Carolina
Rabbit Company

Load Up with Ammunition

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Overview

Ammunition can serve as an outlet, providing a sense of control to some and freedom to others. It has the power to connect people with their emotions by evoking an emotional response.

Carolina Rabbit Company (CRC) wants to improve engagement and trust in making purchases on their website in order to provide customers with the best possible online ammo purchasing experience. To this end, they plan to enhance the customer experience by prototyping a feature with updated user flows and branding. Through research and analysis, we aim to identify user needs and expectations in order to develop a website that allows customers to interact confidently and intuitively.

Goal

Investigate ways to create an experience that enables users to engage and trust Carolina Rabbit Company during their shopping journey.

Challenge

CRC's mission is to provide quality ammunition to educate people on the responsible use of firearms and ammunition. As an ammunition company, we are dedicated to offering our customers the most ethical resources available. We recognize the importance of building trust with our customers when it comes to purchasing ammunition online.

Availability
Quality
Manufacturing Accuracy
Prices/Sold Out Items
Price Comparisons
Unreliable Sellers
Ammo Sizes
Ammo Quantities
Shipping Process
Compliance with the Law

Solution

— Product Strategy — Audits — User Research — Persona Creation — Empathy Paths — User Flow — Wireframing —
— UI Design & Prototyping — Illustration & Icon Design — Usability Testing — Quality Assurance —

Research Findings

MarketWatch reported on May 22, 2022 that MarketsandResearch.biz provides an analysis of the current Ammunition market trends and the projected growth of the industry from 2022 to 2028. This report also looks into the major factors driving, restraining, and influencing the Ammunition market growth, such as challenges, drivers, restraints, and opportunities. Moreover, the report focuses on major international industry players of the Ammunition market, providing information such as cost, company profiles, price, product images and specifications, capacity, production, contact information, and revenue. Additionally, a SWOT analysis is conducted to evaluate the performance of the vendors.

Key Insights

The user is interested in purchasing quality ammunition from an online company.
The user values an intuitive and engaging customer experience when interacting with an online ammunition company.
The user desires a straightforward ordering process and the ability to interact with other like-minded individuals.
The user wants to be able to compare prices, categorize ammo sizes, quantities, and availability, and participate in sales that adhere to the law.
The user expects the online shop to offer a user-friendly navigation system and to be easily accessible.

Competitor Research

Competitors in the online ammunition market, such as Brownells, MidwayUSA, Natchez Shooter Supplies, Cabela's and Bass Pro Shops have also recognized this problem and have implemented various strategies to solve it. Some examples of how they might solve this problem include offering a wide range of firearms, ammunition, and accessories, competitive pricing, good customer service, streamlining the shipping process and ensuring compliance with laws and regulations. These strategies can attract more customers and improve engagement on their websites, build trust with their customers, improve the customer experience, and increase customer satisfaction.

Interview Guide

Methodologies

Contextual Laddering
We asked user questions about their experience with purchasing and ammunition.

The aim adheres to gathering qualitative data on preferences, frustrations while gaining information on individual lifestyles and thought process.

Some questions:
What is your past experience with buying ammo online?
What aspects have you appreciated or disliked?
Do you ever recommend a specific brand over another? If so, what is the reasoning?
What factors make you trust the online ammo purchasing process?
What challenges have you encountered when ordering ammunition?
Do you ever buy ammo in stores? If so, what are the reasons?
What would it be like to buy ammo and connect with other like-minded individuals?
What advantages do you think an online shop could offer?
How does your purchasing experience discourage you from ordering?
What do you think could build trust in your online experience?

View Full Interview Guide Here

Participants

The target audiences and demographics for online ammo purchasing are individuals who have an interest in firearms and/or need ammunition for their firearms. This includes recreational shooters, hunters, law enforcement officers, and anyone who needs access to quality ammunition. These individuals are likely to be aged 18 and above, and have access to the internet.

Personas

Based on the data gathered through user interviews and secondary research, we developed personas that accurately reflect the characteristics, motivations, and concerns of our target audience. One of the personas, Johnathan Tacom, is a dedicated hunter and sports enthusiast who places a strong emphasis on quality and reliability when purchasing ammunition. The information obtained through user interviews provided valuable insights into the priorities and expectations of our target audience, specifically in regards to online ammunition purchases and accessibility.

The creation of these personas allowed us to develop empathy maps that effectively capture the emotions, pain points, and revenue streams of our target audience. These personas were utilized as a reference point throughout the entire product development process to ensure that our solutions aligned with the needs and expectations of our target market.

User Stories

As a user I want to...

Needs

Develop the capability to:

Display ammo availability and quality
Sort and toggle between prices, sold out items, and quantities
Compare prices
Offer an intuitive customer experience to inspire trust and deter users from shady sellers
Categorize ammo sizes and quantities
Streamline the shipping experience
Create sales that adhere to the law.

User Flow

As a user I want to compare ammunition prices and checkout through CRC Website.

Johnathan visits the Carolina Rabbit Company (CRC) website.
He browses the website and looks for information on the company, its mission, and its products.
He reviews customer feedback and reads reviews to gauge the trustworthiness and reliability of the company.
He uses the website's navigation to find the products he is looking for, such as ammunition type and caliber.
He compares prices with other online ammunition companies using the website's comparison tool.
He selects the product he wants to purchase and adds it to his cart.
He proceeds to checkout and enters his shipping information.
He confirms his order and pays for the purchase.
He receives a confirmation email with the order details and shipping information.
He receives his purchase in the mail and is satisfied with the quality and reliability of the ammunition and the overall customer experience.

Sitemap

Based on the CRC Website Audit, I organized the pages into a hierarchical structure. This helps to visually convey the relationships between different sections of your website for our target audience.

Wireframes

Based off the initial project's materials and research, the ideas where incorporated into wireframes. To help visualize how the app should be structured, low-fidelity wireframes for the main pages were created in XD/Figma.

Style Guide

A style guide has been created with the purpose of upholding the new brand guidelines. It includes the addition of colors, text, icons and other elements that adhere to the CRC brand identity. A constant improvement on emphasizing the need for creating a design system that will help build trust among the target audience.

Design Comps

Upon conducting an audit on the Carolina Rabbit Co website, the website's information architecture was inadequate. The analysis revealed a poorly designed sitemap, leading users directly to the About page. Additionally, the user experience during the checkout process was cumbersome, which impacted the brand's credibility and trustworthiness. The brand also lacked a clear identity, prompting to create a comprehensive guide and rebrand. To attract more customers, a strategic plan was devised and conducted extensive design research, resulting in a new website and brand identity that is more user-friendly and appealing.

Comparing Ammo Selections

Following thorough research of the target audience for the ammunition, it was evident that people desired a sense of trust and the ability to compare the ammunition with those of other competitors. To fulfill this need, additional features were enabled to compare Carolina Rabbit Co's ammunition with that of competitors. This feature would provide users with the assurance that Carolina Rabbit Co's ammunition is the most cost-effective option available to them.

All-In-One

A comprehensive website that combines product listings, online courses, and booking options into a single platform. This enables users to have a more convenient and streamlined experience, eliminating the need for personal contact or reliabilities from Carolina Rabbit Co. The website provides a range of resources, including on-hand learning experiences and discounts, that are accessible in one place, encouraging customers to return for further product purchases, online courses, and training.

UI Distinction

UI interface strategy that emphasizes a visually appealing display of the product selections, which aligns with the brand. When customers add products to their wish list, they can view the brand's product selection. However, upon proceeding to the cart and checkout process, a standard ecommerce UI is displayed with clear visibility of their purchase. This feature assists customers in comprehending the difference between their cart and their wish list, minimizing any potential confusion.

Check Out Optimization

To optimize the checkout process, a simple process and streamline payment options is emphasized. Offering clear shipping options and costs, providing discounts or promotions, and optimizing for mobile devices. By doing so, customers can quickly and easily complete their purchase, increasing conversion rates and providing a seamless experience.

Prototype

The prototype includes features such as product pages, shopping cart functionality, checkout processes, and customer account management. These features are represented as basic layouts or clickable actions that allow users to interact with the website and provide feedback on the design and functionality.

We are continuously working to improve and make our website more accessible to users. We have also integrated accessibility guidelines to ensure that our website is accessible to users with disabilities. We understand that every user is different and we want to make sure that everyone can access and use our website.

We are confident that these changes will have a positive impact on our users and look forward to launching our updated website. We will keep you informed as we move through this process and welcome any feedback or suggestions you may have.

We invite you to stay tuned as we roll out these exciting changes and improvements to our website. It's our top priority to deliver a website that is easy to use, visually appealing and accessible to all.

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Carolina Rabbit Company