CarMax’s Customer Condition Assessment
TL;DR:
Led discovery and design to address the CCA tool’s poor bedside manner. The enhancement helped closed the gap between the in-store vs. online Net Promoter Score in CarMax’s “Seller” demographic.
Responsibilities
Customer & usability research
Wireframing, prototyping, hi-fidelity visual design, and content strategy
Data visualization
Since its inception in 1993, CarMax has relied on a highly experienced team of in-store Buyers for generating trade-in estimates. Customers simply needed to drive their car to the closest store to get a free appraisal. A Buyer would spend a few minutes inspecting the car and then leverage CarMax’s trove of real-time market data to come up with a unique valuation for each vehicle.
The problem was that the in-person assessment was only reaching Seller/Trader Personas that were willing to make a trip to their local store. As more used car retailers began offering sight-unseen trade-in offers at the click of a button, CarMax committed to researching, designing and launching an online appraisal tool.
When it was first launched in 2016, CarMax’s Customer Condition Assessment (CCA) experience marked a major milestone on the organization’s path towards becoming a digital-first retailer.
The CCA MVP (above) was an instant hit with customers, especially those who lived greater than 25 miles from a store. Getting an online appraisal on their trade-in gave them the confidence they needed to make an in-store visit. And more than 90% of customers who arrived in-store with an online appraisal in hand ended up selling that same day (the offer was not contingent on buying a car from CarMax, customers could simply hand over their keys and walk out with a check).
But while buy-rates stayed consistently high as the experience scaled to more markets, CCA’s Net Promoter Score highlighted a worrying trend: a 50 point gap between in-store and online “Appraisal Keepers” (customers who had their car appraised but ultimately chose not to sell). And while almost half of in-store appraisal keepers agreed that their offer felt fair, only 12% of online appraisers felt the same way.
We also saw a significant gap in the percentage of customer who agreed or strongly agreed with the statement:
I made trips with my Product team to CarMax stores around the country to better understand what set apart the in-store and online appraisal experiences. I shadowed Sales Consultants and Buyers throughout the day while they delivered offers to real customers and soon noticed a trend in how the appraisal process plays out in store.
CarMax’s Sales Consultants not only led with Discovery to better understand why the customer was looking to sell their current car, they leveraged their own experience to set a customer’s expectations before the Buyer was ready with an offer. Even if the offer was lower than expected, most in-store customers left feeling like the Consultant took the time to understand their needs and their unique car, and that they were treated fairly.
Online customers who received an offer amount over the phone had a completely different experience (one of the limitations of the first version of CCA was that a Buyer would still need to “put eyes” on the customer’s submitted data, make their valuation, and then share that offer back with the customer on a phone call).
The entire online appraisal process felt like a one-way conversation. Real customers we spoke to described feeling low-balled and even disrespected. They assumed that CarMax was trying to take advantage of them by offering the least amount possible without taking the time to really understand their car.
To combat these feelings, we hypothesized that being transparent and sharing information while capturing the necessary details about their car would make CarMax’s CCA offers seem more informed, unique to each car, and help set customer expectations throughout the flow.
To design this enhancement I took inspiration from the conversations that the in-store Consultants were having with customers. They often referenced a car’s depreciation rate for a specific model year, how the customer’s odometer compared to average mileage in cars of the same age, and any red-flags in the car’s AutoCheck® History Report, among other talking points.
The team then leveraged real-time data to drive the first collection of CCA’s Progressive Education cards:
These cards displayed at key moments throughout the CCA flow as customers provided information about their car.
Early customer feedback showed promise. I spoke to real sellers, like “Leigh” to understand what kind of impact the new content would have on her likelihood to do business with CarMax. Leigh’s quote in this recording from one of the many moderated research sessions I facilitated on this project has stuck with me for a few reasons.
First is the emotional response Leigh expresses in seeing how much value her car has lost in the 12 years she’s owned it. This was a humbling reminder that though the OKRs our Product team had set for CCA prioritized volume and speed-to-offer, each appraisal was deeply personal to the owner receiving it. The answer could mean the difference between being able to afford a much needed upgrade and languishing with a junker for a few thousand miles longer. Second are the memories that Leigh’s car ownership story brings to mind as she reminisces on all of the significant life events that have happened while she logged miles on the odometer (“[I’ve] gotten married and had two kids since then!”).
These two types of responses were not unique to Leigh. Many of the would-be-sellers I spoke with expressed mixed emotions in having to say goodbye to a car that’s been there at major moments in their life. Even more had given their cars a name, making the thought of a trade-up particularly tearful.
After just a month of rolling out the CCA Progressive Education enhancement we noticed the first statistically significant movement amongst our most critical “Appraisal Keepers” personas:
There would still be significant room for improvement but research sessions like Leigh’s highlight the importance of creating digital experiences that leave users feeling respected and dignified.