Niels Hunefeld

PSG is Australasia's largest manufacturer and supplier of prescription safety eyewear.

Initially approached to modernise the brand and retail experience, it became clear in the discovery phase that improving the order process experience would significantly reduce time and cost due to inefficiencies between point of sale and manufacturing.

Discovery

Discovery included a full analysis of the website, IA, user journeys, end-to-end order workflow, and user interviews with a number of PSG affiliated Optometrists to gain insights around real world usage and pain points.

Key findings

The client brief and website analysis confirmed the need of a brand refresh and a more sophisticated website. The most valuable insights however were uncovered during the discovery phase in interviews with PSG affiliated Optometrists around how the PSG website was used as a sales tool, and the opportunity to greatly improve time and cost inefficiencies within the PSG ordering system.

The PSG website was not just an online product catalogue, it was commonly used in-store as a key sales tool by affiliated Optometrists. There was a strong indication for a more journey-centric retail experience that would seamlessly guide customers through the selection and order process.
Not having individual product pages with detailed information, along with a lack of visual interest were missed opportunities to engage customers in the sales experience.
There were ongoing issues with the ordering process, requiring corrective actions between optometrists and production facilities, leading to significant delays in delivery times and loss of productivity.
It was common to go trough the order process with the customer, creating an opportunity for a more branded interactive experience.

Phase 1

The first phase included a brand refresh aimed at simplification and strengthening of the PSG brand, and the redevelopment of the website to improve the useability of the website as a sales tool.

Responsive layout, optimised for tablet sized touch screens
360 digital frame previews in all available colours
Full product specifications, certifications, materials, sizes, etc
Quick filters for the main product categories and a carousel on the product page for easy access to comparable popular frames.

Phase 2

After further documentation and analysis of issues in the order process I presented to the stakeholders that an improved workflow could address and prevent close to 90% of the reported issues.

Intuitively grouped steps divided the order process into a 'build orientated' experience and reduced cognitive load.
Many inputs changed from purely text-based dropdowns to include clear visual cues and state indicators like colours and symbols.
In the more client-centric parts like frame and lens selections, a visual and text based summary greatly improved the retail experience and provided absolute clarity on what was selected.
The back-end provided improved conditional logic and inline validation at each step, preventing impossible values, combinations or missed fields, and making any rectifications quick and painless.
Some options that previously were added in the order notes, such as multiple coatings, special parameters, and optional service fees, were included as actual features at the right steps of the order process.

Outcomes

Re-developing the order workflow turned out to be the most valuable improvement overall. Corrective action on orders dropped to negligable levels across Australia and New Zealand, and the improved retail experience increased reseller and consumer confidence.

Conclusion

Uncovering new user insights during discovery led to valuable process improvements. Clear communication with stakeholders allowed for expanding the scope of the project and led to increased productivity and satisfaction at both ends.

Ultimately it reinforced PSGs reputation with clients and resellers as the default choice for prescription safety eyewear.