2020
The Barn Berlin
How THE BARN Optimised Their E-Commerce UX to Brew More Sales ☕
UX Audit
E-Commerce
1. The Client
Optimising THE BARN’s e-commerce journey to reduce churn, improve conversions, and grow online sales during a crucial market shift.
Background
THE BARN is a Berlin-based specialty coffee brand, with a global e-commerce presence delivering premium coffee beans to customers and cafes worldwide. In 2020, during the pandemic, THE BARN engaged me to enhance their e-commerce platform and strategically shift focus from their cafes to driving online growth.
My Role
As an external UX Designer, I partnered directly with THE BARN’s leadership and engineering team. My role involved uncovering customer pain points, aligning user needs with business goals, and providing actionable design recommendations to improve the purchase journey.
2. The Challenge
With their physical locations closed during the pandemic, THE BARN needed to shift focus to online sales. The goal was to audit and optimise the e-commerce experience to reduce friction, lower churn, and boost conversions—ensuring their loyal customer base could easily order specialty coffee from anywhere.
The Process
1. Defining Goals & Metrics
I worked with THE BARN’s leadership to define clear KPIs: reduce cart abandonment, improve funnel flow, and increase product page conversions.
2. UX Audit & Research
I performed a detailed cognitive walkthrough of key pages (Homepage & Bean Collection), identifying usability issues and bottlenecks.
Using Hotjar heatmaps & click maps, I reviewed real user behaviour to pinpoint friction points.
3. User Testing & Feedback
I conducted task-based testing with potential customers to validate findings.
The key feedback:
Missing filters,
Unclear product naming, and
Insufficient info on coffee types and THE BARN’s story.
3. The Solution
Ideation & Prioritisation
I created and presented two UX improvement proposals. The focus was on simplifying the navigation and product discovery process, helping customers get to checkout faster.
Actionable Recommendations
I delivered a prioritised list of improvements, some of which including:
Swifter data management: Introducing filtering - by country, by roast, acidity, and blend, etc.
Reducing cognitive load: Reduce choice from 3 to 2 options in the Hero section.
Clarifying product titles (coffee vs. tea).
Highlighting THE BARN’s awards and unique selling points to build trust.
Simplifying key CTAs to focus on purchases or subscriptions.
Collaboration & Implementation
The engineering team quickly implemented the top-priority changes. Throughout, I provided UX guidance to ensure the updates aligned with customer needs.
The Outcome
The impact was immediate:
✅ Increased homepage transactions.
✅ Higher conversion rates on product pages.
✅ A noticeable drop in churn rate.
The UX adjustments simplified how customers found and purchased coffee online, supporting a sustained increase in revenue per user during a critical time.
Long-Term Results
THE BARN has maintained the core structure established during this project, with clear "Coffee" and "Subscription" CTAs still featured on their homepage, while the physical cafés are listed separately further down.
Additionally, they expanded the experience by implementing the product filters, making it easier for customers to browse and select their preferred coffee options.
More Works
(GQ® — 02)
©2024
FAQ
01
What is your end-to-end UI/UX design process?
02
How do you use research to inform your design decisions?
03
How do you balance business objectives with user needs?
04
How do you ensure seamless collaboration with developers and product teams?
05
How do you ensure your designs are accessible and inclusive?
06
Can you share how your designs impact business outcomes?
07
What industries and platforms do you have experience with?
2020
The Barn Berlin
How THE BARN Optimised Their E-Commerce UX to Brew More Sales ☕
UX Audit
E-Commerce
1. The Client
Optimising THE BARN’s e-commerce journey to reduce churn, improve conversions, and grow online sales during a crucial market shift.
Background
THE BARN is a Berlin-based specialty coffee brand, with a global e-commerce presence delivering premium coffee beans to customers and cafes worldwide. In 2020, during the pandemic, THE BARN engaged me to enhance their e-commerce platform and strategically shift focus from their cafes to driving online growth.
My Role
As an external UX Designer, I partnered directly with THE BARN’s leadership and engineering team. My role involved uncovering customer pain points, aligning user needs with business goals, and providing actionable design recommendations to improve the purchase journey.
2. The Challenge
With their physical locations closed during the pandemic, THE BARN needed to shift focus to online sales. The goal was to audit and optimise the e-commerce experience to reduce friction, lower churn, and boost conversions—ensuring their loyal customer base could easily order specialty coffee from anywhere.
The Process
1. Defining Goals & Metrics
I worked with THE BARN’s leadership to define clear KPIs: reduce cart abandonment, improve funnel flow, and increase product page conversions.
2. UX Audit & Research
I performed a detailed cognitive walkthrough of key pages (Homepage & Bean Collection), identifying usability issues and bottlenecks.
Using Hotjar heatmaps & click maps, I reviewed real user behaviour to pinpoint friction points.
3. User Testing & Feedback
I conducted task-based testing with potential customers to validate findings.
The key feedback:
Missing filters,
Unclear product naming, and
Insufficient info on coffee types and THE BARN’s story.
3. The Solution
Ideation & Prioritisation
I created and presented two UX improvement proposals. The focus was on simplifying the navigation and product discovery process, helping customers get to checkout faster.
Actionable Recommendations
I delivered a prioritised list of improvements, some of which including:
Swifter data management: Introducing filtering - by country, by roast, acidity, and blend, etc.
Reducing cognitive load: Reduce choice from 3 to 2 options in the Hero section.
Clarifying product titles (coffee vs. tea).
Highlighting THE BARN’s awards and unique selling points to build trust.
Simplifying key CTAs to focus on purchases or subscriptions.
Collaboration & Implementation
The engineering team quickly implemented the top-priority changes. Throughout, I provided UX guidance to ensure the updates aligned with customer needs.
The Outcome
The impact was immediate:
✅ Increased homepage transactions.
✅ Higher conversion rates on product pages.
✅ A noticeable drop in churn rate.
The UX adjustments simplified how customers found and purchased coffee online, supporting a sustained increase in revenue per user during a critical time.
Long-Term Results
THE BARN has maintained the core structure established during this project, with clear "Coffee" and "Subscription" CTAs still featured on their homepage, while the physical cafés are listed separately further down.
Additionally, they expanded the experience by implementing the product filters, making it easier for customers to browse and select their preferred coffee options.
More Works
(GQ® — 02)
©2024
FAQ
01
What is your end-to-end UI/UX design process?
02
How do you use research to inform your design decisions?
03
How do you balance business objectives with user needs?
04
How do you ensure seamless collaboration with developers and product teams?
05
How do you ensure your designs are accessible and inclusive?
06
Can you share how your designs impact business outcomes?
07
What industries and platforms do you have experience with?
2020
The Barn Berlin
How THE BARN Optimised Their E-Commerce UX to Brew More Sales ☕
UX Audit
E-Commerce
1. The Client
Optimising THE BARN’s e-commerce journey to reduce churn, improve conversions, and grow online sales during a crucial market shift.
Background
THE BARN is a Berlin-based specialty coffee brand, with a global e-commerce presence delivering premium coffee beans to customers and cafes worldwide. In 2020, during the pandemic, THE BARN engaged me to enhance their e-commerce platform and strategically shift focus from their cafes to driving online growth.
My Role
As an external UX Designer, I partnered directly with THE BARN’s leadership and engineering team. My role involved uncovering customer pain points, aligning user needs with business goals, and providing actionable design recommendations to improve the purchase journey.
2. The Challenge
With their physical locations closed during the pandemic, THE BARN needed to shift focus to online sales. The goal was to audit and optimise the e-commerce experience to reduce friction, lower churn, and boost conversions—ensuring their loyal customer base could easily order specialty coffee from anywhere.
The Process
1. Defining Goals & Metrics
I worked with THE BARN’s leadership to define clear KPIs: reduce cart abandonment, improve funnel flow, and increase product page conversions.
2. UX Audit & Research
I performed a detailed cognitive walkthrough of key pages (Homepage & Bean Collection), identifying usability issues and bottlenecks.
Using Hotjar heatmaps & click maps, I reviewed real user behaviour to pinpoint friction points.
3. User Testing & Feedback
I conducted task-based testing with potential customers to validate findings.
The key feedback:
Missing filters,
Unclear product naming, and
Insufficient info on coffee types and THE BARN’s story.
3. The Solution
Ideation & Prioritisation
I created and presented two UX improvement proposals. The focus was on simplifying the navigation and product discovery process, helping customers get to checkout faster.
Actionable Recommendations
I delivered a prioritised list of improvements, some of which including:
Swifter data management: Introducing filtering - by country, by roast, acidity, and blend, etc.
Reducing cognitive load: Reduce choice from 3 to 2 options in the Hero section.
Clarifying product titles (coffee vs. tea).
Highlighting THE BARN’s awards and unique selling points to build trust.
Simplifying key CTAs to focus on purchases or subscriptions.
Collaboration & Implementation
The engineering team quickly implemented the top-priority changes. Throughout, I provided UX guidance to ensure the updates aligned with customer needs.
The Outcome
The impact was immediate:
✅ Increased homepage transactions.
✅ Higher conversion rates on product pages.
✅ A noticeable drop in churn rate.
The UX adjustments simplified how customers found and purchased coffee online, supporting a sustained increase in revenue per user during a critical time.
Long-Term Results
THE BARN has maintained the core structure established during this project, with clear "Coffee" and "Subscription" CTAs still featured on their homepage, while the physical cafés are listed separately further down.
Additionally, they expanded the experience by implementing the product filters, making it easier for customers to browse and select their preferred coffee options.
More Works
©2024
FAQ
What is your end-to-end UI/UX design process?
How do you use research to inform your design decisions?
How do you balance business objectives with user needs?
How do you ensure seamless collaboration with developers and product teams?
How do you ensure your designs are accessible and inclusive?
Can you share how your designs impact business outcomes?
What industries and platforms do you have experience with?