RESEARCH
What does the AI Chatbot market look like?
We looked at E-commerce widgets and Online Alcohol Widgets to understand how competitors were selling products and making recommendations through a widget.
Redesigning Handoff's on-demand alcohol pickup and delivery widget
Handoff Technologies
July-August 2020
3 sprints
Competitive Analysis, User Research, Mid-fidelity wireframes
Handoff is a Colorado-based on-demand
online alcohol delivery service.
One of Handoff's products is an on-demand alcohol delivery and pickup widget that lives on the websites of alcohol stores and producers. It uses AI chatbot technology to provide users with a personalized experience.
While users appreciated the ability to order quickly and easily from their favorite alcohol stores or producers, they encountered some difficulties using the widget. The location and features inside the widget weren't always meeting customer expectations. Our team explored these expectations and determine:
How might we pick the best location and optimize the format of the widget to better meet user needs?
What does the AI Chatbot market look like?
We looked at E-commerce widgets and Online Alcohol Widgets to understand how competitors were selling products and making recommendations through a widget.
We also spoke with AI experts to learn about the current and future trends of AI chatbot technology.
Key Insights
What are our users' preferences?
We first conducted a survey and user interviews to help us identify potential users of the alcohol purchase and delivery widget.
We then conducted remote interviews with 7 users all between the ages of 21-35, asking them about their alcohol purchasing habits and their impressions of the existing Handoff widget.
Users have strong preferences for local businesses
"I would definitely prefer local, especially since we live in Colorado" Linda
Position of the widget led users to assume it’s a “help” button, not for ordering products
"I think this chatbot is for help, I wouldn’t think to order through it" Shannon
Users are hesitant to interact with chatbots
"My instinct is that this is some chatbox and without knowing more info, I would just skip over it." Ben
Who are we designing for?
From these key research takeaways we developed a user persona that reflected our target audience:
The Craft Beer Enthusiast
Goals
Wants to support small breweries and find an easy way to get their products delivered quickly.
Wants to skip the trip to the liquor store.
Frustrations
If I see a chatbot within a website, I will usually don’t need help so I will always skip over it.
Only finding the same big name brands in the store nearby.
What problem are we solving?
21 to 35 year old drinkers need a clear and simple platform to get the local alcohol brands they enjoy delivered quickly, so that they can support small businesses directly and conveniently.
What design principles should guide our designs?
Our designs should be clear and easy to use; communicating to users in a straightforward way.
Our solutions will look and feel secure and transparent, helping users feel confident about their purchases.
Our users are loyal to their favorite producer, our designs should promote connection between them.
Creating concepts for Janelle
Based on our research findings, we developed 3 categories of concepts for Janelle. We used Candid Cocktails, a Canned Cocktail Producer and Handoff widget partner, as the basis for our mockup website. I specifically focused on the secure and convenient checkout options and the repeat order feature.
We explore different secure payment options, including 3rd-party options.
We removed the chatbot functionality and instead kept the widget as a purchasing tool
We explored different positions for the Handoff widget, placing it on different areas of the screen.
Defining product feasibility
We tested these concepts with 6 users to determine which features brought the most value to users. We then took these features and asked the Handoff team to rank the most-highly rated features from concept testing in terms of feasibility for their development teams
Results of feasibility workshop conducted with client
Mapping out the widget
From this workshop we decided to focus on the features that were most important to users and the most feasible for the Handoff Development team in the short-term. We developed a map for the widget based on these features. This included a first-time and returning user:
First time and returning maps
Top Navigation Integration
Repeat Same Order
Secure Checkout
What did our users think?
We tested our prototype with 5 different users and learned the following:
Positives
Negatives
From our final round of user testing, we prepared a list of future recommendations for the Handoff team:
The widget should be fully integrated
• Users should be able to access the widget through the producer’s website navigation
Move away from chat-based interactions
• Users did not enjoy interacting with chatbots or boxes, they responded more positively when the widget felt like a shopping basket
3rd party payment
• Users vastly preferred payment options powered by large third-party companies (i.e. Apple Pay, Google Pay, etc.)