UX/UIDecember 2022 – February 2023
Lulu.comAuthor-panel redesign for the world’s largest self-publishing platform
With the Mirumee team I designed a new panel where an author writes a book, publishes it, sells it across many channels and gets paid.
Illustration: the home page of an author who sells. 123 sessions, 12 people live, 379 dollars of sales from 32 orders, 9 orders in process, the day’s sales chart, sales by channel and the best-selling books.
The first book
0 of 5 tasks
The tasks tick off in the replicas below.
01 Challenge
One panel for a book’s whole journey.
The challenge was to design a new author panel that would let users publish books and manage the sales process on the Lulu.com platform.
- A new home section with a summary and stage-tailored tips
- Project management
- A text editor and a product-card editor
- Buying your own print run
- Analytics
- Sales
- Payouts
- Sales channels
- A sketch of a new navigation for the marketing site
About the project
- Client
- Lulu × Mirumee
- Role
- UX/UI
- Head of Design
- Iwo Rzepiela
- UX/UI
- Jakub Nowak
- Piotr Flis
- Kamil Salanyk
- Natalia Górska
- Duration
- December 2022 – February 2023
- 3 months
- Location
- Morrisville, North Carolina, USA
- Platform
- lulu.com
Lulu.com lets people create, print and sell their own books worldwide with print-on-demand. It was founded in 2002 by Bob Young, a co-founder of Red Hat.
By 2014 it had published around two million titles, and it is one of the largest self-publishing services in the world.
02 Welcome page
A home page that knows where you are.
The new author home helps people realize their dream of publishing a book. It shows their progress — from creating an account, through choosing a format and cover, to publishing the book — and offers tips on improving its quality, reaching more readers and increasing earnings.
Get ready to sell books. Try these tips to get started.
Get ready to sell books. Try these tips to get started.
0 of 5 tasks complete
Start writing now. With Lulu Docs, you don't need any additional software. Use our convenient text editor, tailored specifically for book authors. Also use the collaboration function - write a book with a co-author, use the reviews and suggestions function.
Write now
Explore more book writing support
Check out these resources for answers to your questions, videos, and best practices.
- Help Center
Find documentation and tutorials on how to use Lulu. - Lulu University
Get detailed tips on how to create stories that will attract millions of readers. - Courses
Learn how to write engaging novels with video courses taught by famous storywriters. - Community
Make contacts and discuss best practices with other book authors. - Ask us about a topic
Find answers to your questions and review Lulu resources.
Books, sales and amounts are samples
03 Projects and editor (a task to do in the replica)
Writing, variants and the product card in one place.
Users can write a book directly on the platform, in a simple editor. They create variants — print, ePub or audiobook — with full control over the look and quality: format, paper type, cover colour. On the product card they add a description, set a price and choose sales channels.
- The project list
Drafts and published titles with their publication status, search and tabs. - The editor
Chapters and the book’s page. Type anything — that completes the first task. - Settings and the product
“Add to product”: print settings, a variant and the product card with its price.
My Projects
| Title | Authors | Status | Genre | Channels | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Draft | ||||||
| Draft | ||||||
| Draft | ||||||
| Open-Plan Survival Guide (Sales Edition) | Robin Vale | Published | Humor | |||
| Open-Plan Survival Guide (Marketing Edition) | Robin Vale | Ready to publish | Humor | |||
| Open-Plan Survival Guide (HR Edition) | Robin Vale | Scheduled publication | Humor | |||
| Open-Plan Survival Guide | Robin Vale | Pending | Humor |
Books, sales and amounts are samples
Open the “Traditional” draft or “Write your book”.
04 Analytics
How a book is doing on the market.
The Analytics section shows views, ratings, reviews, revenue and costs. Authors can compare titles or categories, analyse purchase counts and revenue across sales channels and adjust the reporting period.
Analytics
Total sales
$354
63%SALES HISTORY
Conversion rate
30%
15%CONVERSION FUNNEL
- Added to cart
10 sessions7,69%38% - The stage of implementation of the purchase has been reached
7 sessions5,69%28% - Converted sessions
5 sessions4,69%18%
Traffic source
Best-selling books
- Open-Plan Survival Guide (Secret Santa Edition)470 items
- Open-Plan Survival Guide305 items
- Open-Plan Survival Guide (HR Edition)234 items
Average order value
$50
63%ORDER VALUE HISTORY
Rate of returning readers
10%
10%Total orders
87
63%ORDER HISTORY
Sessions
454
25%SESSION HISTORY
Books, sales and amounts are samples
Hover a chart to read an hour.
05 Sales
Every sale, in detail.
The Sales section shows a book’s income: recent sales with date, price and channel. Clicking a sale reveals the details — order number, shipment number, reader data, payment method and status.
- The week’s figures above the table.
- Status tabs and search by product, customer and channel.
- Order details: delivery, payment, client, addresses.
Sales
- Orders
- 47
- Ordered items
- 457
- Total sales
- $4457
- Average order value
- $57
- Conversion rate
- 3%
| Order | Date | Customer | Status | Purchase price | Your income | Channel | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| +2 | 2023-01-26 13:25 | Ella Hartwell | In progress | $100 | $10 | Lulu Bookstore | ||
| 2023-01-26 12:25 | Noah Penrose | Delivered | $97 | $10 | Lulu Bookstore | |||
| 2023-01-26 10:25 | Customer #123 | Done | $72 | $10 | Amazon | |||
| 2023-01-26 10:25 | Customer #122 | Done | $72 | $10 | Apple Books | |||
| 2023-01-26 10:25 | Iris Calloway | Delivered | $72 | $10 | valebooks.example | |||
| 2023-01-26 10:25 | Customer #121 | Done | $72 | $10 | Kobo | |||
| 2023-01-26 10:25 | Customer #119 | Done | $72 | $10 | Bookshop.org | |||
| 2023-01-26 10:25 | Customer #118 | Done | $72 | $10 | Google Play Books | |||
| 2023-01-26 10:25 | Customer #117 | Cancelled | $72 | $0 | Boost eBooks |
Books, sales and amounts are samples
Click a row to open the order.
06 Payouts (a task to do in the replica)
Getting paid for the books you sold.
The Payouts section lets authors get paid by PayPal or bank transfer. It shows whether earnings were approved by the Lulu Bookstore or an external channel — Amazon, Apple Books, Google Play — and the payout history with date, amount and channel.
- Available funds and the month’s earnings side by side.
- Revenues with their status and estimated available date.
- “Options” picks the payout method — the second task.
Payouts
Wow, you've made $192.00 using Lulu. Keep it up!Available funds
$345
Bookstore and Global distribution earnings for this month
$345
Lulu Direct earnings for this month
$446
| # | Recognition date | Estimated available date | Revenue status | Region | Amount | Source | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023-01-26 13:25 | 2023-02-28 | Pending | US | $7 | Bookstore | ||
| 2023-01-26 12:25 | 2023-01-31 | Confirmed | EU | $20 | Global distribution | ||
| 2023-01-26 10:25 | 2023-01-31 | Confirmed | US | $20 | Bookstore | ||
| 2023-01-26 10:25 | 2023-01-31 | Confirmed | US | $20 | Global distribution | ||
| 2023-01-26 10:25 | 2023-01-31 | Confirmed | US | $20 | Bookstore | ||
| 2023-01-26 10:25 | 2023-01-31 | Confirmed | US | $20 | Global distribution |
Books, sales and amounts are samples
Pick a method in “Options” or withdraw the funds.
07 Sales channels (a task to do in the replica)
One book, many shelves.
The Sales Channels section extends a book’s reach through distribution platforms: Lulu Bookstore, Lulu xPress, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Apple Books, Google Play and more. Authors manage platform-specific features — author pages, featured products, banners and ad campaigns.
The three channel groups of the Analytics menu. Turn them on in the replica — the last three tasks.
0 of 13 channels on
- Lulu BookstoreLulu Bookstore
- Lulu Directrobinvale.example, valebooks.example
- Global DistributionAmazon, Apple Books, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org, Google Play Books, Boost eBooks, Ingram, Kobo, Libri, Scribd
Lulu Bookstore
Sell on Lulu Bookstore
Your four published titles appear in the store.
Product offers
Add your products to Lulu Bookstore for free. Sell books in the world's largest online bookstore for independent creators.
Product status
Number of products available in the Lulu Bookstore channel: 25
- ConfirmedNumber of products: 18
- PendingNumber of products: 7
- Not approvedNumber of products: 0
It usually takes 3-5 business days to check products.
Marketing
Increase your book sales with Lulu Bookstore marketing. This section will show the setup progress for each action you create.
Google Performance Max campaignNew
Pay per ad click
Advertise your products across all Google Ads channels, including YouTube, Search and the Web. Performance Max uses the best of Google's automation solutions to maximize reach and increase sales.
You can create a Performance Max campaign while your products are pending approval. Your ads will start running after your products are approved.
Facebook Ads campaign
Pay per ad click
Display ads for your book on Facebook. Increase your sales with targeted advertising.
Book promotion on the Lulu Bookstore homepage
Become famous in the largest online bookstore for independent creators.
Books, sales and amounts are samples
Switch the channel in the sidebar or the tabs.
08 Interface language
Two contexts, one panel.
The key challenge was a consistent UX across sections with very different contexts: the creative (the editor) and the business (payouts, analytics).
Colours from the boards
Click a swatch to copy its colour code.
Statuses
Every status has its badge — from a draft to a payout.
- Draft
- Ready to publish
- Scheduled publication
- Published
- Pending
- In progress
- Confirmed
- Done
- Delivered
- Not approved
- New
- LIVE
Controls
The same buttons, tabs and filters in the editor, sales and payouts.
The tasks on this page
The same list as the home replica’s — it reads the whole presentation’s state.
0 of 5 tasks complete
- Start writing your book
- Configure payouts
- Publish your book on Lulu Bookstore
- Start selling worldwide with Global Distribution
- Turn on your own bookstore with Lulu Direct
Two contexts
09 Boards
The design on boards and in recordings.
Six screens of the panel, the Lulu Bookstore screen at full resolution and four recorded flows. People, stores and the book series are replaced with fictional ones.
Boards
Recordings
Lulu, Lulu Bookstore, Lulu Direct and the Lulu logo are their owner’s marks. Amazon, Apple Books, Google Play, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org, Kobo, Ingram, Libri, Scribd, Boost eBooks, PayPal, Shopify, WooCommerce, Facebook, Instagram, Google and YouTube belong to their owners.