Redesigned Sunsweet’s website into a responsive, user-friendly platform that boosts online sales and showcases the versatility of their products.
Website
Overview
Sunsweet, the world’s largest brand of dried tree fruits, sought to modernize their outdated website to better connect with health-conscious customers, showcase the versatility of their products, and drive online sales. Their existing website lacked key features such as mobile responsiveness, seamless navigation, and engaging content that tied their products to practical uses like recipes. The shopping experience was also hindered by a third-party checkout tool, which led to high cart abandonment rates.
As the Lead UX Designer and Strategist, I played a critical role in transforming Sunsweet’s website into a dynamic, user-friendly e-commerce platform. My responsibilities included creating wireframes, developing responsive layouts, improving product and recipe pages, and designing an intuitive shopping cart experience. The redesigned site not only enhanced the user journey but also effectively highlighted the health benefits of prunes and the many ways Sunsweet products could be enjoyed, driving significant improvements in user engagement, mobile satisfaction, and online sales.
Increased online sales with a streamlined shopping cart experience.
Boosted engagement with recipe pages showcasing Sunsweet’s product versatility.
Improved user satisfaction with features like recipe printing and quick cart additions.
Sunsweet faced several challenges across different phases of the redesign:
Outdated Navigation: The initial site lacked clarity, making it difficult for users to find products, recipes, or resources.
Non-Responsive Design: The old website was not optimized for mobile devices, leading to a poor experience for mobile users.
Limited Content Integration: Recipes and product benefits were not effectively tied to the shopping experience, limiting user engagement.
Disconnected Shopping Cart: The third-party checkout tool created friction, leading to high cart abandonment rates.
Static Resources: PDF-only resources were inaccessible and hindered organic search performance.
To inform the redesign, we conducted comprehensive research:
User Personas: Identified diverse audiences, including health-conscious snackers, recipe seekers, and gift givers.
Device Analytics: Analyzed traffic to determine how many users were accessing the site on mobile, reinforcing the need for a responsive design.
A/B Testing: Tested the quick-add-to-cart feature on the products page to determine its effectiveness.
Competitive Analysis: Evaluated modern shopping cart processes (e.g., Amazon, Target) to identify user-friendly checkout standards.
Analytics Review: Assessed user drop-offs and conversion paths, focusing on shopping and recipe interactions.
The redesign addressed usability, responsiveness, and shopping functionality while showcasing the versatility of Sunsweet products.
Key improvements included:
Enhanced Navigation: Simplified the menu with categories like Products, Recipes, and What’s New, ensuring users could easily discover new and featured products.
Responsive Design: Delivered a fully responsive website, ensuring a seamless experience across desktops, tablets, and mobile devices.
Recipe Integration: Created a dedicated recipe section highlighting the versatility of Sunsweet products. Recipe detail pages included features like product links for quick cart additions, a print option for users, and vibrant imagery to make browsing enjoyable.
Improved Products Page: Developed filters for product type, price, and features. Introduced a quick-add-to-cart feature, allowing users to add products directly to their cart without leaving the page.
Product Detail Pages: Tied recipes to specific products, enabling users to see how they could incorporate Sunsweet products into their meals.
Streamlined Shopping Cart: Replaced the third-party checkout tool with a custom experience inspired by industry leaders, dramatically reducing drop-off rates.
Searchable Resources: Converted static PDF resources into searchable, interactive content, improving usability and SEO performance.
The redesigned website delivered measurable improvements:
Boosted Online Sales: The streamlined shopping cart experience significantly reduced drop-off rates and increased completed orders.
Higher Engagement: Recipe and product pages saw significant traffic increases, with users exploring new ways to use Sunsweet products.
Improved Discoverability: Transforming PDFs into searchable content blocks increased organic search traffic.
Increased Mobile Satisfaction: The responsive design led to improved user satisfaction across all devices.
Increased Content Engagement: Features like recipe printing and product integration resonated with Sunsweet’s demographic, leading to repeat visits and higher satisfaction.
This project demonstrated the importance of responsive design and connecting content with commerce.
Key takeaways include:
Responsiveness is Essential: A fully responsive design ensured a seamless user experience across devices, improving engagement and satisfaction.
Recipes as a Conversion Driver: Highlighting recipes tied to products inspired users to purchase and explore Sunsweet’s versatility.
Stakeholder Education is Critical: Collaborating with stakeholders who were new to digital web work required clear explanations and teaching moments to build alignment and trust in design decisions.
User-Centric Design Matters: Features like quick-add-to-cart and recipe printing enhanced the experience for both new and returning users.
Streamlined Shopping is Key: A modern checkout experience significantly improved conversions and reduced drop-offs.