Project
Boosting Performance Through UX Optimisation
Andy Ingham
Experience Design Director
3/12/2025
By focusing on UX improvements upstream on the PDP, we helped Homefire significantly boost both subscription uptake and order value, creating a more intuitive shopping experience for customers and a measurable impact for the business.
The Challenge
Homefire faces a complex ecommerce challenge. Their product detail pages (PDPs) and checkout flows have to follow multiple business rules:
- Free home delivery requires a £100 minimum spend
- Customers could only make either one-off purchases or subscriptions, not mix them
- Messaging and signposting on the PDP and checkout were unclear, leading to errors and abandoned baskets
Since the new website went live on Shopify we’ve seen performance improve but we knew the job wasn’t finished, through continuous learning and optimisation we set out to:
- Decrease drop-off in basket and checkout
- Increase average order value (AOV)
- Increase subscription uptake
- Improve conversion rate (CVR)
Our Approach
We ran a focused design sprint with high client collaboration, followed by a development sprint to tackle the known problems holistically.
User Journey Mapping
Mapping the full journey revealed key pain points. Confusion around subscriptions, delivery thresholds and product combinations, this gave us a clear foundation for targeted improvements.
Signposting & Messaging
We added contextual cues at critical moments across the PDP, basket and at checkout to guide users through subscription options, one-off purchases, and delivery rules. Guidance appeared exactly when needed, improving clarity and user confidence.
UX Simplification
Component design, messaging, and interactions were streamlined to reduce cognitive load and basket errors. Subscription and one-off options were clarified, and errors were highlighted with actionable guidance, making it easier for users to complete purchases.
Iterative Design
Rapid prototyping and close client collaboration allowed us to test and refine solutions quickly. Feedback loops ensured improvements were practical, aligned with business rules, and effective for users.
Results
Since we deployed the updates, Homefire has seen remarkable improvements:
- Subscription orders increased by 1700%
- 100% increase in Average Order Value (AOV) for subscriptions
Rapid, collaborative design sprints enable fast wins for ecommerce growth. We’ve shown that complex business rules can be simplified for users without compromising on experience or functionality as well as clear signposting and messaging directly drive CVR and AOV improvements.
