Cactus Liquor
An online liquor store
Role
UX/UI Designer
Timeline
4 weeks
Tools
Figma, Miro, Canva
Overview
This student project was to create an e-Commerce website of a local liquor store and showcase their products and services while maintaining the brand image: “small shop” appeal and great customer service.
Background
Cactus Liquor is one of two liquor stores located in Marfa, Texas. With a total population of under 2,000 people, Marfa, Texas has a significant international community.
From Mexican mezcal, Japanese sake, to your mainstream staples, Cactus Liquor tries to honor diverse tourist and local communities by carrying inventory from around the globe.
The Challenge
Operating in a tourist town, Cactus Liquor was heavily affected by the pandemic when lock downs were in place. I needed to find a way for Cactus Liquor to be successful even when there wasn't much foot traffic. They needed 1.) a way for customers to be able to experience their unique selection of spirits from the comfort of their home and 2.) increase sales overall.
The Goal
The solution was to provide detailed tasting information from Cactus Liquor through staff recommendations and food and drink packages.
My Process
Research
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User Interviews
Synthesize
Ideate
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Affinity Mapping
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User Personas
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User Flows
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Lo-Fi Sketches
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Site Map
Design
Test
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Hi-Fi Prototype
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Usability Testing
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Redesign
I interviewed 5 individuals with various levels of experience in consuming alcohol and purchasing alcohol at liquor store in order find out what the peaks and pits in the experience of purchasing alcohol are. Also because Marfa is such a small city, I made sure to interview participants living in both small towns and large cities.
The interviews were also used to find out behavioral patterns around consuming and purchasing alcohol, such as motivation and barriers.
Asking the right questions
"I try to buy booze according to my dinner."
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"I love getting a good recommendation (for a drink)."
"I like to eat snacks with a cocktail."
"I really appreciate it when an employee recommends me to their favorite product."
Research
01.
5/5 users enjoy eating when drinking
02.
5/5 users appreciate recommendations at liquor stores
Synthesize
I gathered the qualitative data and grouped them into similar themes. The affinity map below shows the 2 most common trends observed by users who consume and purchase alcohol.
Understanding the problem
Using all the information I gathered during the research phase, I decided to create two user personas that encapsulate the needs, goals, and behaviors of our target users.
Who are our users?
The weekend food vlogger
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The local mixologist
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I decided to create a user flow of how users purchase liquor because I wanted to understand what type of decisions are made when they step foot into a liquor store.
What I found was that when a user doesn't know what they want to buy or when a user doesn't see a product that interests them, receiving recommendations from an employee plays a crucial part of the customers' experience when deciding whether to purchase something or not.
How do users buy liquor?
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Key insights from research
Food & booze are enjoyed together
All of the interview participants mentioned something about eating while drinking. Whether it's snacking on peanuts while sipping their favorite bourbon or ordering a margarita while eating tacos for dinner, everyone agreed that alcohol is best enjoyed with food, and vice versa.
Customers enjoy recommendations from employees
Whether you're at a restaurant looking for a cocktail pairing with your dinner or browsing for a bottle of tequila at your local liquor store, customers value the ability to have a conversation with a knowledgable staff member and receiving a recommendation.
I decided to create a user flow of how users purchase liquor because I wanted to understand what type of decisions are made when they step foot into a liquor store.
What I found was that when a user doesn't know what they want to buy or when a user doesn't see a product that interests them, receiving recommendations from an employee plays a crucial part of the customers' experience when deciding whether to purchase something or not.
How do users buy liquor?
Ideate
Before designing what the website would look like, I wanted to establish the layout of the website so I created a site map. I took inspiration from other liquor store website and organized the primary navigation by the type of alcoholic beverage and the sub-navigation by categories that would help narrow down the user's search for a particular type of spirit or wine.
Laying out the foundation
I looked at other websites for inspiration and created a mood board to help brainstorm what Cactus Liquor would look and feel like. I kept the original color scheme of Cactus Liquor to maintain brand continuity.
Design inspiration
Color Palette
Mood Board
Similar Websites
I created wireframes to layout how Cactus Liquor's website would look like. I wanted to establish the layout, how the user would navigate through the site, and where the products would live.
Sketching ideas
ITERATIONS AFTER TESTING
Improvement 1
Included “Cocktail & Snack Kits” under both 'Spirits' and 'Market.'
A fool proof way for users to be able to find pairing kits in both sections.
Users expected all inventory to be under Market, including the cocktail and snack kits. The phrase 'cocktail kit' didn’t sound like it belongs under Spirits.
Improvement 2
Added a “New Arrivals” section on the homepage with pictures of pairing kits so customers can easily visualize what a pairing kit looks like.
Improvement 3
'Similar Items' and the thumbnails were shifted up to show a preview to indicate that content exists below.
Users didn't know there was content below and were unable to see similar related items.
Final Design
Home Page
1.) New Arrivals and Staff Picks on home page.
2.) Cocktail and Snack Kits located under Spirits and Markets.
Product Page
1.) Detailed description of product.
2.) Food pairing recommendations from Cactus Liquor staff
3.) Images of what's included in Cocktail & Snack Kit
After creating a hi-fi prototype, I usability tested 5 of the original interviewees to test the functionality and ease of navigation of my designs. After testing, three improvements were made to the design.
Usability testing and improvements
Test
By providing tasting packages coupled with detailed pairing recommendations from tasting experts at Cactus Liquor, customers can easily choose which spirits to order and have a locally authentic tasting experience from the comfort of their home.
Conclusion
What's next?
If I had more time, the next step in the process would be expanding the customer base by integrating a delivery system that ships to a larger audience to provide customers with the unique inventory that Cactus Liquor has to offer.
What I learned
I learned that the categorization and the wording is extremely important. For example, I had thought that "Cocktail and Snack Kit" would work under 'Spirits,' but for most users, because the word 'Snack,' they thought it would be under 'Market.' That's why testing is so important to make the correct adjustments to the design.