eBay Hub

Role
Lead Product Designer

Responsibilities
UX Product Discovery
UX Strategy
Interaction Design/Prototyping

Date
2022

Overview

Our product team identified a critical gap in customer engagement that directly impacted Gross Merchandise Bought (GMB). We noticed that buyers were missing key updates about their transactions—such as item availability, price drops, and order status—which led to abandoned purchases and lower retention rates.

Why This Was a Priority

Among competing initiatives on the roadmap, addressing this engagement gap stood out due to its direct correlation with purchase completion and repeat buyer activity. Improving notification effectiveness meant not only reducing friction in the buying experience but also driving incremental GMB growth. The potential revenue impact, coupled with qualitative feedback from customers, made this an immediate focus.

Validating the Problem

To ensure we were addressing the right problem, we combined data insights with direct customer input:

  • Data Analysis: We measured engagement rates on existing notifications, uncovering low open rates and missed interactions at key decision points.

  • Customer Interviews: We conducted user research sessions where buyers consistently reported that they either didn’t receive notifications at the right time or were unaware of how to manage them effectively.

  • Experimentation: A/B testing variations of notifications revealed that personalized and time-sensitive alerts significantly increased conversions.

Marketing Communications

What do notifications consist of?

Marketing Communications Defined

Current Experience

The Notification Hub is comprised of two tabs:
Act now and See more.

Problem:


  • Low engagement and missed notifications

  • Notifications disappeared after leaving notification hub.

  • Badging is inconsistent showing only badges for items in Act now tab.

  • The customer mental model didn’t align with the current design


Research

Goals:

  • Understand customers mental model related to notifications

  • Learn how they interact with notifications

  • Opportunities to improve user experience and impact user engagement leading to increased GMB

Learnings:

  • Frustrated with hidden notifications

  • Lack of control over when to dismiss notifications

  • Notification grouping was confusing

Card Sorting Learnings:

  • We found that eBay customers grouped notifications by:

  • Buying/myEbay

  • Selling/Shipping

  • Promotions/Coupons

  • Account/Help

Research & Rapid Prototyping

Customer Feedback:

  • We spent 2-3 iterations with customer feedback related to categories.

  • The labeling that resonated the most with customers were, Buying, Selling, Promotions, Coupons, Account.

  • Additionally customers aligned with and liked the consistent messaging and patterns which made the notifications hub feel more connected.

Next Steps:

  • Gather feedback from users related to information that is relevant to them for each notification

  • Build a prototype with interactions

  • Create usability studies

Notification Anatomy

Goals:

  • What is and what isn’t a notification?

  • How much interactivity should notifications have?

  • What information would be appropriate and important?

What we tested:

  • Signal

  • Image

  • Description

  • Price/Discount

  • CTA

  • Interactions

Prototyping and Usability Studies

Before and After

eBay Branding and Alignment:

  • Notifications are meant to drive traffic to eBay

  • Notifications should be informative but not overwhelming

  • CTA’s are intended for product pages

  • Stacked notifications could potentially cause too much visual noise

  • Larger images should be used on product pages






Deployment and Evaluation

  • Gradual rollout of the eBay Notifications Hub with pilot users.

  • Monitor user adoption and collect performance metrics.

  • Plan for future enhancements based on continuous user feedback.

Challenges & How We Overcame Them

  • Stakeholder alignment – Getting buy-in from different teams.

  • Balancing flexibility & simplicity – Ensuring customization without overwhelming users.

Key Learnings & Takeaways

  • The importance of user research to uncover hidden pain points.

  • The value of iteration & testing to refine solutions effectively.

  • How cross-functional collaboration helps overcome complex challenges.

Business Outcomes