Building Bliss Pool: A Shopify-Integrated Mobile App for Pool Chemical Selection
If you have ever owned a swimming pool or cared for one, you are no doubt aware of how difficult it can be to stay on top of the maintenance schedule. Balancing chlorine levels, maintaining the appropriate pH, and testing for the correct chemical makeup are not things that most people get right on their first attempt, nor even their fifth attempt. However, Bliss Pool is here to help with that problem.
Pool care, guided
The concept behind the Bliss Pool platform is straightforward: simplifying the pool maintenance experience by providing users with a specific method of doing things so they don’t have to guess which chemical to use. Bliss Pool is a smartphone application that will assist you in determining which chemicals you need based on the size and current state of your pool. It will also guide you through purchasing the needed products.
Rather than making users search through a cumbersome catalog of products or do extended research on different chemicals or manufacturers, the application automatically prompts users with a series of questions about their pool (such as size, how clean or cloudy it is, and any visible problems), all of which are stored in the database. Once users complete the questionnaire, the application returns a list of products that will help them achieve and maintain a clear and sanitized pool.
Users then proceed to shop using the built-in Shopify storefront, which is integrated into the Bliss Pool mobile application. The client’s goal when they approached Weelorum was to create a mobile front end for their Shopify store that would accomplish the same goals with regard to assisting customers in making the right purchasing decisions.
At the intersection of e-commerce & care
This project sits at the intersection of e-commerce and home maintenance tech. It is more than just getting customers to buy pool chemicals; it is about providing an understanding of the product they are purchasing, which in turn enhances the entire shopping experience.
Here are quick facts about this project:
E-Commerce / Home Maintenance Technology
Mobile application with Shopify integration
Product discovery, UX strategy, UI design, Shopify integration planning
United Kingdom
$120,000
Design completed; development ongoing
Active development
The mobile app was meant to be custom-built for Shopify so that users would have a true mobile experience. Therefore, as users are shopping through the mobile app, they would see results from the Shopify backend. All available products, inventory, and checkout from the shopping cart would be retrieved through the Shopify backend.
Client Goals & Business Objectives
The client has a pool chemical business, and typically, customers would browse through the available pool chemical products to determine what they needed for their pool, and hope they could guess correctly and purchase the appropriate combination of products for their maintenance needs.
Unfortunately, that approach was not scalable. Therefore, customers often made mistakes purchasing the wrong products, or stopped looking/trying to determine what products they needed altogether.
Because of that, the client wanted to flip the business model. Instead of making the users search for a product, they wanted to provide the consumer with a guide to help them determine what they need (i.e., narrow down the choices) and make recommendations about which products would meet their requirements for their pool maintenance.
From a business perspective, the goals were well-defined with the following outcomes:
Streamline the buying process for individuals not familiar with pool supplies
Increase conversion rates by minimizing confusion
Develop an easy-to-use mobile-first shopping experience
Continue using the current Shopify account
In other words, they didn’t want to replace Shopify with another service; instead, they wanted to build something better while still using Shopify.
Key Development Challenges
The following were some of the project’s key development challenges.
Designing a Guided Product Selection System
Pool maintenance is not an intuitive process; it involves chemistry, and most users do not want to learn the science behind it from scratch.
Therefore, the challenge was to take technical information and convert it to something very straightforward. Not oversimplified — just easy enough for users to make informed decisions without second-guessing on their part.
The objective was to provide a natural decision flow for the user that felt more like a conversation than a quiz or form.
Integrating Mobile UX with Shopify Infrastructure
The project was not a standalone application. It was to work hand-in-hand with the current Shopify environment.
That brought a few technical requirements into play:
- Real-time synchronization of product catalogs
- Ability to handle cart and checkout functions through Shopify
- Inventory accuracy maintained across platforms.
Fundamentally, the app had to function as a customized front end for the user and rely on Shopify to perform substantial backend functions.
If the connection broke or even lagged, the whole experience would suffer. The architecture had to be built well from the very beginning.
Adapting the Product Strategy to Market Changes
After wrapping up the design phase, the client paused the project. The pause was not due to any internal issues but a global supply chain shift that impacted the way the client’s products would be manufactured.
As a result, a reconsideration of the products the client intended to sell was necessary.
When the project resumed, much of the original plan was changed or modified. It was not a complete restart; however, it was not a straight continuation either.
Bringing the vision to life
Here’s how we went about bringing the client’s vision to life.
Product Discovery and UX Strategy
Our work started with understanding how real people do pool maintenance — everyday users, not industry experts. Next, we mapped out user journeys, identified points at which user decisions are made, and developed a logic for how recommendations should work for users. In doing so, we focused on reducing friction for the user at each decision point.
UX Design for Guided Purchasing
Our team went on to design the shopping experience. Rather than using a traditional catalog of available products, the app takes the user through a guided process. When using the application, users answer some questions, and through multiple steps, the application narrows the user’s choices and presents them with a final recommendation at the end of the process. This shift in approach changed how the user interacts with the company. Instead of browsing, the user is being guided through a process. This creates confidence in the decision-making process.
Shopify Integration Architecture
The technical implementation of this project revolved around Shopify. The final app was built to integrate with Shopify directly through communication with Shopify APIs. The Shopify API allows the app to access product data, manage carts, and process checkout. This ensures that the user experience stays up-to-date across all platforms while creating a customized and seamless mobile experience.
UI Design System
Weelorum created a complete design system that included more than just mobile interface layouts; it consisted of reusable component libraries, interaction guidelines, and consistent visual patterns. Each of these elements was created using Figma and prepared for the transition to development. This allows the application’s design to remain consistent over its entire lifetime. If you’ve ever worked on a product that didn’t have this, then you know how chaotic an application can become.
Technology Stack (Design Phase)
The project was more about planning and designing than coding. This is where we ensured that the app would fully integrate with Shopify.
To achieve this, we used a couple of design tools, which included:
Figma
Design
Adobe Illustrator
Design
Adobe Photoshop
Design
We ensured the app integrated with these platforms:
Shopify APIs
Integration
Custom Shopify App Architecture
Integration
A small, focused team
Our team was small, but we worked well together thanks to the discipline and dedication of each team member.
The team and client worked together to define the product architecture and design. This ensured that both parties were on the same page, which prevented confusion and disagreements down the line. All decisions during the project were made as a group, from start to finish.
Results of Our Work
At the end of the design phase, we delivered a number of important items:
- An established product discovery and UX architecture
- A guided buying flow and experience tailored to pool cleaning and care
- A strategic plan for Shopify integration
- A scalable UX framework that supports future development and redesigns
More importantly, we created a strong foundation that will ensure excellent user experiences for customers, so they won’t be confused from the moment they open the app.
Current Status & Future Development
As of present, Bliss Pool is live and has over 1000 downloads from Google Play and the App Store. It is a custom Shopify-integrated platform that connects directly to the existing store of our client. It gives pool owners a simple method for choosing the right product(s) and ordering them without second-guessing at every step. And from the business side, it opens up a cleaner, more efficient sales channel.
This project is a classic example of where the idea sounds simple at first, but in order to execute it accurately, you need an excellent thought process, a good structure, and a willingness to adapt to any roadblocks encountered during development.
Have a product like Bliss Pool in mind?
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