New Homepage Project

My role: Lead UX Designer
Timeline: 4 months, 2021
Collaborated with: Product, Marketing and Engineering
Platforms: Mobile, Desktop

Introduction

Ritchie Bros. is the world’s leading global equipment marketplace, offering multiple platforms that serve different customer segments. One of the most active platforms, IronPlanet, needed a refreshed homepage experience to better communicate its services and engage new buyers.

This initiative was not part of the official product roadmap. After identifying opportunities through data and customer feedback, I proposed the idea and led the end-to-end redesign as a side project. Given the lack of engineering resources, I took ownership of building the prototype and testing the concept independently.

Previous Design of the Homepage

Problem

The existing homepage was outdated, visually cluttered, and overloaded with text. New users often found it difficult to understand what IronPlanet offered, leading to high bounce rates and short session durations.

Hypothesis

By designing a clean and visually engaging homepage that highlights the most relevant content, we could reduce bounce rates, increase sign-ups, and improve the overall user experience.

Research

Using Google Analytics, I analyzed behavioral data such as bounce rate, clickthrough rate, and time on page. This helped identify which sections users interacted with the most and where they tended to drop off.

To complement the analytics, I collaborated with the marketing team and used Hotjar to track user clicks, scroll depth, and engagement patterns. The findings revealed that most users focused on visual elements like images and buttons rather than text-heavy sections, highlighting the need for a more visual and goal-oriented design.

James
52 Years old | Construction Manager

Goals:

Browse equipment near the construction site
Find both online and onsite auction listings easily

Frustrations:

Not being tech-savvy
Difficulty finding reliable, well-maintained equipment

Solutions:

After reviewing the research and gathering feedback from product and marketing teams, I prioritized solutions that simplified the experience and improved discoverability:

1- Design a modern and visually engaging homepage that clearly presents the value proposition for new buyers.

2- Group equipment by categories and locations to make browsing more intuitive.

3- Present multiple buying options such as “Buy Now,” “Make an Offer,” and “Bid at Auction” to support different user goals.

Since this project was not on the product roadmap, I created the test version myself using the company’s CMS. My background as a front-end developer allowed me to build and launch the experiment without relying on engineering support.

Low Fidelity Wireframe

I began with low-fidelity wireframes to define the content hierarchy and user flow. This helped validate layout decisions early and allowed the team to test visual hierarchy before moving into high-fidelity design.

High Fidelity Wireframe

After validating the structure, I developed high-fidelity wireframes in Axure. The new design focused on simplifying information and presenting key actions up front.

Key improvements included:

A large hero section that visually communicates the brand and highlights available listings.
Clear navigation paths to major categories such as trucks, trailers, and heavy machinery.
Prominent calls to action encouraging users to register and start buying.
Visual cards that display location-based results and top equipment types.
Dedicated content for new sellers to guide them through onboarding.

Testing and Results

After launching an A/B test, the new homepage showed a significant improvement in engagement metrics. Bounce rate dropped notably, and sign-ups increased by 30 percent. Clickthrough rate improved by 63 percent, confirming that the streamlined visual approach made the experience more effective and easier to navigate.

The project’s success not only influenced future roadmap priorities but also earned me an Employee Excellence Award for Top UX Designer, recognizing my initiative, execution speed, and measurable business impact.