Microsoft Launch Event
Microsoft Store redesign
Background:
The Microsoft Store on Windows is the trusted place to discover the experiences on Windows device. The Stores app comes pre-installed on Windows 10 and 11 devices. With this new release, the Microsoft Store will have UWP apps and Android apps added to the portfolio.
Problem:
The Microsoft Store have become less engaging over time, engagement numbers have dropped year over year. Users have issues finding what they are looking for and are overwhelmed when they use the Microsoft Store app.
Role:
I was the main designer for the homepage and to create spotlight modules and cards templates that would permeate through out different pages of the Store.
User feedback & design audit
Users have mentioned they often don’t find what they need in the Store. They also get overwhelmed by the Store and close the app after a few minutes.
My starting point was to audit existing design and pinpoint usability issues that would possibly contribute to low engagement problem. Too many cards and spotslights were shown to the user on the landing page. There were cropping issues on the spotlight header visuals, visual inconsistencies, tight spacing of cards making it difficult to parse, inconsistent background on the cards and different ways to get to more cards options.
Design principle
Spotlight module
The design direction of the spotlight module was to accommodate multiple spotlights/banners/promos. It should be flexible and able to roam across various pages. There should be more hierarchy between placements. Most important of all, i was to reduce the feel of clutter and visual overload for the user.
Cards template
The design direction for the cards were to be adaptable to multiple different content type, i.e. games, apps, movies & TVs. I reduced the amount of cards per row to reduce visual clutter. Simplified overall meta data on the cards and keep the card height consistent across each row to reduce eye travel.
Customized module design
I have designed the card and spotlight modules that allowed our content team to customize the layout of the page to cater to different region users in the future. The cards and promotions can be placed in different positions interchangeably without needing to redesign each category.
Proposed designs
Home page design
Compare old vs new
Featured games page
Featured apps page