01
Continuous product discovery
User research never stopped. It fed business hypotheses, opened new opportunities and tracked the changing needs of buyers.
How a dedicated UX research team cut order time by 98% in a B2B portal for supermarkets
A large multinational in the beverage industry was starting to digitize B2B sales to supermarket chains. Sensorama worked as a team dedicated to the product for 3 years, with UX research and product design professionals, from the first version of the B2B portal in Brazil to its launch in the United States and South Africa. The work was to build a B2B e-commerce platform that fit the company's strategy, was feasible for technology and was desirable for buyers.
- B2B Portal
- UX Research
- Product Design
- Product Discovery
- User Journey
Challenge
Supermarket chains bought beverages by sending product lists to account managers, as PDFs, spreadsheets or messages. Then the sales and logistics teams typed each order into the system. To check the status of a purchase, the buyer had to call, email or send a WhatsApp message, and the answer could take up to 3 days. The company needed a B2B portal that buyers would actually adopt, first in Brazil and then in other countries.
3
YEARS
of a team dedicated to the product
60+
RESEARCH STUDIES
with users, including interviews, field research and tests
50+
WORKSHOPS
on strategic definitions
40+
COLLABORATIONS
with senior leadership
A team dedicated to the product for 3 years
UX research and product design professionals from Sensorama worked side by side with the client's business, product and technology teams. The team followed the B2B portal from its first version to its international launch.
02
Decisions made with leadership
More than 50 strategic workshops, including OKRs and design sprints, and more than 40 collaborations with the company's senior leadership.
03
Research in 3 countries
Interviews, shadowing, focus groups, usability tests and field research in Brazil, the United States and South Africa. The global user journey guided the backlog and the product's expansion strategy.
04
Build, measure, learn
Features were designed together with stakeholders using the Build-Measure-Learn model and tested with users before scaling.
Who we talked to
- Supermarket chain buyers
- Store managers
- Account managers
- Sales and logistics teams
- Senior company leadership
Features that came out of the research
Each feature started from a pain point identified with buyers and was validated before reaching the portal.
01
Order by spreadsheet upload
Buyers started uploading their own product list directly into the B2B portal, without depending on the account manager. Placing an order dropped from about 2 hours to 2 minutes, and order handling after receipt cost more than R$ 3 million less.
02
Product suggestions at checkout
The portal began suggesting products and quantities that added value to the purchase, to raise the average ticket. The product mix in orders grew 10%.
03
Order tracking
The status of each purchase and each item became visible in the portal, with alerts for problems so the buyer can act. Each account manager gained 2 hours a week in their schedule.
Research that decided what to build and what not to build
- 600+ research findings organized for the product team
- 300+ user pain points mapped across the three countries
- 250+ business and product opportunities
- An order forecasting feature tested in stores in the United States before development, with no development cost spent on it
B2B portal results
98%
LESS TIME TO PLACE AN ORDER
from about 2 hours to 2 minutes
R$ 3M+
REDUCTION
in order handling after receipt
+10%
IN PRODUCT MIX
of orders placed in the portal
2h
PER WEEK
more in each account manager's schedule
Over the course of the partnership, the B2B portal went from a first Brazilian version to being used in the United States and South Africa as well. Orders became faster, the product mix grew and account managers gained time. Order tracking also led the company to review its internal logistics and order management processes.
Does your digital product need a team that follows its evolution?
We are a UX consultancy that builds dedicated UX research and product design teams for B2B digital products, from the first version to scale.
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