I’ve been an avid user of Amazon for a little over 7 years. I’ve witnessed their interface change through multiple phases and the usability has improved drastically over the years.
Despite the high quality customer service and super fast deliveries, the application itself has led to frustration for me plenty of times. Here are some of my pain points and the changes I’d suggest for Amazon’s mobile app if given the chance.
Too Much Text + Not Enough Icons = The Land of Waldos
Navigating the account management page is like a game of Where’s Waldo when looking for a specific feature except EVERYTHING looks the same. There’s nothing but Waldo’s in the photo and you have to figure out which one is the correct one to select.
The selectable options aren’t related yet they all look the same.
‘Your Orders’ and ‘Login & Security’, although separated by sections, still look the exact same and depending on which one you’re searching for, there is nothing there to guide you to any specific option. You have to read each and every option to find what you’re looking for.
Its time consuming and frustrating. Not only are you spending more time searching for your saved addresses, you’re bombarded with so many options that its extremely overwhelming.
My suggestion: I would utilize icons to make selectable options standout. If I’m searching for my log-in and security info, I’m most likely looking for a button with a padlock or a key icon to indicated that this is where I’d go to change my password.
Membership Management is Hidden
I went to go pause my Prime membership a few weeks ago and noticed that it took me almost 5 minutes to navigate to where the membership management was located.
In the land of waldo, subscription management is almost at the end of the list! Hidden within the rest of the options on the account management page making it difficult to find and delaying the cancellation process.
This a clear case of deceptive UX, which I spoke about in my article about Airbnb’s deceptive user experience tactics. Deceptive UX does wonders for company growth and is favored by businesses for reaching certain metrics and goals.
As a designer, implementing these features for the business needs is normalized and has to be considered as we balance user needs and company success. Although I am able to understand this from a designers point of view, it’s frustrating as a user for obvious reasons.
As a result of this deceptive UX, cancellation of subscriptions is delayed and encourages users to give up on the cancellation process altogether if they’re unable to locate membership management.
My suggestion: I would utilize the ‘Your Account’ feature to highlight users membership logistics. Create a subscription streak feature and reward users for keeping up with their streak by continuing to subscribe to Prime (personalized discounts, exclusive deals, etc).
Although it makes it easier for users to access cancellation of their subscriptions, it encourages a level of trust and commitment with customers that may actually encourage them to keep their account.
No one likes having the wool pulled over their eyes, so stop doing it. Find a way to make incentives and let trust do the work for the company in order to retain loyal customers.
Navigating to Product Reviews is like Swimming Through Mud
Why are reviews buried under so much extra information? In between the product info and the reviews there’s always random photos and infographics that no one ever reads, taking up so much space.
They’re meant to be useful by providing a deep dive into specs regarding the product from the seller themselves. The idea behind this is great but it fails to take into account the shortened attention spans of online shoppers. I understand the purpose of these elements, however, I’ve witnessed numerous individuals just simply scroll past them.
I noticed a while back that Amazon implemented a button for jumping to reviews. I’ve also noticed that this button does not consistently appear on all product pages. It is unclear what pattern this feature follows and what determines whether or not a product gets this button to appear. It’s inconsistent and confusing.
If a customer is in the process of determining whether they should give your company their money, you want the process to be as smooth as possible. No roadblocks. No distractions. No hiccups.
My suggestion: Get rid of this section entirely. I believe that the product photos, description, and the reviews are able to provide all of the necessary info that a customer needs. Of course this theory would be better supported if backed by hotspot data and monitoring how much time users spend on each part of the product page but obviously my access to that info is limited. With my own experience in mind along with the observation of others, this isthe suggestion I’m making for now.
In Conclusion…
Amazon wouldn’t be the powerhouse that it is if they weren’t already making waves with their business model and user experience. These suggestions are simply just an indication that nothing is truly perfect and there is always progress to be made.
