.1. Improvements in user engagement:
a) Onboarding in ASOS is efficient and simple by using the usual login methods. These are: Facebook, Google, Twitter or email. However, there is room for improvement in communicating the value of the product as soon as possible. We propose to show a screen when the user logs in for the first time. This screen will clearly communicate the value and benefits that ASOS will bring to the user and how it will solve their problems.
b) We will display integrated messages (surveys) within the same application with specific questions for the lower participation segment, to obtain service improvement guidelines. They will be shown at those points where the user usually leaves the App without interacting or buying.
c) We will build a communication channel within the App. This will definitely increase user engagement, which is our main goal. We are going to do it by integrating a Slack community into the App. Users will finally have an official site where they can find very recent opinions from other users, recommendations of clothes and offers and discounts in real time, while they socialize with the ASOS community. Finally, we will create a direct channel to contact customer service that is active most of the time and offer us real solutions to our problems from there. In our research it was clear that Twitter is not the right tool to manage customer service. Without a doubt, this is the biggest pain point we have found. If we properly integrate the new community into ASOS, we will solve users’ problems much faster and they won’t have to leave our App looking for help.
d) In the time that we have been ASOS users we have witnessed the frequent updating of offers and stock replenishment. This is an adequate frequency.
4.2. Other applicable improvements:
After extensive research based on observation, intuition, introspection and deduction, it has been confirmed that the target is eminently young (18 – 30 years, see user personas). Based on this target, a series of applicable improvements are proposed, as a complement to those described in the previous section. These are as follows:
Apply gamification on certain (exclusive) online products on promotion, to obtain discounts.
Offer products that other users like you (in other countries) are buying right now. If you add them to the cart now, you get a discount and it gives you access to chat with the person who just bought that product in another country. As long as both of you have accepted this point in the terms of use.
4.3 Interface problems in ASOS:
The App takes you too often to the web version, for example when you use the button to see the “Free Shipping and Return” options or in the banner in the lower zone “-10% for being a student”. This gives the impression of an unfinished or poorly integrated App. This information should be displayed in the App.
5. Design / Wirefames
6. Conclusion
This proposal was something marked for the future in the company’s roadmap and my collaboration ended before being considered for development. For this reason I do not know the results. Even so, this Case Study demonstrates that any App or project, no matter how mature it is, can always be improved. The process of improving and evolving any digital product never ends. That’s why the tasks of a UX/UI designer are always an iterative process. We as UX designers must understand the real needs of its users to adapt to them as efficiently as possible.