2019

PriceStock

PriceStock is an app that makes online shopping a better experience for everyone by giving users the peace of mind and assurance of purchasing the item at the most affordable rate possible.

Role

Product Designer

Result

Designed an MVP and created a prototype for initial POC.

The Evolution of E-Commerce

Online shopping is growing at a fast rate, data predicts eCommerce sales will increase from 14.1% to 22% by the year 2023. With companies such as Amazon and eBay becoming more prevalent, retailers and producers are expected to rely on eCommerce as their primary portal to reach a larger audience.

The markets will soon be saturated with competition and retailers will need to keep a close look at their pricing structure in order to stay competitive.

My client, Maurice, pitched me the idea of creating an app that would help consumers find the best deals on the market. As someone who frequently shops online, I thought this was a great idea and was excited to get involved.

What We Wanted to Achieve

We want users to be confident that shopping with PriceStock will always deliver you better deals. The initial idea was to target hyper consumers that are already actively looking for deals on what they purchase.

The primary goal was to create a lightweight mobile app that would serve as a shopping companion. Users can simply bookmark items they want to purchase through PriceStock and the system will notify them when the price has changed. PriceStock will also be able to make purchases for them. By setting up auto-purchasing, PriceStock will make sure you buy your items at the best time possible.

My Role

It was my job to design a product and bring Maurice's idea to fruition. Since he's a software engineer, it was easy for us to collaborate and brainstorm on ideas.

I conducted user interviews to better understand the differences in people's shopping habits. Maurice also reached out to his peers to find out about the way they shop online. We combined our notes and I designed a product based on it.

Looking at Competitors

As far as competition goes, the primary player in this field would be Honey. Honey is a browser extension tool that helps consumers discover deals and discounts during checkout. They also have another product, Droplist, that notifies users of price drops on items they specifically saved.

Finding Out How Real People Shop

I asked my close friends and family members questions regarding their online shopping habits for research. My friend's age range from 25-28, so they are comfortable with shopping online. I learned that they usually browse and compare prices with several other retailers first.

Most of the time they can find cheaper options with enough research, but there are instances where they would buy the item immediately if other retailers don't have it in stock or they don't want to go through the hassle of browsing. This gave me validation that there is a need for PriceStock.

On the other hand, my parents are not so well versed with modern technology, but they can navigate their way through amazon's browse and checkout flow. They told me they usually buy directly from amazon, despite the potential to save on other retailers, due to the ease of it. This is a key factor as to why PriceStock should be light and easy-to-use for users who aren't tech-savvy, yet still want to find deals online.

Design Process

Once I had enough information, I started working on the flow layout.  Maurice wanted the look and feel of the platform to be sleek and simple. We iterated until he was comfortable with the direction.

Watchlist

The watchlist screen will act as a home base for users. Here, users are able to add, remove, and keep track of their items price changes.

Automatic Link Detection

There are two ways for users to start using PriceStock; they can copy a link onto the clipboard and PriceStock will automatically detect and embed it, or they can share it directly to PriceStock through their browser.

Users will have the ability to allow PriceStock to make purchases for them automatically. This is done by setting a price parameter on the item and if it reaches it the system will attempt to make the purchase.

Future Plans 

I handed off the designs to Maurice once it was finalized. He continues to work on it on the side today and is planning to release a beta facing app soon.