UX RESEARCHER
✦
10 WEEKS
Overview
Amazon Certified Refurbished is an exclusive Amazon program dedicated to selling pre-owned devices made by Amazon—such as Echo, Kindle, and Fire TV products, that have been professionally inspected, tested, and restored to work like new. While the overall Certified Refurbished experience spans multiple touch-points, the scope of our work focused solely on the landing page. Our goal was to define a clear strategy for how the landing page could educate users and drive engagement with Amazon’s offerings.
This project was part of a sponsored collaboration between Amazon and the University of Washington. As a UX Researcher, I worked alongside three other researchers under the guidance of two senior UX researchers from Amazon and our professor from the Usability Studies course. Our team was granted access to Amazon’s prior research and internal insights, which allowed us to build upon their foundational work and explore new opportunities to strengthen the Certified Refurbished experience.
Research Questions
How does the content and design of a landing page influence user confidence in purchasing refurbished products?
How do users naturally navigate from the website homepage to find refurbished products?
How do users perceive Amazon’s Certified Refurbished products compared to competitor offerings?
Competitive Analysis
Since Amazon’s landing page had minimal information, testing/inspecting that alone wouldn’t give us enough insight into what users actually wanted to see. To get a clearer picture, we explored competitor sites alongside Amazon’s landing page to understand how others communicate refurbished products.
How did we do it?
As the focus of our project was on device-based refurbished programs, we prioritized brands that sold certified refurbished versions of their own or multiple electronic products. After an initial scan, we narrowed our scope to Samsung, BackMarket, and CPO Outlet, removing GameStop and Microsoft as they did not offer unique or informative experiences beyond generic promotional layouts.
Moderated Usability Testing Sessions
We conducted moderated task-based usability testing sessions. The study began with 2 pilot sessions, followed by 10 full sessions with participants who had either purchased or considered purchasing refurbished devices before.
Each session lasted approximately an hour and was conducted using UserTesting platform. I personally moderated 4 sessions, took notes for 3, and co-moderated an additional 3, ensuring balanced data collection across the study.
Testing Schedule
To minimize bias and gather balanced feedback, we designed a structured testing schedule that accounted for both desktop and mobile experiences across all four websites. Insights from our pilot revealed that participants often viewed Amazon more favorably when it was tested early.
To counter this, we rotated the testing order, ensuring that every participant explored Amazon and two of the three competitor sites in varied sequences.
Tasks
Phase 1: Discoverability
“Imagine you're considering buying a refurbished product on [Amazon Device, Samsung, CPO Outlet, or BackMarket], but before making the purchase, you want to learn more about their refurbished program. How would you find out more about the program?"
Phase 2 : Exploring the Landing Page
“Now, please take some time to explore the [landing page] page. Scroll through it and identify key information that would help you decide between a refurbished product and a new product.”
“Imagine you want to purchase a refurbished [product name]. Walk me through your shopping process. What would you look for, and how would you make a decision?”
Data-Collection & Note Taking
Following the sessions, we organized our notes by website and extracted data directly aligned with our core research questions. This step was crucial in maintaining focus, filtering out interesting but unrelated findings that fell outside the project’s scope.
Thematic-Analysis
In the final stage, we conducted thematic analysis to identify key patterns across user feedback. I led the mapping process, drawing from my prior research experience and coursework in research methods. I created the initial template, divided participants among team members, and developed the first set of codes.
As a team, we refined these collaboratively—narrowing an initial set of 19 codes down to 10 findings, which ultimately informed 3 overarching themes. This structured synthesis helped us translate raw observations into actionable insights for design recommendations.
WHAT'S WORKING
Users found the 'Reuse & Save' banner helpful in setting clear expectations that they were viewing refurbished products.
Users appreciated the presence of a clear header or banner at the top of the page, as it effectively set their expectations by indicating they were exclusively viewing refurbished Amazon devices.
6/10 participants appreciated seeing the banner upfront.
5/10 participants clicked on it to gain more information about refurbished products.
WHAT'S WORKING
Users Found the ‘Testing’ Widget on the Product Details Page Highly Valuable.
Users found the "Testing" widget on the product details page particularly useful, as it addressed specific inspection questions they had about the products, enhancing their confidence in the purchase.
4/10 participants noted that the testing widget reinforces their confidence in deciding to purchase refurbished products.
Theme 1
FINDING 1.1
Users instinctively turned to the search bar to find refurbished products.
Since there was no dedicated “Refurbished” category or keyword tagging, relevant products were difficult to find, causing users to question whether refurbished options were even available. This highlighted the importance of optimizing search visibility to help users confidently discover refurbished offerings.
6/8 participants were not able to find Amazon’s landing page during phase 1 of the session.
3/4 participants used search to find Amazon’s Refurbished Devices.
Theme 2
Clear Information in the Right Place and Format Drives Decisions.
FINDING 2.1
Users expected the top banner to be clickable to explore more about the program.
Users initially did not perceive the "Reuse & Save" banner as clickable, yet many still attempted to click it, hoping to learn more about the program.
6/10 participants explicitly mentioned that the banner didn’t appear clickable.
FINDING 2.2
Users expected to see a quick overview of the program details at the top before exploring products.
Rather than searching for details later, they expected key information—such as benefits, quality assurance, and policies—to be presented upfront before diving into product listings.
6/10 participants wanted a quick overview of the at the top of the page.
7/10 participants appreciated a quick card-style layout with key information about the program
FINDING 2.3
Users wanted to compare the new products and refurbished products clearly.
Users were highly motivated by cost savings when considering refurbished products. They wanted a clear comparison between new and refurbished options to understand the price difference and assess the value they were getting.
10/10 participants mentioned savings as their biggest motivation for buying refurbished.
5/10 participants wanted to compare prices of refurbished device vs new.
Theme 3
Trust is Built in Layers, Not in a
Single Step.
FINDING 3.1
Users appreciated information about the inspection process before purchasing a refurbished product.
Users were highly motivated by cost savings when considering refurbished products. They wanted a clear comparison between new and refurbished options to understand the price difference and assess the value they were getting.
9/10 participants wanted transparency about the testing and inspection process that devices go through.
FINDING 3.2
Users perceive buying refurbished products as risky, thus clearly communicated warranty and return policies provide reassurance.
Warranty and return policies function as essential components in progressively building trust, providing assurance, and addressing users' perceived risks.
8/10 participants highlighted warranty and return policies as critical factors influencing their decision-making when considering refurbished products.
Reflections!
This project was one of the most formative experiences of my master’s program. Apart from getting to work with Amazon’s amazing and super talented team, what made it even more special was the depth of the work we did, ours was the only project that tested across four sites with ten participants, which made it such a great learning experience for us.
