Intro ・ Conceptualize ・ Empathize ・ Ideate ・ Design ・ Prototype

◉ USER RESEARCH & ANALYSIS

User Research

Goal of user research

Gain insight into the following user experiences:

Buying secondhand online

Selling clothing online

Retaining clothing that would otherwise sell

Scope of user research

My user research is based on:

8 in-person interviews and 20 online survey responses

Respondents ranged in age from early twenties to mid-thirties and predominantly wore women's clothing

Research respondents were only users of/familiar with general online classifieds types of platforms for means of selling and buying resale clothing online (e.g. Kijiji and Facebook Marketplace).

Findings - There is demand for secondhand clothing

Most respondents had purchased secondhand clothing before, however more had purchased in-store than online. Buyers were primarily concerned about the "fit, wear, and quality" and the "item not being as described" when shopping secondhand online. Secondly, buyers were concerned about having to put a lot of time and effort to find what they wanted. As one respondent put it:

"Haven't tried it [shopping for used clothing online] but it seems like more work than the savings I may get from just going to Winners or whatever."

- Prior purchaser of used clothing in-store

When buyers did shop secondhand clothing online they were most motivated by saving money and second, the hunt of finding something unique. Environmental considerations were cited to a lesser extent.

According to users' past behaviour, many are open to buying used clothing with shopping in-store currently preferred over online.

Findings - Buyers and time required frustrate sellers

The most frequently cited frustrations arose from interactions with potential buyers. A repeated source of frustration was dealing with unserious buyers, described by sellers as changed minds, no-shows, and time wasters (expressed by more than half of sellers). Time to organize and meet was also contentious for many sellers. Other frustrations include negotiating, setting the right price, and getting good photos to adequately showcase the item.

I found that what most bothered sellers about the selling process was having to interact with buyers, both in terms of buyers irritating them and the time it took.

Findings - More are willing to sell than actually are

24 of 28 respondents said they had excess clothes they would sell. When asked what was preventing them from selling these items, two thirds of respondents spoke about a (perceived or experienced) dis-satisfaction with the selling process, with the process described as a hassle and/or too time consuming. Also a third of respondents were concerned about the financial payoff, the value to them being more than they could get or their item garnering no interest.

Significantly more respondents said they were willing to sell their clothes than those who had actually done so in the past, suggesting an untapped opportunity in the market.

◉ SELLER PERSONA

Seller Persona

Why only a seller persona?

I'm building one user flow through the app. I chose the seller user flow as to show insight into the listing process. Akin to having inventory before opening a store.

She sells to make money on the side

She is already selling her clothes. The reason she sells is to make money to buy other things. While she has pain points with the selling process she is accepting of its shortcomings and overall finds the selling experience to be positive.