MELBOURNE, AU
Redesigning an AI Logomaker, 46% conversion uplift
But isn’t everyone doing AI?! There is a clear direction of travel, but balancing outcomes with cost-to-serve is a tricky balance
ROLE - DESIGN LEADER | TWO PRODUCT TEAMS INVOLVED | VISTA
The problem
Vistaprint's Logomaker is a key customer acquisition tool for the company, establishing a relationship right at the start of a new businesses journey. However, the product was showing its age. In a crowded marketplace the template based approach struggled to stand out and there was a ceiling on the quality of outcomes we could provide.
We made the call to re-tool Logomaker from the ground up around a generative AI engine. This was a high-priority, but high-risk bet. We were confident in the opportunity, but the cost of generation and thus the cost of acquisition, was unknown and difficult to quantify.
Design for where the tech will be, not the now
More guidance than an empty text prompt
Tighten the connection between input and result
Principals driven development
As the design leader on this project, my role was to keep multiple designers across multiple teams pointed at the same core problem - landing an AI experience that delivered great outcomes for customers, as quickly as we could. We started with alignment and I ran a series of workshops to frame the problem. Out of these came three principles we used to hold the line for the rest of the project
Creative testing with an embryonic AI engine
Testing an AI system pre-launch is a challenge. We tested with internal tools, competitor systems, async and moderated user interviews to de-risk the design approach and highlight the path towards a successful design. Not every idea worked but we learnt along the way and we prioritised editing, non-linear flows and other core interaction decisions.
Testing with internal tools
Async testing
Moderated user testing
Shiny and new doesn’t automatically mean better
A second team worked in parallel to re-design the landing pages and front of funnel experience to align with the product changes. There included close collaboration with marketing and other teams to tie in with promotional efforts.
An immediate impact
46% increase in new account creation
60% increase in logo completion
Results very positive on launch, with clear improvements seen in what customers were able to do. ‘Classic’ logomaker outputs on the left, contrasted with AI logomaker design outcomes on the right.
We got some healthy press coverage too, with TechRadar Pro's review calling it one of ‘the best tools of its type’ which was cool to see. The teams’ work on this project was awesome and it was super rewarding to support this programme of work 👏
“VistaPrint's AI logo maker is one of the best of its type - it's incredibly simple to use, even for those with little to no design skills. And results are generally good.”