Unifying 500+ brands and cutting costs
Summary
How I collaborated with Coca-Cola to launch a unified digital hub.
In a whirlwind 4-month project, I led the UX design efforts to transform Coca-Cola's fragmented digital landscape into a unified, engaging platform. We faced the challenge of consolidating hundreds of websites, streamlining user experiences, and significantly reducing operational costs.
The result? A centralized hub that not only cut expenses but also drove user sign-ups and dramatically increased brand engagement among GenZ audiences.
Role
UX Designer
Responsibilities
User Task Flows
Wireframes
Secondary User Research
Accessibility
Prototyping
Stakeholder presentation
Timeline
4 months
(2023-2024)
The red represents countries where Coca-Cola products are sold.
The Problem
Hundreds of websites in need of consistency
Did you know Coca-Cola owns over 500 beverage brands across 200 countries, making it a global powerhouse. However, this vast scale also created challenges. Each brand operated with legacy systems, fragmented content, and inefficient processes, resulting in a disjointed user experience.
These inefficiencies were costing Coca-Cola both in user engagement and operational expenses. My task as the UX designer was to address these issues by developing a unified digital platform for the brand.
Stakeholder RACI map
Identifying the
business impact
As I dug deeper, the gravity of the situation became apparent. We weren't just redesigning websites; we were reimagining how one of the world's largest brands interacts with its digital audience.
01
Lost engagement
Picture a GenZ user trying to find a campaign they participated in last week, only to get lost in a maze of disconnected websites. Frustration was leading to disengagement.
02
Increased operating costs
With each brand operating in its own digital silo, Coca-Cola was hemorrhaging money on redundant systems and fragmented data management.
03
No scalability
Every new campaign meant reinventing the wheel, with no established structure for future initiatives.
Final designs
and solutions
Over 4 months, I collaborated with internal and external stakeholders and design teams to deeply understand the existing design system and navigated complex technical and business constraints to develop solutions.
Streamlined Redemptions
Coca-Cola's internal A/B testing showed all participants preferred the new redemption flow and components.
Communicating Registration Incentives
Coca-Cola internal testing showed 40% increase in interest to register among target research group.
Improved Wayfinding
85% of Coca-Cola's internal testing participants found the new layout easier to navigate.
Better Error States and Recovery
All Coca-Cola internal testing audience found the new error states easy to understand and recover from.
Learning
So how did
we get there?
The first step in my design process is understanding the 'Why' behind the issues, allowing me to address the root causes and align my designs with high-level stakeholder goals.
Understanding the Why
To understand this within the existing system, I collaborated with our client and product manager to map out the current information architecture and user task flows, revealing key issues:
01
Inefficient user task flows
User tasks crucial for sign-ups and engagement were fragmented and overly long—a disengagement silver bullet for the Gen Z target audience.
02
Data handling constraints
Policy constraints created communication gaps, lowering user trust and effectiveness in reaching the audience.
03
Lack of personalization
Absence of features like notification systems meant lack of personalized user engagement, crucial for GenZ audiences.
The process was further complicated by underlying systems already in place along with company and technical jargon used internally at Coca-Cola. Yikes!
New constraints and a
pivot in design strategy
Existing design systems minimized the need for foundational design work like extensive sketching. While collaborating with another designer and splitting tasks, I presented low-fidelity wireframes to stakeholders. However, new technical constraints emerged:
01
Time to implement new components was too high
Legacy systems and the company’s scale meant introducing new components could take up to a year—a timeline incompatible with the first iteration MVP.
02
Functionality was restricted according to geographical location
International laws prevented implementation of features, like Single Sign-On across some markets, which I had proposed to streamline registrations.
Learning
Some ideations from the first iteration wireframes would make it to the final design despite initial hesitance from stakeholders
Balancing user needs
and tech constraints
To meet the MVP deadline, I pivoted to leverage existing systems, focusing on optimizing rather than reinventing tasks. This led to a few wins!
01
Advocating user-friendly components
I advocated for key features like a wallet system to reduce user confusion and drive sign-ups.
02
Securing Approval with Coca-Cola research
With backing from Coca-Cola's internal research team, we secured approval for new wireframes by demonstrating their value. Yay teamwork!
A change in
screen dimensions
For the second iteration, we prioritized mobile wireframes since most site redirects would come from social media, primarily on mobile phones.
Simplified view of some of my second iteration Mid-Fi wireframes created after revisions.
GenZ User Research for
better engagement
In order to understand best practices and pain points for better engagement and driving business, I collaborated with the user researcher to perform primary research via trusted sources like Nielsen Norman and marketing studies while assisting in usability tests, leading to insights:
95%
of users prioritized components that gave incentives
Users expected tangible incentives or rewards before registering, emphasizing the need to clearly communicate benefits upfront to drive sign-ups.
87%
of users were interested in new/custom products
Secondary research revealed that Gen Z users prefer personalized or seasonal products over familiar ones, highlighting the importance of novelty to maintain engagement.
65%
of users had a negative onboarding experience
Users struggled with the sitemap as promotions, campaigns, brands, and the homepage were listed without clear hierarchy, making navigation confusing.
45%
of users were open to registering
Without clear incentives, users were reluctant to create accounts, finding the process unnecessary and cumbersome. This lack of motivation impacted engagement.
Reducing interaction costs and to drive better engagement, the user research helped us make 7 key layout recommendations.
Here's a couple:
The Success Story
After two months of refining wireframes, resolving technical challenges, and managing stakeholder dynamics, we presented our designs to over 40 global stakeholders. Despite initial nerves, the collaborative approach paid off. The presentation was a success, with our designs receiving praise and approval for implementation across Coca-Cola’s digital landscape—a proud moment as we set a new standard for the brand.
