Designing a Complex Commerce Experience

Problem Statement

The existing buying process for hardware and software within Cisco’s Commerce Workspace (CCW) is complex and time-consuming. This is due to significant challenges in usability, configuration complexity, and navigation which makes it difficult for users to quickly and efficiently purchase the products they need.

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  • My Role

    Product Designer

    Visual Designer

    Research Assistant

  • Platform

    Desktop Application

User Story

Meet Jordan, a partner at a tech firm who uses Cisco’s Commerce Workspace (CCW) to configure and purchase enterprise hardware and software solutions for his customers. Jordan often finds the process overwhelming as he struggles with complex configurations and navigation.

CCW Configure Screen

Research Session

I collaborated with the User Research Lead and conducted an in-depth analysis of partner interactions within Cisco Commerce Worskpace (CCW). To better understand partner pain points we interviewed 21 partners including roles like Account Managers, Sales Engineers, and Solution Architects.

Key Findings

  • Complex Configuration: Users found the configuration process overwhelming and confusing. There were issues with findability and information architecture flow.

  • Lack of Guidance: The system assumes a high level of partner expertise. There was insufficient guidance and support during the purchasing process.

  • Time-Consuming: The process was lengthy, causing delays in deployment.

  • Limited View: Users had a limited view of selected offers and lacked a summary of all items.

Example of a complex configuration.

This solution is a breakdown of a single product offer with 28 configurations.

Design Process

I created wireframes for a streamlined guided configuration process and developed high-fidelity prototypes to review with stakeholders. Visuals illustrated the design evolution, focusing on guided navigation for single and multiple offers.

Wireframes and Testing

Initial wireframes focused on creating a guided navigation system for single and multiple offers. I prioritized the required configurations after analyzing the all the details for the configuration. I also included an alternative summary view on every screen that would accommodate for multiple solutions (a common scenario for partners based on our research).

Multiple rounds of testing between partners and stakeholder reviews were conducted to gather feedback on the new design. Partners appreciated the streamlined process and provided insights that led to further refinements, such as enhancing the summary view and improving the search functionality.

Impact

Design Improvements

The final design featured a guided 4-step process that significantly reduced the complexity of product configurations and purchase flows.

  • Guided Navigation: Introduced a step-by-step configuration for both single and multiple offers to help users understand where they are in the process.

  • Prioritized Configurations: Priority was given to required configurations to increase speed and efficiency..

  • Enhanced Search and Categories: Allowing easy findability of hardware and software solutions..

  • Summary View: Displaying all configured items and their connected offers on every screen for constant price awareness.

Results

  • Reduction in Configuration Time: Changes reduced the experience from 28 unstructured touch points to a guided 4-step process, showing a clear improvement in efficiency.

  • Increased Usability: Users found the new design intuitive and easy to understand. Some even mentioned that its simplicity might challenge their role as the go-to expert.

Guided Navigation, Prioritized Configurations and Summary View

Enhanced Search and Categories

Lessons Learned

The redesign of the CCW system resulted in a more intuitive and efficient configuration process, significantly improving partner satisfaction and reducing complexity. This process came with more lessons that could be applied for future projects.

Lesson 1

I learned the importance of user feedback in driving design decisions and the value of a guided process in simplifying complex tasks. Challenges were overcome through close collaboration with users and stakeholders, leading to validated and impactful design solutions.

Lesson 2

Over the years, partners and customers can become comfortable with complex processes until they are introduced to a new way of working. They may not complain because it is their only experience and have nothing to compare it to. Before showing partners the new experience, they acknowledged that experts were commonly hired specifically to purchase Cisco solutions. After they experienced the new designs, they joked about their position being needed due to its ease of use.

Before

After