Overview
This was my first internship! And my first chance to apply what I’d learned in class to answer real business questions. The timeline was fairly short, at just five weeks. I worked with another UXR intern to conduct a competitive analysis for an e-commerce startup in the vacation rental marketspace. We developed strategy and design recommendations that we presented at a company-wide presentation.
Gap Analysis
After an initial meeting with the UXR team and project stakeholders to discuss goals and deliverables, we began evaluating the onboarding process for five notable competitors. During this stage, we created two gap analyses: one for the external facing marketing features and one for the platform.
Gap analysis of marketing features
Gap analysis of platform features
For the platform gap analysis, we provided a comprehensive assessment of each competitor across all chosen metrics. These competitor profiles were useful during our next analysis.
Example of an in-depth analysis of a single competitor
SWOT Analysis
Using what we learned from the gap analyses, we were able to quickly pinpoint specific strengths and weaknesses of the business, as well as opportunities and threats relative to competitors.
Things that put this business at an advantage in the market
Things that put this business at an disadvantage in the market
Elements of a competitor that present both opportunities and threats
Sales and Product Analytics
While I can't share specific details about the trends we found, this analysis revealed opportunities for future directions in marketing and client resource development. Acting on these findings can promote realistic expectations among clients and provide actionable recommendations designed to increase sales.
A visualization of sales data descriptive statistics
Design Recommendations
We also assessed the information architecture of the marketing website and platform, and provided alternative designs emphasizing clear hierarchy and minimizing redundancy when appropriate. The original designs were excellent, and we only made a few changes (some of which were already under construction!)
Mockup of alternative platform organization
Mockup of alternative marketing page design
Areas to leverage salient visual elements like size, color, and movement to increase usability and delight
Final Thoughts
Working with this company was an amazing experience. I was really lucky to have an incredible teammate and supportive project manager. Quick and clear communication kept everyone on the same page and allowed us to get the most out of this analysis. I can't wait to work on more projects like this!
