Ecommerce User Experience Vol. 08: Wishlists, Gift Cards, and Gift Giving

5th Edition

Part of Series: Ecommerce User Experience

If you’re running a business-to-consumer ecommerce site without considering gift-givers, you’re giving up valuable business. In many of the sites we tested, gift-related features like wishlists, gift cards, and gift checkout were confusing and inadequate. In some cases, this led to embarrassing mishaps -- for example, ruining the gift-giver’s surprise, or recipients having no idea who sent their gift.

Gift buyers often come to your site because someone they know likes to shop with you. The smallest glitch in the user experience can cause these shoppers to give up and look elsewhere.

This 217-page report contains 87 design recommendations based on our user research. Discussions and 180 screenshot illustrations supplement the findings.

 

Topics

• User attitudes toward online gift giving
  • Why customers sometimes fear online gifting
  • The guilt and relief around gift cards and wishlists
• Choosing gifts online; the steps involved and barriers at each step
  • The gift choice process
  • Finding a suitable item
  • Purchasing the item
  • Choosing gift options
  • The gift receipt and message for the recipient
  • Shipping to a different address
  • Confirming order and receipt
• Gift card guidelines
  • Purchasing, giving, receiving and redeeming
  • Advertising gift cards on your site
  • E-gift cards vs. physical gift cards
  • Offering a choice of gift card designs
• Favorites and wishlists features
  • How to help shoppers discover these features
  • Sharing the list
  • Notification email
  • Buying from a wishlist

Research Method

The information in this report is based on five separate rounds of ecommerce studies for this and the previous four editions of this report. These studies included a mix of the following methodologies.

• One-on-one usability testing
• Diary-based longitudinal studies
• Eyetracking
• Expert review

Representative users tested 350+ ecommerce websites. The studies took place in the United States, the United Kingdom, Denmark, India, and China