Good photos are crucial to the success of Etsy sellers. Those luscious photos sold over $1 Billion worth of handmade and vintage goods in 2013 (yes, that’s billion, with a ‘b’).
Currently, most sellers manage their accounts on the browser. That said, mobile is gaining quickly. What if sellers could not only list items, but also edit photos via mobile devices? Progress has been made on iOS, but Android has room for improvement.
As an Android user and recovering Etsy seller, I was curious about the best workflow. The sellers I spoke with spend a lot of time editing photos in Photoshop. Some use the mobile app, but not for new items. They re-list items, have conversations and manage current listings.
Here’s my take on solving the problem from a UX perspective.
Step 1 — Persona: Emily, our persona, is an Etsy power seller. She lists new items weekly and is looking to improve her process so that she spends less time managing her shop and more time making things to sell.
Step 2 — Research: The users I spoke to rely on Etsy sales for much of their income. Speaking to them uncovered that there are two main categories of sellers. 1) Those who make only custom work (low volume, high margin). Custom sellers need to take photos as items are completed and 2) sellers who make custom work, but also sell reproductions of their work (high volume, low margin). Those who sell reproductions of their work don’t take new photos when they re-list items.
Key Takeaways: 1) Sellers list items weekly (more often if possible). 2) Sellers use the mobile app for looking up sale information, re-listing/renewing items and replying to convos. 3) Listing items via the mobile app has challenges. Some users did not know it was available.
Step 3 — Sketches & Prototyping :
Balsamiq wireframes
Step 4 — Proposed Solution: The final step in the process was to build and click through the photo app interface.
