FurryTales
Redesigning the Website for a Local Pet Treat Business
About
FurryTales Pet specializes in dehydrated treats for both cats and dogs, with a unique twist—customizable treats tailored to each pet’s needs. They also add an artistic touch with pet portraits on cookies, cakes, and other treats. Their mission is to make pet food fun, cute, healthy, and delicious, turning everyday treats into playful experiences for pets and their owners.
Goal
The goal was to revamp FurryTales Pet's website to improve trust, discoverability, and user experience by:
- Adding reviews, testimonials, and clear product descriptions to build trust.
- Enhancing product visibility and business information for easier access.
- Improving site hierarchy, design, and accessibility for a smoother browsing experience.
The aim was to align the website with FurryTales' fun and creative branding while addressing key pain points.
Research
Market Research
- Conducted SWOT analysis and 2 competitive analysis
- Identified gaps between the current website and competitors’ website
- Review and testimonials
- Clear info architecture on product pages
- Consistent branding and structure across social/website
- Clear CTAs
- FurryTales’ unique and fun branding (ie. dog CEO) can be leveraged more
Website Critique
- Used sticky notes on website screenshots to analyze accessibility, usability, and content.
- Mapped insights into the user flow, highlighting key pain points .
User Research and Persona
- User survey: 33 respondents
- Conducted a survey to understand purchase behaviour and experience, covering
- Pet treat preferences
- Sourcing and buying experience
- Product frustrations and improvement
- Developed a persona based on research insights.
- Based on survey results, a persona was developed.
Discovery Meeting
During the discovery phase, we engaged in a detailed conversation with the client to ensure alignment on goals and to validate the problem statements. Key insights were gathered around the business challenges, desired outcomes, and other crucial aspects of their brand:
- Challenges:
- Inconsistent branding.
- No feedback system for products/services.
- Need to expand the customer base and convert new customers into return buyers.
- Unique Aspect: The brand’s dog, Soya, is the face of the brand.
- Desired Outcomes:
- A more professional, functional website.
- Increased social media engagement, especially on Instagram for better customer communication.
Target Areas
- Our Story page
- Highlight the dog (brand face) and the owner's background in nutritional science.
- Building trust
- No reviews/testimonial content
- Product descriptions are hidden and hard to access, lacking transparency.
- Inconsistent branding across the site
- Acquisition methods / discoverability
- Business location and product access are unclear
- Product organization makes browsing difficult
- Hierarchy, visual design, and accessibility
- Poor type hierarchy and navigation experience
- Small fonts and low color contrast affecting readability.
Branding
- Adjusted the color palette for a refreshed look.
- Re-selected fonts to be modern yet easy to read.
- Created a more energetic and modern vibe.
Sketches
Focused on the identified target areas, sketches were created to brainstorm ideas. We collaborated by giving and receiving feedback to refine the design and ensure the best outcome.
Hi-Fi
Locations
Provide easy access to information on where users can find products.
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After
Landing page
Add a testimonial section to build credibility and a social media section to emphasize the brand's online presence.
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After
Our Story
Feature the brand's dog, Soya, at the top with interactive animation for better engagement.
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After
Shop All
Reorganize categories for easy filtering. Add cat and dog tags to each product to align with user behavior and improve navigation.
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After
Product Details
Make detailed information easily accessible by adding a tab.
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After
Reviews
Add reviews to build trust and gather feedback.
Before
After
Locations
Provide easy access to information on where users can find products.
Before
After
Landing page
Add a testimonial section to build credibility and a social media section to emphasize the brand's online presence.
Before
After
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Challenges
- The client meeting was rescheduled within the limited timeframe of the hackathon.
- Reorganized tasks and schedule to accommodate changes.
- Developed several hypotheses for the problem statement, to be validated in the client meeting, based on mentor feedback.
- Successfully completed all deliverables on time.
What's next for Spotlight
With more time, I would develop a design system with additional elements to help maintain consistent branding across platforms. Since the owner is active on Instagram, this would make it easier to align visuals across all channels.
What I learned
Research is essential for understanding both the client and their audience before designing. Each method provided unique insights:
- Market research revealed gaps in industry standards.
- User research helped define the audience.
- Website critique identified current issues.
- Client meetings clarified business goals and challenges.
These insights made the design process more efficient and meaningful.