JODIE BARR | PRODUCT DESIGNER
Turning fragmented shopping into a guided project experience
Transforming fragmented home improvement shopping into a guided holistic shopping experience to support complex projects, in-store navigation and higher conversion.
OVERVIEW
Home improvement projects require customers to coordinate materials, plan store visits, and navigate large retail environments This friction leads to missed items, inefficient trips and abandoned projects.
MY ROLE
Product Designer
PRODUCT OUTCOMES
- Reduce in-store navigation time
- Increase through through project completion
- Increase app engagement (especially with contractors)
- Reduce dependency on store associates
- Drive repeated use among Pro users
PLATFORM
Mobile App
SCOPE
0 to 1 Product Concept
PROBLEM SPACE
Project-based shopping isn't just about finding products, it's about coordinating an entire job through planning, timing and execution.
Fragmented Planning
- Materials are scattered across notes, past purchases and memory
- No clear way to prepare a full project in advance
Insufficient Trips
- Time is spent location items and finding help
- Missing items result in multiple trips
- Associate availability and expertise varies
Disjointed Process
- Planning doesn't translate to in-stare action
- Lists fail to guide the shopping experience beyond planning materials
THE STRATEGY
Reframing project based shopping as a connected system that supports users from planning to execution.
01 Plan
Ideas + Materials
02 Prepare
Define project needs
03 Shop
Locate items
Continuity
Connecting planning, shopping and tracking into one flow.
Efficiency
Reduce time spent navigating and decision making
Contextual Awareness
Adapting the experience depending on where the user is in their journey.
Scalability
Balance simplicity with power
Current solutions solve isolated problems but break down across the entire journey.
Enhanced Lists
Improves organization but fails to support in-store execution
Store Map Enhancements
Helps with navigation but is only useful in store.
Integrated Trip System
Connects planning, navigation and tracking into 1 experience.
• Creates a cohesive experience
• Allows improvements & visibility across multiple features
• Increases project completion and accuracy
THE EXPERIENCE
A connected, trip-based system that unifies planning, navigation, and project completion. Built on familiar tools to reduce friction and cognitive load.
PLAN
Building a project, not just a list
Transform scattered ideas into a structured actionable project plan.
- Build from existing lists and past purchases, or start
from scratch.
- Continue planning across multiple sessions
- Surface relevant items to reduce time spent planning materials
+ List Starters
Pre-built item sets to help users quickly start lists and avoid missing critical materials.
From list to project manager
Transforms static list into a helpful tool.
- Real time availability and substitutions prevent failed trips.
- Cost and quantity updates improve accuracy and
decision making.
- Time estimates and service add-ons support efficient execution.
PREPARE
Trip Transparency
Surfaces key constraints before entering store to reduce friction and failed trips.
- Reveal availability and out of stock items early
- Provide cost estimates for better planning
- Show store distance for time sensitive decisions
Personalized Trips
Experience adapts to user needs, reducing reliance on store associates and improving efficiency.
- Plan services in advance (paint mixing, cutting, etc.
- Capture question ahead of time to reduce in-store friction
- Add consultations directly to trips
EXECUTE
Live Checklist
Turns projects into a guided, real time
shopping experience
- Item mapping reduces time spent navigating
- Item availability prevents surprises and failed trips
- Project tracking keeps users aligned throughout trips
Trip Tracker
Visibility into planned and active trips reduce need for communication within organizations
- Track progress across active trips
- Enable visibility across team member
- View past, current and upcoming trips at a glance.
TRADEOFFS & DECISIONS
Rather than designing isolated features, I structured the experience as a connected system that supports users across the full journey.
Balancing DIY & PRO needs
This concept needed to provide value to both DIT & Pro users.
I prioritized a structured but flexible system that could easily scale.
Pro specific features could be developed after gaining insight from DIY users.
Navigation vs. planning depth
Earlier concepts focused heavily on in store features, but I shifted towards strengthening pre-trip planning and eliminating or surfacing issues before high impact moments.
Organizational constraints led me to focus on defining a scalable system rather than over optimizing individual features.