The Alexa shopping design team has revolutionized the way 220 million people shop in the digital age. Using AI as a tool to communicate with customers across a wide variety of demographics, Alexa has created intuitive solutions to their shopping problems.My work primarily tackled customer issues, specifically in the grocery shopping journey.
Our goal was to evolve Alexa's capabilities in a way that not only provides a means to a goal but also creates experiences that intuitively make the shopping journey easier.
Disciplines.
Product strategy
Human interface design
Research
Problem.
Over the last decade, online shopping has become a prevalent part of our lives. However, in 2020, the pandemic created a new space for innovation. People needed more than just common items that they would typically order from Amazon. The grocery team had to think about the entire user journey, user needs, and specifically how the pandemic affected every checkpoint in the shopping experience.
Solution.
The grocery team and Alexa design team encourage growth and new ideas, which are foundational to our long-term vision. Every year, our org's management writes a document to evolve the future vision of Alexa and reflect on our progress, gaining alignment on our goal of revolutionizing online shopping.
With Alexa's AI's tailored user-data, the purchase process is streamlined by understanding user's needs and wants, making decisions faster and anticipating needs.
Process.
Evaluate - Getting to know the team, empathizing with their issues, and understanding the workflow.
Conceptualization - Forming hypotheses for potential solutions.
Iteration - Feedback sessions and testing.
Finalization - Presenting final solution and strategy.
Modalities.
This project spanned many touchpoints throughout the Amazon echo system creating challeeges of translating a single experioence across multiple surfaces.
Amazon App (mobile)
Headless Echo Devices
Headed Echo Devices.
Big Picture.
With Alexa in the Amazon App, customers can access the helpfulness of Alexa anytime and anywhere, making searching and shopping faster. Just as quickly as people’s interests, hobbies, and life needs change, Alexa can help shop & support them. We worked back from our hero characters as they recruited Alexa's help to give voice to a new part of themselves, whether that's their latest adventure or a new life chapter. Alexa is there anytime to assist the ever-evolving shopping and life needs of every customer.
Just say the word.
Below, we dive even deeper.
Product Vision.
The Vision
With Alexa's AI's tailored user-data, the purchase process is streamlined by understanding user's needs and wants, making decisions faster and anticipating needs.
The Problem
Over the last decade, online shopping has become a prevalent part of our lives. However, in 2020, the pandemic created a new space for innovation. People needed more than just common items that they would typically order from Amazon. The grocery team had to think about the entire user journey, user needs, and specifically how the pandemic affected every checkpoint in the shopping experience.
In 2020, the number of Amazon users grew to over 300 million, with 200 million subscribed to Amazon Prime. In the US alone, 65% of the population used Amazon to shop for products during the pandemic. These numbers were unprecedented, so we needed to find a new way to shop.
With Whole Foods and Amazon Fresh stores being part of Amazon, we had a significant opportunity to utilize Alexa to automate some of the more tedious parts of online grocery shopping.
Our Goals
Develop intuitive solutions that simplify the grocery shopping experience for customers using Alexa's AI.
Anticipate user needs and streamline the purchase process.
Automate tedious parts of online grocery shopping, such as ordering and delivery.
Create experiences that make the shopping journey easier and more enjoyable for users.
Save users time and money while reducing stress associated with grocery delivery.
I helped the team expand the visual experience of AIA (Alexa In-Store Assistant). Through this work, I gained an understanding of AIA's functionality and its limitless possibilities to help our users.
What is broken?
Grocery shopping is typically not the highlight of people's lives. However, since the pandemic, online grocery shopping has revolutionized the world of grocery delivery. According to Adobe, U.S. consumers spent $1.7 trillion online between March 2020 and February 2022, which is $609 billion more than they spent in 2018 and 2019 combined.Despite this increase in online shopping, over 70% of the U.S. population still shops in-store due to the hassles of online grocery shopping. Amazon can utilize Alexa to help users who prefer not to order groceries online. With Alexa's knowledge of online grocery ordering, we can address pain points such as finding item availability, item location, and general gripes about shopping to make the experience less taxing
Finding the Solution
At Amazon, we approached problem-solving by working backwards. After analyzing user shopping habits, we shifted from a task-oriented perspective to a benefit-oriented one. For instance, we changed the working problem statement "As a user, I want to use Alexa to make my grocery shopping experience easier" to "As a user, I want to purchase my groceries easier without added actions or thoughts."Our research revealed that over 75% of users prefer not to add anything extra to their shopping routine. Therefore, I was tasked with expanding existing experiences beyond their initial capabilities. The success of this approach led to the introduction of the In-store experience to mobile devices and millions of Amazon customers.
The Idea
After realizing that the project was bigger than expected, I explored various end-to-end experiences, such as using Amazon mailboxes for easy returns and Alexa for pre-built shopping lists. Due to time constraints, we decided to roll out these Alexa updates in increments. After reviewing with my team, stakeholders, and management, we narrowed our focus to pre-purchase planning. Our main question was how to adapt existing Alexa In-Store-Assistant experience patterns to mobile without adding extra steps. We found that pre-purchase planning was tedious for customers, with users shopping at about four different stores per month.To solve this issue, we focused on making item information easier to access. I created a simple user flow using the newly implemented FAB 2.0.
What is broken?
Grocery shopping is typically not the highlight of people's lives. However, since the pandemic, online grocery shopping has revolutionized the world of grocery delivery. According to Adobe, U.S. consumers spent $1.7 trillion online between March 2020 and February 2022, which is $609 billion more than they spent in 2018 and 2019 combined.Despite this increase in online shopping, over 70% of the U.S. population still shops in-store due to the hassles of online grocery shopping. Amazon can utilize Alexa to help users who prefer not to order groceries online. With Alexa's knowledge of online grocery ordering, we can address pain points such as finding item availability, item location, and general gripes about shopping to make the experience less taxing
Finding the Solution
At Amazon, we approached problem-solving by working backwards. After analyzing user shopping habits, we shifted from a task-oriented perspective to a benefit-oriented one. For instance, we changed the working problem statement "As a user, I want to use Alexa to make my grocery shopping experience easier" to "As a user, I want to purchase my groceries easier without added actions or thoughts."Our research revealed that over 75% of users prefer not to add anything extra to their shopping routine. Therefore, I was tasked with expanding existing experiences beyond their initial capabilities. The success of this approach led to the introduction of the In-store experience to mobile devices and millions of Amazon customers.
The Idea
After realizing that the project was bigger than expected, I explored various end-to-end experiences, such as using Amazon mailboxes for easy returns and Alexa for pre-built shopping lists. Due to time constraints, we decided to roll out these Alexa updates in increments. After reviewing with my team, stakeholders, and management, we narrowed our focus to pre-purchase planning. Our main question was how to adapt existing Alexa In-Store-Assistant experience patterns to mobile without adding extra steps. We found that pre-purchase planning was tedious for customers, with users shopping at about four different stores per month.To solve this issue, we focused on making item information easier to access. I created a simple user flow using the newly implemented FAB 2.0.
After the team agreed on our user direction, we were able to establish a rough design for the experience. We were very mindful of the launch of Alexa FAB 2.0, so we used design assets directly from the style guide to ensure continuity of visual elements.In this experience, a user is planning for a grocery run, making a list, and using Alexa to ensure that there are no surprises when they actually begin shopping.
Solution.
Alexa Anytime
With Alexa in the Amazon App, customers can access the helpfulness of Alexa anytime and anywhere, making searching and shopping faster. Just as quickly as people’s interests, hobbies, and life needs change, Alexa can help shop & support them. We worked back from our hero characters as they recruited Alexa's help to give voice to a new part of themselves, whether that's their latest adventure or a new life chapter. Alexa is there anytime to assist the ever-evolving shopping and life needs of every customer.
Just say the word.
The Process.
The Vision
I examined common themes of tools the team already uses, such as Tommorrow.io, as well as different products, such as Google Maps and Zillow, who have well designed map experiences as well as interaction patterns.
With Alexa's AI's tailored user-data, the purchase process is streamlined by understanding user's needs and wants, making decisions faster and anticipating needs.
Amazon's design process operates on both a large and small scale, with a focus on both the big picture and the details. Even the smallest decisions can impact millions of people and revenue.To stay agile and flexible, our design team structured our sprints around fundamental UX checkpoints: Discover, Define, Ideate, Prototype, and Test.
Discover
- As the design lead, I begin the process by delving into the discovery phase. When a project is assigned to me, I thoroughly examine any information given to me from the product manager or past designers. I take the time to plan a strategy, review timelines, and prepare for the initial kickoff meeting.
- I prioritize our customers, taking into consideration their needs and begin to understand the problems they face throughout their experience.
Define
- I prioritize meetings with stakeholders, product partners, and management to align on scope, deliverables, timeline, etc.
- At the beginning of each meeting, I clearly communicate the meeting goal and agenda. My aim is for everyone to leave the meeting with a better understanding of our customer, their problems, and the key points to focus on.
- I tackle big, ambiguous problems. Conversations during the kickoff meeting provide a foundation for constructing a solution. My product partners and I create a working problem statement that clearly defines our problem.
Ideate
- After the kickoff, I compile meeting notes into a "single source of truth" document to ensure everyone is honest and focused on creating an exceptional product for our users.
- I generate ideas by exploring different solutions while empathizing with the customer and asking questions about their experiences.
- I sketch rough solutions to bring my ideas to life and iterate quickly.
- Once I validate my design direction with other designers and create wireframes, I review my work with my team and product partners.
Prototype & Test
- Once my entire team has aligned on the details, we can validate and agree upon the final design directions.
- I bring our finalized ideas to life in full color, adding interactions and creating guidelines for our development team.
- We use these prototypes and hi-fi mocks in user testing, which is sometimes done in person, as well as online through Usertesting.com.
- We review our findings, make necessary tweaks, and move on to the next phase of product development.
Product Launch.
Alexa In Store Assistant at Home
If you shop at Whole Foods, you may encounter an Alexa device while browsing the aisles. Our team has created an experience that allows Alexa to assist you while shopping in-store. Whether you need a price check, help locating an item, or ideas for recipes, Alexa has got you covered.
The Extreme Events Command Center, an internally developed tool, that integrates map, weather, and event data for Instacart's Live Operations team. The tool's potential extends to other internal teams, retail partners, and external entities. It could generate millions in profit by using AI to predict business disruptions, save revenue, and potentially save lives.
This experience went through several iterations, adding and removing features to ensure that we arrived at the most lean and efficient solution possible. Here are a few examples of how we proposed expanding the experience's functionality.
The product team wanted to prioritize speed and quickly launching experiences. In the end, we were able to compromise by ensuring that we focus on doing one thing exceptionally well before a full-scale launch. The resulting experience allows users who already use Alexa to confidently plan their shopping trips quickly.
The product team wanted to prioritize speed and quickly launching experiences. In the end, we were able to compromise by ensuring that we focus on doing one thing exceptionally well before a full-scale launch. The resulting experience allows users who already use Alexa to confidently plan their shopping trips quickly.
The Extreme Events Command Center, an internally developed tool, that integrates map, weather, and event data for Instacart's Live Operations team. The tool's potential extends to other internal teams, retail partners, and external entities. It could generate millions in profit by using AI to predict business disruptions, save revenue, and potentially save lives.
The Extreme Events Command Center, an internally developed tool, that integrates map, weather, and event data for Instacart's Live Operations team. The tool's potential extends to other internal teams, retail partners, and external entities. It could generate millions in profit by using AI to predict business disruptions, save revenue, and potentially save lives.
On Nov 10th, the Alexa Shopping Grocery team launched two features for US customers who use the Amazon shopping app on iOS or Android phones. With these experiences, US customers can use Alexa on the Amazon shopping app to check whether an item is available in their local Amazon Fresh or Whole Foods physical store (mapped to customer’s shipping address, i.e., GLOW address), as well as find out where a particular item is located in-store.
Customers can ask an item availability question (e.g., “Does my Whole Foods have bananas?”, “Does Amazon Fresh sell organic yogurt?”) as well as enquire about the in-store location of a particular product (e.g., “Where can I find canned tuna at Whole Foods?”). They can experience these benefits by using the Alexa wake word, or, tapping the floating action button (FAB), or, using the microphone icon in the app’s search bar. On doing so, they get a visual response in the form of a bottom sheet, that is complemented with Alexa’s voice response. Customers see the results rendered in a list view with attributes like product name, rating, price and aisle number or the specific department in-store.
With these launches, we are helping customers plan their store trip by extending some of the features offered by the Alexa in-store assistant kiosks, to customer’s phone. Now customers can use these experiences even before they reach the store. Our learnings with these features will inform other mobile experiences planned for 2023, to make Alexa a more useful omni-channel assistant that helps customers save 9me and money, whenever they shop in-store. Mobile presence also opens up access to Whole Foods customers and can amplify customer adoption of the Alexa in-store assistant.
Customers can ask an item availability question (e.g., “Does my Whole Foods have bananas?”, “Does Amazon Fresh sell organic yogurt?”) as well as enquire about the in-store location of a particular product (e.g., “Where can I find canned tuna at Whole Foods?”). They can experience these benefits by using the Alexa wake word, or, tapping the floating action button (FAB), or, using the microphone icon in the app’s search bar. On doing so, they get a visual response in the form of a bottom sheet, that is complemented with Alexa’s voice response. Customers see the results rendered in a list view with attributes like product name, rating, price and aisle number or the specific department in-store.
With these launches, we are helping customers plan their store trip by extending some of the features offered by the Alexa in-store assistant kiosks, to customer’s phone. Now customers can use these experiences even before they reach the store. Our learnings with these features will inform other mobile experiences planned for 2023, to make Alexa a more useful omni-channel assistant that helps customers save 9me and money, whenever they shop in-store. Mobile presence also opens up access to Whole Foods customers and can amplify customer adoption of the Alexa in-store assistant.
Next Steps & Learnings.
This product taught me the importance of advocating for design principles while compromising on features for the good of the company. My original design explorations were on a large scale, creating a feasibility issue for the product. I aimed to create an impactful user experience, but had to compromise on some features during the first launch to begin building the experience. While my design recommendations were taken into consideration, logistical constraints were prioritized and we agreed that our P0 would be a lighter version of what it could be.
I strongly defended the principles of design, customer needs, and myself. Communicating with product managers and developers who did not "speak UX" was challenging, but I never missed an opportunity for education. I was not only a UX designer, but also a teacher and user advocate to those outside of the discipline.
Designing at Amazon was messy, non-linear, and surprisingly difficult to reduce to a case study. However, my growth as a designer during my tenure at Amazon was immeasurable. I forced myself to adapt to the environment, embraced curiosity, and learned as many lessons as possible along the way. I also found new passions in leadership, mentoring, and speaking. I shared my story with designers who followed me, spoke on the importance of UX on panels, and taught other tech professionals how to advocate for themselves in the corporate world. I expanded my world by taking advantage of networking events, such as Afrotech, and passionately represented my profession with pride.
I strongly defended the principles of design, customer needs, and myself. Communicating with product managers and developers who did not "speak UX" was challenging, but I never missed an opportunity for education. I was not only a UX designer, but also a teacher and user advocate to those outside of the discipline.
Designing at Amazon was messy, non-linear, and surprisingly difficult to reduce to a case study. However, my growth as a designer during my tenure at Amazon was immeasurable. I forced myself to adapt to the environment, embraced curiosity, and learned as many lessons as possible along the way. I also found new passions in leadership, mentoring, and speaking. I shared my story with designers who followed me, spoke on the importance of UX on panels, and taught other tech professionals how to advocate for themselves in the corporate world. I expanded my world by taking advantage of networking events, such as Afrotech, and passionately represented my profession with pride.
Instacart: live ops vision
( 01 )
Instacart: Live Ops - phase 1
( 02 )
Amazon: GROCERY SHOPPING W/ ALEXA
( 03 )
DRMA: DEMYSTIFYING THE SKINCARE ASILE
( 04 )
I Design Stuff.
