Designing the evolution of the Woo model identification

As our CMO, Tamara Niesen, talked about in her submit, our model is a vital asset for our enterprise and the whole Woo ecosystem. It raises the requirements for everybody who works collectively in constructing, innovating, and powering the WooCommerce shops that attain thousands and thousands 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 every little thing that comes after it.

Altering a model as long-lived as Woo isn’t a straightforward feat, or one thing to be taken calmly, nevertheless it was essential for us to raise our voice and mirror our progress in the way in which we current ourselves. It’s a strategy to sign that we’re maturing, and that along with retailers, builders, and companions, we consider in our future because the platform for retailers who actually wish 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 elevate model consciousness, join immediately 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.

Once 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 lengthen naturally throughout advertising and product. We would have liked to really feel mature, however not company. Playful, however not cartoonish.

The whole course of was performed by Woo’s inner design staff — in parallel with all the opposite work they have been doing for our merchandise and enterprise. It was a heavy raise, however the time and power that they put into this undertaking have been nicely well worth the effort.

Initially, our course of concerned a number of rounds of sketching. From makes an attempt to remodel the speech bubble, experimenting with commerce ephemera (suppose labels, stickers), all the way in which to the extra literal illustration we landed at: a purchasing 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 brand ought to really feel like, we determined to method the change from three totally different views:

1. Replace: What if we saved a lot of the facets of the present brand, and centered on technical and visible enhancements?
2. Improve: What if we picked a single, stronger ingredient or idea, and constructed on it?
3. Change: What if we saved the conceptual hyperlink to the present model whereas utterly altering the image?

After some rounds and inner deliberation, we felt that the primary two factors weren’t daring or courageous sufficient — not well worth the effort and time of our first-ever model replace. Once we settled on a path, it was time to iterate, refine, and refine somewhat extra. Throughout this stage, we met with group 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, group ache factors, and what the group wants and expects from us to assist them carry Woo to their prospects. The suggestions influenced our model tips, social parts, and lots of different facets 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 provide 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 highway. 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 nicely 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, Delivery, Order Statuses, and extra, we’ve got loads of good updates lined up that mirror our imaginative and prescient for the WooCommerce product that thousands and thousands of retailers use day-after-day.

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 finished, permitting prolonged beta testing. In the event you’re curious to study 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 displaying among the designs we’re cooking up. These have been made by our unimaginable 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 our product.

A product that I usually see being requested, WooCommerce Level of Sale, is in testing and can hopefully attain the arms of retailers quickly. We stay up for higher integrating the expertise for many who promote on-line and in bodily shops.

As well as, Order Success is deliberate to launch in Q2 2025, and has been a collaboration between Woo and the group. It addresses vital factors like serving to retailers perceive which orders require motion, including monitoring immediately in WooCommerce, and protecting prospects up to date about their orders.

Additionally on the horizon are a sequence of latest WooCommerce-first themes, designed and constructed with blocks in thoughts.

These themes come filled with our best-converting block-checkout, which can also be getting updates aimed toward rising its conversion efficiency much more.

Enterprise homeowners additionally want extra and higher knowledge to run their outlets. Our Order Attribution beta was step one towards a extra full-fledged analytics answer, 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 every little thing to come back.