Overview
Zephy was an e-commerce platform focusing on Home Improvement/ DIY.
I redesigned the end-to-end shopping journey, from landing page to checkout, to improve organic traffic, conversion and brand credibility.
Significant
drop-off at
Add to Cart
High volume of
abandoned
checkouts
Users reached
decision points,
then hesitated
Problem
Zephy’s challenge wasn’t only getting more traffic, but rather what happened after users showed intent.
For a high-ticket store, this signaled that:
Users were interested , but not confident enough to commit..
Analysis revealed:
Hypothisis
The goal was clear- reduce perceived risk, and not just optimize flow.
This meant that If users hesitate at Add-to-Cart and Checkout, the interface is failing to answer unspoken risk questions that normally sounds like:
Can users trust this store?
Will delivery and returns
be painless?
What happens if
something goes wrong?
Constraints
Early-stage brand with little established trust
Limited marketing budget which means more reliance on organic traffic
High-ticket products requiring careful consideration
Shopify constraints on checkout customization
These constraints meant that the UX had to carry more responsibility, while ensuring business objectives are still met
Objectives where to:
Decision 2 - Reduce psychological friction at Checkout
This included:
Reducing surprise costs and unclear steps
Making security, payment, and delivery reassurance clear
Simplifying checkout hierarchy
Decision 1 - Strengthen pre-commitment reassurance (before Add-to-Cart)
Clarified warranties and return policies before users committed
Reinforced shipping and fulfillment transparency
These changes allowed customer objections to be handled before they surfaced.
UX Strategy
The original website was built mobile-first , following a common best practice for e-commerce design.
Decision 4 - Desktop First Mobile Later
We shifted to a desktop-first design strategy prioritized clarity, trust, and product education - All of which benefit from the spatial flexibility of a desktop canvas.
Expanded content hierarchy:
Room for detailed specs, warranty info, and comparisons without overwhelming users.
Enhanced trust cues:
Clear visibility of payment options, shipping guarantees, and secure checkout messaging.
Professional-grade layouts:
Ideal for Zephy’s B2B audience (contractors, electricians, builders) who shop via laptops or workstations.
Progressive enhancement for mobile:
Mobile layouts were simplified versions of the desktop experience — still fast, still clean, but intentionally leaner for on-the-go product lookups rather than full purchase flow.
Impact
Apart from the key business goal at the time which was customer aquisition and the business metrics that goes along with it (improving conversion rate and S.E.O, while lowering bonce rate), several directional signals were observed during iteration. This included, improved engagement on product pages with clearer reassurance, reduced confusion around fulfillment and returns, lastly reviews indicated stronger perceived trustworthiness of the overall user experience.
When the stakeholders of Zephy saw what might seem like small changes in the user experience and the impact it had on the growth of the business in such short period of time, to say they were happy would be an understatement. As a result they were also able to further raise capital and be more aggresive in some desicion making regarding the growth of the business.
Unfortunately after 10 months after finishing my contract with the company, the business were sold and name was changed which the stakeholders couldn't disclose. This was unfortunate, since I enjoyed working with everyone and seeing how the company was able to make such big strides in a short period of time.