Oak Furnitureland (OFL), a leading UK retailer most known for high-quality hardwood furniture, faced a unique challenge. 

While their oak furniture was popular, their equally high-quality sofa range faced challenges gaining online traction, despite its strong in-store performance. 

To address this disparity and enhance their position as a leading sofa retailer in the UK, OFL partnered with Creative CX to work on a project that focused on understanding customer needs to design a “best-in-class” online sofa category.

JTBD Interviews

We conducted Jobs to Be Done (JTBD) interviews to uncover customers’ motivations, needs, and pain points when purchasing a sofa.

We explored more than just the functional needs to make sure that we understood users’ emotional and social needs when buying a sofa, of which there were many!

These exploratory interviews, conducted with 20 participants, identified two primary triggers for sofa purchases:

• Negative Triggers: Functional needs such as replacing old, damaged, or unsuitable sofas.
• Positive Triggers: Aspirational goals, like furnishing a new home or achieving a desires aesthetic.

The interviews revealed that sofa purchasing involves a complex, multi-stage journey that was more akin to significant investments like buying a car or house. 

Buying a sofa entailed various jobs which can be grouped under 7 categories:

1. Scanning – looking to see what was available and from who.
   
2. Searching – focusing on finding the best sofa that matches the vision.
3. Reassurance – checking that the preferred choice is the wisest choice.
4. Purchase – going ahead to make the transaction.
5. Delivery Period – preparing for the arrival.
6. Arrival – the event of the delivery.
7. Enjoyment – the experience of the sofa and any other delivery care.

Customers typically took twelve to eighteen months from initial consideration to purchase, navigating various stages such as inspiration, active research, reassurance, and post-purchase experience.

OFL Usability Testing

Following the conclusion of the JTBD interviews, we gained a full understanding of the UK sofa-buying journey and a prioritised list of user needs.

However, we still needed to identify how well the OFL website specifically performed against these user expectations.

Therefore, we conducted usability testing with 8 participants to evaluate the OFL website’s performance against user expectations. Key findings included:

• Users found the delivery process confusing, particularly around options and fees.
• The lack of detailed information on sofa comfort and material quality compared unfavourably with competitors.
• Marketing overlays, such as newspaper pop-ups, detracted from the browsing experience.

JTBD Survey

Building on interview insights, we designed and conducted a JTBD importance survey with 1,047 participants from a UK representative panel.

This quantitative research assessed the relative importance of 35 user needs, such as material quality, comfort, delivery options, warranty.

For each user need, participants were asked how important this aspect was to them on a scale of:

1. Not at all important
2. Somewhat important
3. Important
4. Very important
5. Extremely important

We ranked these needs to identify the top 5-10 priorities that OFL should address to deliver the best customer value.

Competitor Usability Testing

As we moved into the recommendations phase, it was clear that whilst some low-effort opportunities were available, there were also a number of ideas that needed significant investments to make a difference.

With many of these tools and features already available on competitor websites, we decided to test the effectiveness of those before recommending that OFL undertake this investment. 

We reviewed a selection of competitor websites, assessing tools and features against identified user needs. This revealed best practices in augmented reality visualisation, comfort demonstrations, and user-generated content (e.g. reviews with photos).

Key insights from our research included that digital tools, such as 3D modelling and video demonstrations of comfort, were highly effective in conveying product attributes online.

Customer Journey Mapping

By combining insights from JTBD interviews, usability testing, and competitor analysis, we created a comprehensive customer journey map.

This allowed us to pinpoint pain points and opportunities across each phase of the buying journey, from initial inspiration to post-purchase satisfaction.

One of the key takeaways was the misalignment between the timing of key product details and customer decision-making moments.

For example, reassurance factors like payment options and delivery details were highlighted early in the process when customers were still deciding on aesthetics and comfort. Addressing this helped to create a more intuitive and engaging journey for the customer.

Content and UX Enhancements

With a proper understanding of the full customer journey and a prioritised list of user needs, we moved into the design phase.

The overarching objective for the redesign was to position OFL as a trusted sofa retailer, balancing their well-established reputation for hardwood furniture with the need to highlight the quality and value of their sofas.

The primary problem we were addressing was how to showcase the distinct qualities of OFL’s sofas without confusing or alienating customers who primarily associate the brand with oak furniture.

To solve this, we focused on improving the customer experience by emphasising the product attributes that matter most to customers throughout the entire purchasing journey.

These objectives guided our redesign of the entire sofa category on the website, which included Product Listing Pages (PLP) and Product Display Pages (PDPs).

While material value, quality, comfort, and UK manufacturing were prioritised as key features, we also identified a critical timing issue in how and when information was presented to customers during their journey.

Payment options (e.g. 0% finance), delivery information, and warranty/guarantees were all highlighted heavily on the PLPs and were very prominent on PDPs.

However, these were all considerations in the ‘reassurance’ step of the customer journey. First, they needed to fall in love with the sofa and decide that the style, colour, comfort, and material quality would all meet their needs. Only then were they concerned with those more practical steps of the proposition.

By shifting these details to the appropriate stages in the customer journey, we helped create a more intuitive flow that encouraged customers to focus on the emotional aspects of the purchase before addressing logical ones.

Experimentation Roadmap

We presented 16 initiatives to consider and prioritise. These initiatives addressed the most important user needs and opportunities for OFL.

Our recommendations extended beyond UX to broader business strategies, such as: 

• Positioning OFL as a trusted sofa supplier through targeted SEO and paid campaigns.
• Developing a content strategy that highlights key differentiators like solid oak frames and UK craftsmanship.
• Introducing augmented reality and comfort-focused digital tools to enhance the online shopping experience.
• Recommending improvements to the omnichannel journey to ensure store visits sync up with the digital journey.

With Creative CX’s support, OFL gained actionable insights and a clear path forward to achieve their vision of a best-in-class sofa category.

By aligning their digital presence with customer needs and optimising their website experience, OFL is better positioned to redefine their brand beyond hardwood furniture.

Conclusion

Creative CX’s collaboration with Oak Furnitureland highlights the impact of customer-centric research and experimentation.

By gaining a thorough understanding of the customer journey, we were able to help OFL enhance their approach to selling sofas, delivering a more intuitive and engaging online experience.

If you’re ready to build a best-in-class experience for your customers, get in touch with us today