Audi Inventory Search Tool

Client

Audi North America

Role

Lead UI Designer

Timeline

6 Months

Live site

Not available

When we began, clients could search for Audi Dealers, but not for specific inventory.

Our team was able to conceptualize and launch a brand new combined dealer/inventory search from the ground up. This was meant to empower users to find their dream Audi, and dealerships with reaching wider audiences.

Early insights from UXR lead the way in defining 4 target audiences.

User research was an ongoing process that shaped every stage of this project. It helped us identify key competitors, build empathy for our users, and uncover insights that directly influenced design decisions.

Our research revealed four primary audience groups:

🚗 Audi Buyers
Individuals actively looking to purchase an Audi.
‍
🏬 Dealers & Sales Teams
Professionals comparing inventory and checking vehicle availability.
‍
🔎 General Car Shoppers
Users exploring various brands, not yet committed to Audi.
‍
📊 Market Enthusiasts
People interested in automotive trends, specs, and pricing.

By understanding these distinct user needs, we crafted a tool that delivers relevant, seamless experiences for each group.

Wireframes evolved through usability testing and stakeholder feedback.

Collaboration was essential in refining the UX for both the U.S. and Canadian markets. Through tools like Slack and Google Meet, we worked closely to build and iterate on wireframes for key use cases and edge cases, ensuring a seamless and unified experience. Key features we focused on include:

🔍 Searching by radius
Users can find inventory within predefined distances we collaborated to create.

🚘 Searching by dealer
Browsing stock at specific dealerships with the ability to multi-select dealers.

✏️ Adjusting the search
Flexibly modifying search criteria, whether by dealer or radius.

↩️ Switching tabs mid-flow
Maintaining progress without data loss

⚠️ Exiting without setting a location
Since setting a location was a technical requirement to view inventory, we designed a screen for users who didn't set a location.

UI was built for speed, comprehension, and intuitive search.

I used the Figma component library to design a fast, user-friendly interface that integrated smoothly with our API and MapBox requirements, ensuring both performance and usability.

Throughout the design process, I ensured the UI adhered to Audi’s brand guidelines while remaining intuitive. One example of this was the Audi pin icon used to display inventory. Originally red, I changed it to black so that selected pins could be red, improving visibility and making it easier for users to identify their selections.

One of the biggest challenges during this final phase was incorporating last-minute feedback, meeting legal requirements, and maintaining a UI that felt premium yet easy to use.

Close collaboration with Developers and QA was key to our launch.

As we reached our deadline, close collaboration with developers and quality assurance came in the form of frequent meetings, calls, and messages to ensure that designs were aligned to what was in our staging environment.

Working with developers was (and always is) super fun. We were able to problem solve together, and bring the intended vision to life.

From our teams combined efforts we launched for both Audi Canada and the Audi USA by our original 3 month deadline.

Outcomes

Notable Contributions

High-fidelity wireframes for mobile, tablet, and desktop.
Prototypes and Motion Design.
Deliverance of showcases and presentations to Global Audi teams.

Key Learnings

Collaborating on a crunch timeline.
Collaborating with small and large teams remotely.
Collaborating with developers.
Taking feedback into consideration, and pushing back on decisions.
Finding compromise to meet deadlines and legal requirements.

Final Notes

This project successfully met it's proposed deadline, and was launched December 1st, 2021.

Within 3 months it reached over 224,000 unique visitors.