Concepts & Experiments 1.0
After distilling the research and creating our partnerships, it was time to get tangible and learn from making. I iterated keeping in mind the needs of the customer around personalization, generally considering the technology that can build it, and balancing what we identified as metrics that would move the needle.
Sketching it Out
Quick Instagram Prototype
I wanted to test some assumptions around personalization and video. I reached out into my community of friends and family for a lo-fi prototype. They thought it was real!
Concepts & Experiments 2.0
To learn more, I created assumptions to test and validate. I wanted to move forward at low risk, time, and money but with meaningful learnings. Testing to see if they were ideas that provided value to the stakeholders.
Survey & Prototypes
I created the questions and worked with a research partner to conduct a survey of 2200 cross-brand customers centered on e-gift cards. We also tested personalization touchpoints with mid-fi prototypes I made using Sketch, with some plugin modifications, and InVision.
Message + Theme
83% Liked
70% of total like
votes “liked a lot”
Message + Animation
78% Liked
62% of total like
votes “liked a lot”
Audio Recording
77% Liked
63% of total like
votes “liked a lot”
Video Recording
73% Liked
60% of total like
votes “liked a lot”
Concepts & Experiments 3.0
Different methods of personalization and the e-gift card resonated within our test to move forward.
CHALLENGE
Challenge
Building out the features, even to test, would take more tech and financial resources.
Gap Inc. was in process of dividing its company so these resources were not available.
Partnership Potential
Facebook and Instagram are social platforms with a strong built-in audience. Their product's contain built in features that Gap Inc. could utilize to deliver more personalized e-gift cards.
I created features of personalization for e-gift cards in February 2019.
Facebook launched its birthday personalization features in May 2019.
Both Facebook and Instagram have the ability to add a donation widget to any message. I wanted to use an e-gift card widget and do the same thing.
Concepts & Experiments 4.0
Direction
Leadership liked the idea of adding a donation aspect when a customer bought a gift card.
Plan
Banana Republic will utilize an external e-gift card partner to test out, how with the purchase of a gift card, Banana Republic will donate 10% of the total card amount to CARE. CARE is a non-profit dedicated to “save lives, defeat poverty and achieve social justice.”
Desired Results
Increase the number of e-gift cards bought and the dollar amount put onto them.
Financials
Our external e-gift card partner will cover the donation percent (10%) and fulfillment costs. Banana Republic feels it will increase card purchase and revenue by 5% on Giving Tuesday.
CHALLENGE
Challenge
Suggested we at least do a survey to mitigate risk and see if this donation aspect would incentivize e-gift card buying.
Regardless, leadership moved forward with the full experiment.
Designing the Site
I delivered visual assets to promote and link customers to the e-gift card experiment. These assets were planned for the main navigation menu and the gift card landing page.
Art Directing
Partnering with our external vendor’s UX team, I art directed the e-gift card purchasing site.
CHALLENGE 1
Challenge 1
I pushed for an A/B test to run during the experiment. The test would track last year’s purchases against this year’s time frame.
The timing was rushed so the A/B test was dropped.
CHALLENGE 2
Challenge 2
The copy used in the navigation bar assets were put in front of the Legal Department during the late stage of development.
Due to this delay, the assets were not able to make it on the site.
Results
"There is nothing conclusive that this program drove sales." -Gift Card Mgmt Team
Despite my effort to instate one, without an A/B test or any other gauge there was no way to get accurate metrics that this experiment worked or not.
Instead, the seen success was the assembly of the backend effort so that there is an infrastructure to try again with an A/B test.
Next Steps Suggestions
Short-term: Can do Now
Make gift cards easier to find on the website
Utilize promotions, discounts and loyalty incentives
More faceplate designs
Additional suggested messages
Mid-term: With Vendor Support
Use “story telling” (Amazon-esque) animations as another visual for e-gift cards in addition to a personalized messaging.
Long-term: 2020
Audio recording and uploading of audio files in addition to a personalized messaging.
Video recording via Facebook and Instagram. Utilize all of the features provided such as occasion themed templates, adding music, filters, stickers, gifs, and text.
Creating a “Thank you” capability on the recipient’s end.
Full screen experience across platforms. Increasing the visual experience would add more to the level of feeling and personalization.
Great Minds Think Alike
In June of 2019, facebook launched its own version of the same idea.
