My Process

Problem Discovery — User Experience — UI Design

Paddle8 is a premier online marketplace for collectors, presenting auctions for art, design, and objects.

PROBLEM DISCOVERY

With art gallery and collection bidders, it is common to find them keen to specific types of art. Usually bidders from galleries are looking to fill their exhibit with a specific theme in mind, while collectors look to fill their homes with similar artwork, often by color or lifestyle. In order to find work that these bidders prefer, there needs to be a way to personalize their search, discovery, and bidding experience.

In response to this problem, this study showcases the research and development that was taken to build an experience on the app that would give bidders a more personalized browsing experience.

Top Challenges

Below are some design challenges face when approaching this project with some high-level questions we used to brainstorm possible solutions.

Using Localization

• How can users see work in their currency?
• How can users see work nearby?

Utilizing Personalization

• How can a user see work they’re interested in?
• How can a user filter down work by specific criteria?
• How can a user see content for them if they aren’t registered?

PCI Compliance

• How can we ensure that the people bidding on work are who they say they are?
• How can we protect our bidders from sign up?

Asset Sourcing

• How can we design with photography that comes from all sources?

Competitive Analysis

Since Paddle8 has a very unique business model, competitors in their space are mostly behind in this category. In order to draw potential solutions, we needed to research outside of the box. We looked at competitors and eCommerce apps that do well in this category.

We found a few key takeaways from our research

• Most competitors are not requesting personalization outside of location and notification enabling
• Those who are force users through personalization process in order to browse the app
• There can be an added layer of communication to help users when searching
• Filtering systems are multi-layered and robust
• Large buttons and clear differences in categories help guide the user

User Experience

User Flows

It was imperative to spend time on nailing a user flow that could include every aspect of personalization without bombarding the user with too many steps at once.

Wireframing

We started wireframing potential solutions for an Onboarding and Homepage

UI DESIGN