As our CMO, Tamara Niesen, talked about in her publish, our model is a crucial asset for our enterprise and all the Woo ecosystem. It raises the requirements for everybody who works collectively in constructing, innovating, and powering the WooCommerce shops that attain tens of millions of patrons.
Our new model is a illustration of our maturity and ambitions, and most significantly, the entrance door to our house — the very first thing many individuals see when visiting, returning, or contemplating WooCommerce for his or her enterprise. It units the tone and aspirations for all the things that comes after it.
Altering a model as long-lived as Woo shouldn’t be a simple feat, or one thing to be taken frivolously, nevertheless it was needed for us to raise our voice and mirror our development in the way in which we current ourselves. It’s a solution to sign that we’re maturing, and that along with retailers, builders, and companions, we imagine in our future because the platform for retailers who really need to personal their shops.
The brand new model can also be a mirrored image of the market: as competitors with SaaS will get more durable, we have to increase model consciousness, join instantly with retailers, and supply the sources that assist WordPress hosts carry on succeeding. The brand new model achieves this by reinforcing our values, enhancing the notion of the Woo product, and serving to every host join simply with prospects.
After we began the design course of, our imaginative and prescient was to maintain the spirit of Woo — the enjoyable, joyful nature of the emblem and title — whereas making a model that would prolong naturally throughout advertising and marketing and product. We would have liked to really feel mature, however not company. Playful, however not cartoonish.
The whole course of was carried out by Woo’s inside design staff — in parallel with all the opposite work they have been doing for our merchandise and enterprise. It was a heavy carry, however the time and vitality that they put into this mission have been effectively definitely worth the effort.
Initially, our course of concerned a number of rounds of sketching. From makes an attempt to transform the speech bubble, experimenting with commerce ephemera (assume labels, stickers), all the way in which to the extra literal illustration we landed at: a buying cart. Higher but, a cart that’s been hiding in our title since we began.
After an preliminary workshop taking a look at references, drawing collectively, and discussing what the brand new emblem ought to really feel like, we determined to method the change from three completely different views:
- Replace: What if we stored a lot of the features of the present emblem, and centered on technical and visible enhancements?
- Improve: What if we picked a single, stronger component or idea, and constructed on it?
- Change: What if we stored the conceptual hyperlink to the present model whereas utterly altering the image?
After some rounds and inside deliberation, we felt that the primary two factors weren’t daring or courageous sufficient — not definitely worth the effort and time of our first-ever model replace. After we settled on a path, it was time to iterate, refine, and refine a little bit extra. Throughout this stage, we met with neighborhood members to speak about our product plans and present them our new design.
In these conversations I used to be joined by Beau Lebens, Inventive Director of Woo, and we mentioned not solely the brand new model, however our future plans for the product, neighborhood ache factors, and what the neighborhood wants and expects from us to assist them convey Woo to their prospects. The suggestions influenced our model tips, social components, and lots of different features of the replace — which we’ll be rolling out within the following months.
These conversations helped us achieve confidence in our method, main us to present a broader sneak peek of the brand new model at WooSesh. Unexpectedly, the emblem was posted on-line, and the suggestions we obtained solely reaffirmed we have been on the correct path.
The model launch is a leap ahead, nevertheless it’s not the top of the street. Maturing our method to design means constructing a stronger product, with UX that has higher match and end, and that’s constant, clear, and works effectively for all retailers on the platform.
With initiatives like Extra in Core, a newly launched beta for Analytics, and investments in WooPayments, Themes, Block Checkout, Transport, Order Statuses, and extra, we now have loads of good updates lined up that mirror our imaginative and prescient for the WooCommerce product that tens of millions of retailers use daily.
This focus has additionally led us to revisit our launch processes. We’ve improved take a look at flakiness, modified our method to drag request critiques, and revisited our launch cadence. WooCommerce now updates each 5 weeks, with every cycle solely beginning as soon as the earlier is completed, permitting prolonged beta testing. For those who’re curious to be taught extra, Core Product Supervisor James Kemp talks about it with Julia Amosova on the Do the Woo podcast.
One definition of design asserts that it’s considering made visible, and there’s nothing higher than exhibiting a few of the designs we’re cooking up. These have been made by our unbelievable designers at Automattic in an effort to discover a number of ways in which the brand new model may present up in our advertising and marketing and our product.
A product that I typically see being requested, WooCommerce Level of Sale, is in testing and can hopefully attain the palms of retailers quickly. We sit up for higher integrating the expertise for many who promote on-line and in bodily shops.
As well as, Order Achievement is deliberate to launch in Q2 2025, and has been a collaboration between Woo and the neighborhood. It addresses crucial factors like serving to retailers perceive which orders require motion, including monitoring instantly in WooCommerce, and maintaining prospects up to date about their orders.
Additionally on the horizon are a sequence of recent WooCommerce-first themes, designed and constructed with blocks in thoughts.
These themes come full of our best-converting block-checkout, which can also be getting updates aimed toward rising its conversion efficiency much more.
Enterprise house owners additionally want extra and higher information to run their outlets. Our Order Attribution beta was step one towards a extra full-fledged analytics resolution, native to WooCommerce — coming in 2025.
Amongst different issues, we’re trying into funds, reporting, and a a lot wanted revamp of Woo’s settings. We’ll share extra about our plans, and designs, quickly. I’m trying ahead to listening to your ideas right here and on all the things to return.
About
Daniel Nieuwenhuizen
Daniel Nieuwenhuizen is a designer with 15+ years of expertise in branding and product design, working in consulting and with high-growth non-public and public corporations, holding titles that ranged from Inventive Director to Head of Design. Throughout his profession, he has labored with high-profile manufacturers like Beats by Dre, Nike, Google, and Shopify, in addition to identified startups corresponding to Magic Leap. Daniel leads the Design staff at Woo, advises early-stage founders, and in addition teaches UX at Miami Advert College. He lives and works in London, UK.
