The market for online shopping keeps growing. More and more products move online - even complicated products - and most webshops offer hundreds, or even thousands of products, when you use the search field. Very often, this huge choice leads to uncertainty amongst users - regardless of their level of knowledge about the product that they are shopping for. Even though competition amongst online retailers is fierce, most sites do not offer efficient mechanisms to assist users in their decision process. The Hypothesis behind the present paper is: "Supporting the decision process by applying a customer mindset to your website will help increase conversion rates" The presentation is in two parts: The first part deals with optimizing the already well-known mechanism of sorting and filtering The second part describes the use of an intelligent Needs Assessment Tool (NeAT) that can guide the customer towards the right product In both cases, it is demonstrated how you can apply customer thinking to your shop/site in order to increase trust and, hence, increase conversion rates.

1. Sell More Online – Think like a Customer
Soeren Engelbrecht
Senior Online Business Developer, Tryg Insurance
UX Camp CPH – April 25, 2015

2. E-Commerce in Denmark, 2014
5.5 Million people
132 Million transactions
73,5 Billion DKK Revenue
Source: FDIH e-Commerce Index, 2014
Every adult Dane spends more than 2.000 EUR online every year
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3. Are we good enough at Serving Customers ??
Only 22% of customers
think that the average
online retailer
”understands them”
Source: The Consumer Conversation, IBM, 2015
22%
For their favourite
online retailer, that
figure is 37%
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4. Customer Personas
A
Focused
Customer:
Knows exactly
which product he
wants
Search
B
Knowledgeable
Customer:
Knows basic
facts, but hasn’t
decided yet
Browse
C
Clueless
Customer:
Knows very little
– might not even
have an interest
in the product
Needs
Assessment
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5. Choice – A First World Problem
”A large array of options may discourage
consumers, because it forces an increase in
the effort that goes into making a decision.
So consumers decide not to decide, and
don’t buy the product”
Barry Schwartz
Source: The Paradox of Choice – Why More is Less, Barry Schwartz, 2004
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6. Hypothesis
Supporting the decision process by applying
a customer mindset to your website will
help increase conversion rates
…and might even help you succeed in a competitive
market place without having the lowest price…
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7. måndag den 27 april 2015
7
Cases: Search and Browse

8. Case: Choosing a Sofa
Patchwork
• Yell
• Doll
• Quant
• Alpine
• Fashionista
• Bronte
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Contemporary
• Itsy
• Fling
• Idol
• Esther
Icons
• Safari
• Soda
Jewel Editions
• Sparkle
• Shimmer

9. Case: Choosing a Wristwatch
450 Collection
Watches with dynamic, fresh
and versatile character,
reinterpreted with a unique and
Italian style of Sector
180 collection
Freedom is expressed by the
passion for adventure. Love for
nature, effort, preparation and
comparison
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235 Collection
The irresistible call of the Sea,
the profound mysteries of the
ocean depths, and the
boundless realms of its horizons

10. Case: Choosing a Kid’s Football Jersey
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11. Case: Choosing a Camera
Sorting parameters:
• Name
• Resolution
• Optical zoom
• Card type
• Special features
• Price
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12. Case: Choosing a Camera
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13. Case: Choosing a Camera
Suggested solution: Explain the naming
convention and show the 6-8 most
important parameters next to each camera
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14. Case: Choosing a Pair of Trousers
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15. Case: Choosing a Pair of Trousers
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16. Case: Choosing a Pair of Trousers
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17. Case: Choosing a Pair of Trousers
Suggested filters
(Discrete values):
• Size
• Colour
• Waist height
• Overall fit
• Leg shape
Suggested sorting
(Continuous values):
• Price

18. Summary of Search and Browse
1. Give products and categories meaningful names
2. For search, make sure that more keywords lead to fewer results
3. Make an effort to use understandable terms – cater for all three
types of customer: Focused, Knowledgeable, and Clueless
4. Filters and sorting only make sense for large numbers of products
5. If you use filters or sorting, make sure that:
• Parameters are understandable to the customer
• Parameters correspond to the mind/needs of the customer
• Filter data are available across all products – and comparable
If in doubt, remember Jakob Nielsen’s First Law of the Internet:
”Users spend more time on other sites than on your site”
…and make sure that you test all of the above with your users
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19. Online Needs Assessment Tools

20. The Challenge
How can we design an online tool to facilitate
the decision process – especially for
complex products ??
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Definition: A needs assessment is a systematic process
for determining and addressing needs, or "gaps" between
current conditions and desired conditions or "wants".
Source: Wikipedia, 2015

21. …talks to the friendly guy
behind the counter…
…and is recommended to take a closer look
at three cameras.
She goes for pink :-)
… goes to the Camera Store…
Case: Choosing a Camera
A customer, Eva...
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22. NeAT: The Needs Assessment Tool
Needs
Assessment
Tool
Proposed solution
for the customer to
review and adjust
Category
Options
Item
Product Structure and Logic
Category Category Category Category
Item Item Item Item
Option Option Option Option
Knowledge about the customer
Needs and data stated
explicitly by the customer
Needs and data that can be
assumed from experience
A key issue is that the customer should not feel limited, but instead perceive being
positively assisted in delimiting the solution space
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23. Data and Associated Rules
Data on Eva (Individual level) Ex Ex+New
Data on similar customers (Group level) Ex+New Ex+New
Internal External
Identification
What can we
tell about Eva
and similar
people ??
NeAT Level 1:
Which product
types match
her Customer
profile ??
NeAT Level 2:
Which covers,
sums, and
services do we
recommend ??
Recommended Engagement
Data, Rules Data, Rules Data, Rules Data, Rules Data, Rules Data, Rules
Login or other ID
Existing customer
New customer 3-6 basic questions
Case: NeAT for an Insurance Engagement
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Relevant Products
Home Content Car Accident Travel Dog

24. Implementation for Nordea
• Nordea sells insurances on behalf of Tryg in their branches
• Before, a classic ”Green-screen” interface was used
• Since March, 2014, Nordea uses a browser-based NeAT,
delivered by Tryg
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House-
hold
Recommended
products
Calculate
price
Calculate
price
Calculate
price
Configure
product(s)
Next
step ?
Buy
Save
Tryg
DB
Choose
payment
Cancel at
other
insurance
company
Confirm
Receipt
Summary
Nordea
DB

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Step 1:
Household
Describe the household by
completing the “object diagram”.
For every new object added, a
few questions are asked
25

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Step 1:
Household
26

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Step 1:
Household
27

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Step 1:
Household
28

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Step 1:
Household
29
When the picture is complete, click
to see recommendations

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Step 2:
Recommen-
dations
30
This is what we recommend
for the household. Each
product can be clicked for a
brief description and USP’s
If the customer already has
insurances with Tryg, or if
any offers are present, these
will also appear on this page
The number of products
“in the basket” is
counted, and the
benefit level shown

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Step 2:
Recommen-
dations
31

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Step 2:
Recommen-
dations
32

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Step 2:
Recommen-
dations
33
Each product can be
clicked for a brief
description, USP’s,
and PDF download

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Step 3:
Individual
insurances
34
When calculating the
price of Car Insurance,
we recommend one of
three basic covers, based
on age and the original
list price of the car
Once the initial choice
has been made, the
appropriate add-ons
appear here

35. Results after one year
• Improved customer satisfaction – the customer now understands
the process and the products better than before
• Improved employee satisfaction – clerks now have much more
confidence when selling insurances
• Improved sales – up by %
• Note: The Insurance NeAT has been user tested as a self-service
solution with very promising results
• Note: An alternative version is being used as an annual Insurance
Check-up for existing customers
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36. Poor Man’s NeAT: Komplett.dk
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• Komplett.dk/.no/.se is a very large online retailer of electronics
• They have implemented ”Buying guides” for laptops and TVs on
their website
• Especially the laptop guide is interesting, since it adresses only
the intended use – not technology
Note: Komplett have no relation to Tryg

37. Poor Man’s NeAT: Komplett.dk
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Typical location for
use ??

38. Poor Man’s NeAT: Komplett.dk
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Priority: Portability
vs. Power ??

39. Poor Man’s NeAT: Komplett.dk
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Primary purpose ??

40. Poor Man’s NeAT: Komplett.dk
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Requirements for
local storage ??

41. Poor Man’s NeAT: Komplett.dk
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Use of which
peripherals ??

42. Poor Man’s NeAT: Komplett.dk
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The “ideal product”
Option to filter results
Six other options that
might fit the user’s
need

43. Poor Man’s NeAT: Komplett.dk
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In summary, this NeAT simply assists the non-expert user in applying suitable
values for the filters already available on the site

44. Case: Make-up
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Further NeAT inspiration: http://www.loreal-paris.co.uk/

45. Summary of Needs Assessment
1. Aim to perform the same service online as a well-trained human
could do in a physical store
2. Analyze to find the most important questions for your NeAT – the
customer might be aware of some, but not all of them
3. Make sure that you ”give something back along the way” in the
process (The law of reciprocity)
4. Keep the customer focused on needs, rather than price, for as
long as possible
5. Make sure that you save all submitted information as cookies for
later targeting
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46. Takeaways

47. Start by finding the decisive parameters in the decision process.
Ask both customers and customer-facing employees
Sell More Online – Take-aways
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If you have a regular webshop, implement sorting/filtering on
these parameters. Choose carefully between fixed filters, flexible
filters, and sorting – and make sure that your data quality is OK
Consider building a ”Poor man’s NeAT” on top of your filters to
assist the customer
If you decide to go for a full-scale NeAT, strike a balance between
”enough data for meaningful recommendations” and ”customer
interrogation”
Test early in the design phase and prepare for optimization after
release (e.g., tracking, A/B testing, user testing)

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e-mail: Soeren.Engelbrecht@tryg.dk
Social: #Tryg
This presentation: slideshare.net/imagepro
Or just talk to me in person here at UX Camp CPH :-)
Thank You !!