Craft my plate - India's first food catering app
Improving the user experience of Pre-Order in Craft My Plate to Reduce Drop-Offs and Boost Retention & Conversion Rates
Position
Product designer
Team
2 Senior, 4 J. Product designer
Timeline
4 months
What is Craft my plate?
Craft My Plate is India’s first mobile platform dedicated to bulk food ordering and event catering, helping users easily plan meals for corporate events, parties, and celebrations. The app offers both ready-made meal combinations and fully customizable platters. However, despite its unique niche, the app struggled with low user engagement and conversions. As part of the product team, I took the lead on redesigning the pre-order experience, aiming to fix these gaps and move the product closer to achieving Product-Market Fit.
Problem Statement
Users, especially new ones, struggled to understand Craft My Plate’s offerings. Confusing service types, unclear pricing, and a rigid selection flow led to frustration and premature drop-offs. The absence of real-time feedback, flexible options, and visual clarity made users abandon the order mid-way. This led to low engagement, underused features, and missed revenue opportunities.
Constraints & Goals
High drop-off rates during the pre-order flow
Low user retention, especially from first-time users
Rigid and non-customizable platter options
Confusion between different service types (Meal Box, Delivery Box, Catering)
Lack of clear pricing and value differentiation
No guidance or recommendations for new users unfamiliar with catering
Constraints
Reduce drop-offs by simplifying the pre-order experience
Improve user retention by building a more intuitive and engaging interface
Introduce flexible menu customization for all services
Communicate service types and pricing tiers
Help new users confidently choose the right platter with smart recommendations
Enhance overall user satisfaction and drive higher conversion rates
Goals
Research & Analysis
To understand the pain points, expectations, and behavioral patterns of users interacting with the Craft My Plate app, we used different research methods.
User Interviews: Deep 1:1 conversations to understand pain points
Surveys: Quick forms to validate assumptions at scale
UX Audit: Review of the current product experience
Competitive Analysis: Reviewed Zomato Catering, FoodPanda Events, Swiggy Party Orders
Internal Brainstorming: Sales & ops team shared frontline feedback
Competitive Analysis
Platforms use varied pricing models: fixed pricing (BFC), quotation-based (Lyt Meals), and dynamic cost breakdowns (Cookifi, Zomato).
High customization is offered by platforms like Cater Ninja and Big Food Co, Users can adjust quantity and item types freely.
Ordering by kilo is an emerging trend that gives users better control over bulk orders.
Package structures include tiered options (LUX levels), pre-curated boxes, and visual indicators for serving sizes.
Concierge-style customer support is offered by some (Genie from WMG), along with direct inquiry options for personalized help.
Advanced online ordering features include group ordering, item reviews, and real-time collaborative cart editing (Zomato).
User Interviews
06 Days
Conducted six days of live and online interviews, observing real user behavior across planning and delivery phases.
30+ Users
Interviewed over 30+ participants, including event hosts, HR admins, First time users and repeat customers, to understand their needs and challenges.
10+ Insights
Turned the findings into clear user journeys, mapped out pain points, and identified ways to build trust, all to guide better UX decisions.
Usability & Interface
Confusing item selection and customization
Lack of visual clarity
Unclear and inconsistent dynamic pricing
Ineffective navigation and filters
Low readability and poor accessibility
Trust Issues
New users were unsure of the quality and service, and a sample box can be suggested as a confidence booster.
Many preferred to speak with a representative during key decision points, indicating that a fully self-serve model isn’t enough yet.
Survey & Feedback Forms
To validate patterns, we ran surveys with over 100 users through Instagram and WhatsApp.
72% didn’t complete their first order
61% said pricing wasn’t clear until the end
47% expected customization upfront
Ideation
After deep research and listening closely to user feedback, we identified several experience gaps that were limiting trust, flexibility, and conversion. Our goal was to align the redesign with user needs (simplicity, clarity, trust), business needs (operational efficiency, upselling, retention), and market gaps (lack of flexible event-based ordering in bulk food delivery). This led to the following key product and experience improvements:
Revamped the entire app UI to solve all major UX issues uncovered during research, focused on readability, navigation, and flow clarity.
Discounted boxes for customers who find the pricing high but are willing to compromise on customization. Discounted boxes with fixed items offer significant savings, making bulk orders affordable for price-sensitive customers.
Create my menu for users to fully customize their order and request for quotation, and receive a quote within 20 minutes.
Sample box flow to build trust for new users, especially those exploring catering services.
Improved pricing transparency and enabled split payments to reduce drop-offs during checkout and make large orders more accessible.
User Flow
Delivery Box
Users can explore multiple platters, select items within each menu with flexible customization limits, and choose from upgrade options or add-ons. After finalizing selections, they can quickly fill in event details, review transparent pricing, and proceed to a streamlined checkout process.
Discounted Boxes
We introduced discounted boxes across Delivery Boxes, Meal Boxes, Snack Boxes, and Bowls. Since the new item view screen design is consistent for all, we’re showcasing just one example here.
Create my own - Delivery box
Users often felt restricted by fixed menus, leading to drop-offs, especially for events. To solve this, we introduced Create My Own Delivery Box, where users can explore categories, handpick items, add event details, and get a personalized quote within 20 minutes, with the option to checkout instantly or speak to an executive for more help.
Usability testing
We tested the entire app flow with a group of existing users, including both first-time and repeat customers. Feedback was overwhelmingly positive, the simplified item selection, clearer navigation, streamlined ordering significantly reduced confusion and hesitation, especially for bulk orders. Differentiating services into separate flows also made the experience more intuitive. Insights from direct interviews and live testing sessions guided minor adjustments to navigation and pricing displays, which enhanced user confidence, streamlined the process, and led to higher adoption and repeat usage.