Case Study
Building an educational e-commerce website for skincare lovers
Project Overview
During my internship at Kore Athens, a skincare startup based in Indonesia, a significant portion of my time was dedicated to thorough research and ideation. I delved into studying various educational websites to understand their effective learning methodologies. As Kore Athens aimed to distinguish itself as an educational blog that sells skincare products, I spent considerable effort brainstorming and creating different mockups. These mockups were designed to shape an innovative educational skincare platform that would empower customers with valuable insights into the benefits and proper usage of their products.
Unfortunately, I won't be able to present the entire iteration process since the project is still ongoing. However, I can showcase my thought process and a few mockups I have created!
Time
January - April 2023
Team
Jennifer Widjaja (Product Design Intern)
Yolanda Purwanto (Founder)
Natasha (Head Designer)
ContextKore Athen’s Mission and Background
Kore Athens is an Indonesian skincare startup that offers a diverse range of clean beauty products. What began as an educational skincare blog, focused on promoting the benefits of clean beauty, has now evolved into a successful venture selling various skincare essentials. Despite their growth, Kore Athens remains dedicated to maintaining their educational approach. They believe that informing customers about the importance of clean beauty is crucial. Their product line includes shampoos, conditioners, and body wash, all carefully designed to enhance natural beauty while also supporting eco-friendly practices. With a combination of informative content and quality skincare offerings, Kore Athens aims to empower customers to make conscious choices for themselves and the environment.
The Problem with the Beauty E-commerce Space
Every day, an increasing number of beauty brands are launching, accompanied by a continuous stream of new product releases, ranging from snail mucin face masks to mushroom extract hand creams — the list seems endless. However, with this overwhelming influx of product launches, consumers often struggle to keep track and fully comprehend the benefits that these specific products can offer for their skin. The lack of thorough understanding may result in consumers purchasing products unsuitable for their skin type or products that don't offer any real benefits, leading to disappointment and contributing to the accumulation of unused products in one's junk drawer. Unfortunately, many current beauty e-commerce platforms prioritize pushing products onto consumers rather than guiding them on how to effectively incorporate these products into their routines for optimal results. This approach leaves consumers seeking valuable educational resources externally to better utilize and maximize the benefits of the products they purchase.
To stop repeating the same mistakes with customers, Kore Athens wanted to create a website that focuses on teaching customers about skincare and allows them to tailor it to their personal needs. As Kore Athens used to be a skincare blog, they aim to maintain the customer loyalty they have with their customers and ensure that the platform remains a go-to destination for learning about skincare. By prioritizing consumer education and empowering users to make informed choices, Kore Athens seeks to build trust and foster long-term customer relationships, enhancing the overall effectiveness and satisfaction of their beauty platform.
To achieve this goal, Kore Athens is determined to look beyond current existing beauty platforms and draw inspiration from educational platforms in other fields. By examining successful educational websites, we aim to develop a unique approach to beauty e-commerce that places learning as the primary focus and product purchases as a secondary aspect. By facilitating a seamless integration of educational resources and product offerings, we envision a beauty e-commerce brand that empowers customers with knowledge, enables them to make well-informed decisions, and ultimately enhances their overall skincare journey. This innovative approach will set Kore Athens apart in the beauty industry, providing users with an enriching experience that goes beyond mere product sales.
Competitor Analysis To gain understanding into how educational platforms structure their content to help users, we analyzed three of the most well-known educational platforms: Coursera, Quizlet, and Khan Academy. Through our research, we aim to assess their strengths and weaknesses while also exploring ways to integrate some of their features into our own website.
Competitive Analysis Takeaways
Based on researching these three platforms, here are our key takeaways
User Research In addition to the competitive analysis we did by researching various educational platforms, we decide to conduct user interviews to understand first-hand what users like and dislike about these educational platforms. By conducting user interviews, this will enable us to tailor our platform to meet the specific learning requirements of our users, ensuring it effectively addresses their beauty needs and showcases how our products can cater to their individual preferences and goals.
Low & Mid Fidelity Mockups Based on our interviews, we discovered several main takeaways that shed light on users' preferences and expectations when interacting with educational platforms.
Reflection: users appreciates a brief reflection or preview before starting each lesson. This helps them mentally prepare and understand what to expect, enhancing their overall learning experience.
Tailored content on their personal needs: Participants expressed a strong liking for lessons that are tailored to their individual level of understanding and personal preferences. When educational content is presented in a relatable manner, users feel more engaged and motivated to learn, leading them to learn better.
Ease of navigation: Participants highlighted the importance of an intuitive and user-friendly interface, emphasizing the ease of finding the specific type of lesson they desire without any unnecessary hassle.
Design Opportunities
Based on the insights gathered from user interviews and our competitive analysis, I initiated the brainstorming process for creating a website that combines the positive aspects of the researched educational platforms while catering to our customer's needs. Throughout this process, I identified several opportunities that our website should strive to fulfill to meet these goals. Here are the main opportunities:
Education First, Product Second = To make education a priority on our skincare website, we will create a comprehensive library of informative and insightful content. We'll cover various aspects of skincare, such as understanding different skin types, identifying common skin concerns, exploring skincare ingredients, and explaining the science behind various products. This content will be presented in a user-friendly manner, with clear headings and easy-to-follow explanations, making it accessible to users of all levels of skincare knowledge.
Personalized Content Recommendations = Implementing a content recommendation system that considers users' inputs, such as skin type, age, and specific skincare concerns. This system will suggest relevant articles, blog posts, and guides to users, making it easier for them to find content that directly addresses their individual needs and interests. By tailoring the content to their preferences, we can enhance their overall experience and keep them engaged on our platform.
Customer Engagement and Interaction: Creating a vibrant and interactive community within our website where users can participate in skincare discussions, seek advice from each other, and share their own skincare journeys. Implementing a rating and review system for articles and products will allow users to provide feedback and help others find valuable content.
Final Mockup
