Mass Merchant UX

Make a Broad Product Range Easier to Shop

A large catalog brings different product types, information needs and shopping behaviors into one experience. Baymard’s mass merchant research helps your team evaluate how navigation, search, product pages and accounts work together. Use the evidence to improve consistency across your range or get an expert audit to identify your next UX priorities.

Book a call with our team to explore mass merchant UX insights.

Mass Merchant ecommerce UX research and design examples

Mass Merchant UX research

Explore guidance for large catalogs, search, filtering and varied product information. Use industry research and examples to assess mass merchant and department store shopping experiences.

Mass Merchant UX audits

Get a confidential review of your mass merchant or department store website, with prioritized improvements across desktop and mobile and examples that help your team plan implementation.

Research for the Challenges of a Mixed Catalog

The research examines stores selling both visually driven and specification-heavy products. It addresses search at catalog scale, vendor-supplied information and imagery, plus the account and self-service experiences that support customers.

500+

Mass Merchant UX Guidelines

9,000+

Industry UX Performance Scores

7,000+

Industry Best Practice Examples

Key UX challenges for Mass Merchant

The research examines stores selling both visually driven and specification-heavy products. It addresses search at catalog scale, vendor-supplied information and imagery, plus the account and self-service experiences that support customers.

Search Across Large Catalogs

Help shoppers find relevant options through search and filtering suited to broad ranges and varied product types.

Explore the research

Product Lists & Categories

Assess how listing pages and navigation accommodate the different information shoppers need across your departments.

Explore the research

Consistent Product Information

Review how vendor-supplied information and imagery are adapted to help customers understand and compare products.

Explore the research

Accounts & Self-Service

Support customers managing accounts, preferences and online returns through clear navigation and usable self-service features.

Explore the research

The evidence behind Mass Merchant UX

0+hours across Baymard’s full UX research catalog
0+Mass Merchant UX Guidelines
0+Industry UX Performance Scores
0+Industry Best Practice Examples

Mass Merchant

The findings from Baymard’s large-scale testing of Mass Merchant & Department Stores ecommerce sites provide you with 500+ UX guidelines, along with 9,000+ UX performance scores and 7,000+ best practice examples from Mass Merchant sites.

The UX research covers the entire online shopping experience, including:

  • How to best handle the unique challenges of selling a mix of vastly different types (both heavy spec- and visually-driven products) - incl. how this impact listing pages, product pages, and search.
  • Search and filtering challenges for sites with 100,000s of products.
  • How to best post-process vendor supplied product information and imagery to align with user expectations.
  • Everything related to ‘my account’, personalization, newsletter, and self-service (online returns, etc.)
The research includes large-scale usability testing and UX benchmarking of websites such as:
Amazon, Argos, Best Buy, Bol.com, Bed Bath & Beyond, Costco,
8 × Themes

The wider research foundation behind the guidance

0qualitative testing rounds across Baymard’s research catalog
0+participant/site sessions across the research catalog
0quantitative studies across the research catalog
0participants in the catalog’s quantitative studies

Understand the Evidence Behind Large Retail Experiences

Baymard’s research includes mass merchants and department stores such as Amazon, Walmart, Macy’s, Target and John Lewis. Explore how the research examines discovery, evaluation and purchasing across broad product ranges.

An expert audit assesses your desktop and mobile site, documents UX issues and prioritizes recommendations with relevant examples to help your team address a complex shopping experience.

Explore the industry research

READ ABOUT UX AUDITS

Mass Merchant UX research and expert audit overview

Mass Merchant UX questions

Does this research cover department stores?chevron-down

Yes. It covers mass merchants and department stores, including the challenges of selling different kinds of products through a shared shopping experience.


Can it help with a very large catalog?chevron-down

Is vendor-supplied content part of the research?chevron-down

What does a Mass Merchant UX Audit provide?chevron-down

Does the coverage extend beyond checkout?chevron-down

What Baymard clients have to say

Read All Testimonials arrow-right
Testimonials
Sears Logo
“Baymard produces some of the most relevant and actionable user experience research available. They really understand the needs of UX and Product Management professionals, and their deep experience in the eCommerce field allows them to offer sophisticated, nuanced insights.”

Kerry McAleer

Former Director of UX Research at Sears

Testimonials
Overstock Inc. Logo
“Thanks again for the great work on our checkout project. Our whole group found it incredibly insightful. We’re applying the suggestions you provided to our new checkout design which launches at the end of the month! One of my colleagues was also interested in your group’s competitive expertise with regard to responsive web and native apps.”

Jaime Wilson

Sr. Director of Design & Development at Overstock.com

Testimonials
John Lewis Logo
“The Baymard team has been a delight to work with on the JohnLewis digital platform audit. They responded to the brief very well, have been very accessible for ongoing clarification and queries and Rebecca was excellent in the recent team share, articulately presenting findings in an engaging walk-through with the wider team which will really support driving engagement and a robust response. Many thanks for all the effort and focus folks.”

Greg Woods

UX & UI Design and Research Manager at John Lewis

Testimonials
Etsy Logo
“Thank you. This was an excellent piece of work: professional, thorough, and actionable for the team. We’re very happy with the work Baymard has done for us.”

Alex Wright

Director of Research at Etsy

Testimonials
Google Logo
“I just wanted to take a minute to thank you for the amazing work on this audit. You should know that this has been very well received internally and there’s a lot of excitement around adopting the ideas you have shared.”

Sudeep Agarwal

Growth Manager at Google Shopping

Give Shoppers Clearer Paths Through Your Range

Explore the mass merchant research or discuss an audit of your department store or broad-catalog ecommerce experience.