While working on Apricot’s seller tools, I spotted an opportunity to evolve the platform from a seller-focused portal into a referral-first shopping experience. My goal was to make buying as seamless and engaging as selling — transforming Apricot into a true marketplace that encouraged community-driven growth and unlocked new revenue streams. Recognizing the potential, I explored what this new buyer journey could look like.
This was a self-initiated project outside my assigned scope. I researched buyer flows, mapped the end-to-end journey, and designed high-fidelity prototypes to bring the vision to life. When I shared the concept, feedback was enthusiastic — several noted they’d be more inclined to shop through this flow. While the feature wasn’t built before I left, I handed the designs to the CEO as a potential growth direction for Apricot.
While Apricot’s Phase 1 & Phase 2 redesign improved onboarding and seller tools, there was still untapped potential on the buyer side. I saw an opportunity to make shopping feel just as rewarding and engaging as selling — turning casual browsing into consistent purchasing.
Below shows the previous designs from Phase 1 & 2.
Coming out of Phase 2's UX improvements, Apricot had a smoother, more cohesive platform—but most users still weren’t actively shopping. Based on user insights, drop-off data from Hotjar and analytics, and a competitive review of successful e-commerce platforms, I identified opportunities to explore:
Encourage self-shopping as well as sharing
While Collections were central to the platform, many users treated them like personal wishlists—curating products but never purchasing. By rewarding users for shopping from their own Collections (in addition to purchases from shared links), Apricot could turn passive curators into active buyers, boosting engagement, retention, and overall sales activity.
Simplify and inspire product discovery
The browsing experience felt overwhelming, with limited entry points for exploration. By streamlining navigation, improving search and filters, and surfacing featured products and brands, Apricot could make shopping feel more approachable and enjoyable—guiding users smoothly from curiosity to checkout.
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Strengthen brand and seller visibility
Sellers and their products often felt buried within the platform. By showcasing curated collections, highlighting top-performing sellers, and featuring trending products, Apricot could create a richer shopping ecosystem—one that rewards sellers with greater exposure and helps buyers discover products worth purchasing.
How might we turn passive browsers into active buyers—while still encouraging sharing and discovery?
Challenge
Many users treated Collections like personal wishlists—curating products but rarely completing purchases. Without clear prompts or visible rewards for self-shopping, there was little motivation to move from browsing to buying, limiting sales and overall platform growth.
Solution
Displayed cash-back rewards at every step—from product pages to checkout—so users always knew exactly what they’d earn. This constant reinforcement encouraged more self-shopping and repeat purchases.
Challenge
Between seller shops, collections, and category views, the browsing experience felt scattered and unintuitive. Without easy ways to filter or search, users had trouble finding relevant products, lowering their likelihood to shop.
Solution
Streamlined navigation with improved filters, search, and brand discovery, plus a homepage showcasing trending products—making it faster for users to find what they love and buy.
Challenge
Sellers struggled for visibility beyond their immediate network, and collections often sat dormant after creation. Without ongoing engagement, Apricot’s social aspect—and its potential for organic growth—stalled.
Solution
I designed “Apricot Community,” a space where users could follow collections, discover new sellers, and share curated finds across social platforms—reviving the social loop and amplifying seller reach.
To get quick reactions on the proposed buyer-focused experience, I shared prototypes with peers and people familiar with shopping apps. Their feedback highlighted a few key points:
Visible rewards created excitement.
Several people noted that the upfront cash-back prompts made them want to explore further, since the value was clear right away.
Testers found the streamlined filters and search less overwhelming than the original layout, which previously felt “like too much scrolling.”
Community was motivating.
The concept of “Apricot Community” resonated with participants, who said they’d enjoy discovering products curated by others, not just browsing on their own.
Opportunities for refinement.
Some feedback suggested adding more guidance for first-time users — for example, onboarding tips about how collections could be used socially, not just as private wishlists.
Although this project was not implemented, I handed the vision and high-fidelity prototypes to the CEO as a foundation for future product strategy. The work provided a clear picture of how Apricot could expand into a referral-first marketplace — a direction with the potential to drive both long-term growth and stronger community engagement.
Next Steps
Phase 1 went through user testing and the results were
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