“Building Trust in Online Fashion: The Art of Reinforcement Communication in the Ajio App”

I implemented a social-proofing feature in the AJIO App

The feature focuses on showcasing clothing on real people, providing style guides, and minimizing expectation mismatches in online shopping.

About AJIO: an Indian fashion and lifestyle e-commerce platform that offers a wide range of fashion and lifestyle products from various categories such as clothing, footwear, accessories, and more.

Assumed user group: Users of AJIO

Assumed user needs: Assurance of authenticity, access to reliable reviews and ratings, trustworthiness of the brand, transparency, fair return policies, and user-generated content.

Solution

Check out the Final Prototype

prototype video

Does my feature has something more to do ?

Well yes ,the feature not only helps on building the trust o make a worth purchase it has the potential to impact several key business metrics.

• User Engagement: The inclusion of user-generated content and influencer posts can increase user engagement, resulting in longer session durations and higher page views.
• Conversion Rate: By providing authentic visuals and positive reviews, the feature enhances product credibility, leading to an improved conversion rate.
• User Retention: The interactive and visually appealing feature encourages users to return to the app for inspiration and recommendations, fostering loyalty and repeat visits.

Critical Decisions

What was the reason to bring up a new feature???👇

I know we all have been their at some point in our lives

When you blindly trusted the model in the product and purchased an outfit😂

Well , we all have been their were you scroll through the website, mesmerized by the perfectly styled model wearing the outfit of your dreams. The fabric looks luxurious, the fit seems flawless, and you can practically hear compliments raining down on you.

Fast forward to the moment your package arrives. Suddenly, your mirror reflects an outfit that looks more like a distant cousin of what you saw online.

“I wanted to bridge the gap between the online representation of a product and how it actually appears when worn by a non-model individual.”

I had multiple ideas to induce a hint of trust in the users , but amongst my ideas I decided to use social-proofing as way to connect with users because I assumed that pictures of the outfit on real people will be more relatable to make a choice of purchase.

Idea 1: Introducing a customer review section

Here as I have observed in other apps as well through secondary research I understood that most of the users scroll down the product page, to see the review section, in order to understand if the product purchased is genuine or worth buying.

Customer review section in other apps

Why I thought that this decision might work ?

Because these customer reviews answers the questions that the users have before buying a product online.

• Can this company be trusted?
• Are current customers happy with it?
• Are there any certification badges/warranties?

Studies show that humans will most often consider other people’s choices to help them assess a situation and come to a definitive conclusion. Buying trends prove to be no different, and people usually depend on the opinions and reviews of others when they think of buying a product online.

Cons

1. Biased or Manipulated Reviews: Sometimes companies post positive reviews by themselves which leads to questioning the credibility of the customer review sections.
2. Lack of Verification: In many cases, there is limited or no verification process to ensure that reviewers have actually purchased or used the product. This can lead to fraudulent or inaccurate reviews that don’t reflect genuine customer experiences.
3. Lack of pictures: Most of the times in the customer review section, we can’t find pictures of how the product looks, its sometimes merely a one liner.
4. Mixed Feelings : Sometimes the product have equal no of positive and negative comments ,this further leaves the users baffled if they can trust the product.

Idea 2: Introducing social proofing by sharing review from influencer and real time users.

Here I decided to introduce a section to users to see, where they can see pictures posted by influencer and real-users on how they have styled this product.

Why I thought that this decision might work ?

• The idea is to combine realistic reviews, product images featuring real people, and influencer-endorsed styling.
• This combination aims to inspire users to make trustworthy decisions.
• Users often suspect that influencer-curated posts are biased due to potential sponsorships.
• Relying solely on user-generated content makes it difficult to trust anonymous comments about product quality, leading users to look for more comments and potentially causing confusion.

Assumptions I made

• Potential buyers will be interested in viewing reviews and pictures shared by other customers.
• Users will be intrigued to observe how influencers style outfits and seek their reviews.
• Users will explore this section to browse through posts from influencers and potential buyers.
• These images and ratings will assist other potential buyers in making informed purchasing decisions.

How multiple iteration helped me !!!

In this section, I will discuss the critical design decisions I made while working on this project that involved creating multiple iterations.

Iteration-1

Initial Idea — I would like to add a section right after the product details that is easily noticeable. This section should visually convey that these are pictures shared by potential buyers and influencers, and there is a lot more happening.

Pros:

Blending well with the existing interface:

• The section seamlessly integrates with the existing interface, ensuring a smooth user experience.
• Users can navigate through the content without disruptions or inconsistencies.
• The design and layout of the section align with the overall interface, maintaining visual harmony.

Effective CTA button:

• The Call-to-Action (CTA) button serves its intended purpose efficiently.
• Clicking on the button allows users to access additional posts for viewing.
• The CTA button has a clear label that communicates the action users can take.

Cons :

Cons identified in Iteration1

From the limitations and cons of the first iteration I was able to come up with the second iteration card .

Iteration -2

Idea to Begin-

Clear Heading: As it creates a concise and compelling heading that captures the essence of your product or feature. It should communicate the main benefit or purpose clearly to users.

Informative Subheading: Add a subheading that provides more context and emphasizes the importance of images in conveying the product’s impact. This subheading can support the heading and help users grasp the concept quickly.

Prominent Image Placement: Using images strategically throughout the feature to highlight the product’s appearance on real people.

Pros of iteration 2

What went wrong👎

cons of iteration2

Pointers for moving forward

1. Impactful Heading:

• Choose a concise and clear heading that communicates the purpose or key message of the feature.

2. Consistent Iconography:

• Select icons that align with your interface’s existing design style and maintain visual consistency.
• Ensure the icons represent their intended actions or functions clearly to minimize confusion.

Iteration 3- Final Version

After keeping in mind what worked and what didn’t work in the previous two iteration, I was able to come up the 3rd iteration .The previous iterations have helped me in bring together this section which is much more user relatable than the previous version.

Breaking down the components:

component breakdown

component breakdown

How my usability testing went :

So since this was 48hour hackathon, I didn’t have enough time to look for a potential users and gather few insights ,indeed I utilized the time to check my competitors ,social media apps and devilled into secondary research to gather insights.

I was quite not sure how the usability testing might go, but all I had in mind is let them think loud about what they understand from the screen.

I interviewed people from gen-z , since it was around 2am when i was done with UI design, I couldn’t find users from all age group and proceeded with the people available at that time.

Test goals:

1. Would users understand the newly introduced UI section.
2. Will they be interested to interact with section and explore.
3. Are they aware about actions that needs to be performed.

The outcome of my usability testing’s are :

The users thought that section was a result based on their search history.

They didn’t understand if the posted is content video or a set of images.

They didn’t understand if the heart icon was for wish listing or liking the post.

Required few hints to understand the idea why this section was introduced.

Changes done after Usability testing:

usability testing changes

usability testing changes

usability testing changes

So how did all this started ???

If you are clueless about how all this started or why did even built this feature ? why I chose this problem statement and what not ?.

Let me help you out and take you through the process ….

Recently I took part in this challenge which was organized in the UXM community where I worked on a project to introduce “Reinforcement Communication to Increase Credibility of Products”- their was no any intentions behind why this problem statement but since my group member where quite quick is choosing one, I choose what was kinda left😂.

It was a 48hr challenge where I built UI based on my assumptions, tested it with the users, worked on the feedback, and finalized the Design. The Aim was to deliver an MVP (minimum viable product) by the end of 48 hrs.

About the problem statement

AJIO: AJIO is a popular e-commerce app in India that offers a wide range of fashion and lifestyle products for men, women, and kids. It is known for its curated collection of trendy and stylish clothing, footwear, accessories, and home décor items.

To get more clarity on my project and to move forward I used chat GPT and created a brief for myself. It helped me structure my thoughts on the feature quickly.

What’s missing in the present interface ?

With the idea of building credibility in mind, before making as ideas or research I wanted to understand ,why should I even build a design that improves credibility ???

Is AJIO really missing the essence of credibility in its interface ?

Well the answer is Yes !!! and here’s why ?

Lets look into the existing interface:

existing interface

1. Lack of Specificity: The generic statements like “18 Million Happy Customers” do not provide specific information about individual products. Customers may question the authenticity of these claims without concrete evidence or details regarding customer satisfaction.
2. Absence of Detailed Feedback: Without specific customer reviews or testimonials, users are unable to gauge the experiences of others who have purchased the same product. Detailed feedback is crucial for users to assess the product’s quality, performance, and suitability for their needs.
3. Limited Transparency: The lack of detailed information and customer reviews can raise concerns about transparency. Users may find it difficult to trust the platform if they cannot access authentic and specific feedback from other buyers.
4. Inability to Make Informed Decisions: Without specific product reviews, customers may feel uncertain about the quality and performance of the item they intend to purchase. This can lead to hesitation and potentially discourage them from making a confident buying decision.
5. Lack of Differentiation: The repetitive nature of the statements across all products diminishes their impact. Customers may perceive these claims as generic marketing tactics rather than meaningful indicators of product quality or customer satisfaction.

Secondary Research

In the allocated time I tried to understand how the trust has been built among the users while shopping online. This research helped me in understanding how much users rely on secondary research.

Insights gathered:

In today’s web-based world, virtually everyone is reading online reviews. In fact, 91% of the people read them and 84% trust them as much as they would a personal recommendation. The effects of reviews are measurable, too.

Research shows that social proof is vital to growing any brand, with 92% of users trusting a recommendation from someone they know, like a friend or family member, 70% believing what they see in online reviews, and 40% trusting paid ads.

Social Proof and Influencer Marketing: Present the effectiveness of social proof and influencer collaborations in reinforcing credibility, showcasing real user experiences and influencer recommendations.

Studies show that 61% of online shoppers abandon their shopping carts, without making a purchase, for many different reasons.

So from all the above it was very clear to me that the online audience want a trust and transparency to make a purchase.

Also ChatGpt was extensively used in breaking down the problem statemet to understand it deeper,also i was used in understanding the usecases for building solutions.

Wireframes

I tried to sketch my initial idea on paper ,just to get the nutshell to understand how to design will come together.

paper wireframe

Hi-Fi prototyping

To save time, I utilized existing interface patterns and components for the prototype instead of starting from scratch. I followed AJIO’s design language and adapted it for new components. By leveraging the existing style guide, I efficiently created a prototype to test the solution.

hi-fi wireframe

Future Scope

Though conducting testing and secondary research provided valuable insights, obtaining additional insights from diverse age groups and visually analyzing their online product browsing behavior would have yielded even more valuable and nuanced findings.

I would like to explore more about the following factors:

1. Decision-making process: Understanding how users make decisions, beyond relying solely on customer reviews.
2. Product evaluation: Identifying specific elements that users consider when assessing a product, such as quality, features, pricing, and brand reputation.
3. Size guide comprehension: Investigating how users interpret and utilize size guides to ensure proper fit.
4. Influencer endorsements: Exploring the influence of influencers on users’ purchasing decisions and their experiences with products promoted by influencers.
5. Previous shopping experiences: Gathering insights into users’ past online shopping experiences, including positive and negative aspects.
6. Inconveniences faced: Identifying common challenges or inconveniences users encounter during the online shopping process, such as payment issues, delivery problems, or customer service concerns.

Learnings:

• Working under time constraints revealed the need for efficiently use available resource.
• Understanding the non-linear nature of design processes emphasized the importance of flexibility and adaptability.
• Limited resources lead to finding creative solutions and prioritizing tasks effectively.
• Leveraging ChatGPT showcased the power of AI in gathering diverse insights quickly and efficiently.

These learnings will influence my future approaches to problem-solving and decision-making, optimizing productivity and resource usability.

Special Mention

Thanks to my mentor Anudeep Ayyagari and my team members for the support.❤