Curbside
Rapidly-enabled curbside-pickup solution for small and midsize retailers
2020
Challenge: Many small and midsize retailers don’t have the resources, budget, or technology to respond to the rapid changes in the market. Consumers want to shop at their favorite stores, yet expect safe and contactless delivery options.
Solution: Use some of the core functionality of Shopgate’s solutions and tailor them for fast, affordable contactless commerce and fulfillment.
Role: I worked with the Product team to help design the web experience (or the primary Curbside Solution offering) and with the Marketing team to create promotional materials including flyers, sales sheets, infographics and more.
Additional Context
The Curbside solution was a product strategy pivot for Shopgate as it navigated how to effectively operate and align it’s offering during the 2020 Covid pandemic and lockdowns.
The curbside solution functions as a commerce microsite. Customers have the ability to modify the appearance of their site using Shopgate’s web admin widget system and appearance editor. This basic, yet powerful solution provides retailers with the essential functionality necessary for contactless retail—searchable product catalog, curbside fulfillment options, integrated payment, and notifications.
Wireframing & Planning
I worked with the Product team (VP of Product and Senior Product Manager) to help design the curbside solution experience. We were able to adapt our mobile retail app solution to work on the web by restructuring the layout for desktop (plus various technical adjustments out of my purview).
We started by adding detailed wireframes in Balsamiq—outlining necessary changes in the Shopgate merchant admin and requirements for the desktop microsite experience.
Process
Heuristic evaluations
Feature card sorting
Documenting user pain points and proposed solutions for incremental delivery
Competitive analysis
Web Experience
I crafted high fidelity page designs and visual components based off of wireframes and written requirements. I then worked with Product Managers and developers to ensure a consistent implementation, adjusting and refining as needed.
Marketing & Sales
I worked with the Marketing and Design teams to create the campaign materials surrounding the launch of the curbside solution, including a redesigned Shopgate homepage and Curbside solution page.
Since the beginning of 2020, we worked to shift Shopgate’s visual style to a softer, friendlier aesthetic. Launching the curbside solution allowed us to experiment and test visual executions and styles.
Display ad carousel and sales sheet outlining core features and benefits
Final outcomes
A small focused team was able to achieve a lot in a short amount of time—deliver a functional and business-critical product to market during the rockiest time in the pandemic.
We secured 3 clients immediately and provided a lifeline to struggling merchants.
Quote from Joe Macias, Manager, Ecommerce of Monkey Sports, one of Shopgate’s first Curbside customers:
“I would absolutely recommend Shopgate. If somebody came to me and said “Listen, we want to offer curbside today, what can we do to enable that?” I would say ‘Go right to Shopgate. That would be your easiest solution to get to the other side.”