Building for
Military Customers

Overview

During a leadership roundtable, I raised the idea of offering a military discount. Leadership had understandable concerns — likely around giving away margin on already competitive prices. Months later, I was unexpectedly pulled into a design sprint for exactly that initiative, and couldn't help but think my earlier push had planted a seed.

The sprint brought together designers and product managers to explore what we could build for this program, benchmarking against competitors, especially Lowe's, whose 10% savings had become a strong draw for military shoppers. While Home Depot already had a little-known, in-store-only version that required showing ID on every visit, we saw an opportunity to make it clear, digital, and effortless.

I helped shape the vision and user experience for the full end-to-end program — from research and concept through final flows — partnering closely with internal teams and SheerID to deliver a trusted, user-friendly verification process and seamless shopping journey across online, in-store, and app.

Problem Statement

Before this project, Home Depot lacked a unified, digital military discount — creating unnecessary friction for a key customer segment.

• Low awareness and lost customers: Many military shoppers chose Lowe's instead, unaware that Home Depot offered an in-store discount — one that required showing ID on every visit
• No digital verification process: Military status could only be validated in-store, with no streamlined way to confirm eligibility online
• Omnichannel friction: No simple, digital flow to verify military status once, link it to a customer's account, and enable effortless redemption across all channels
• Third-party integration constraints: Design had to work around SheerID's technical requirements while maintaining a consistent experience

Research & Opportunity Framing

• Advocated directly with senior leadership for a digital military discount, framing it as an opportunity to win back loyalty from military customers
• Joined early design sprints to explore concepts, benchmark against competitors, and define success criteria
• Participated in user research with active duty military members to understand pain points with existing discount programs
• Recommended SheerID as the ideal verification partner, aligning their capabilities with Home Depot's UX goals

UX and Interaction Design

• Collaborated with a team of designers to create the full end-to-end experience — from a benefit-focused landing page, to SheerID-powered verification, through to the account view with a scannable QR code for in-store use
• Took primary responsibility for shaping core flows, ensuring they were optimized for web, mobile, and app
• Helped select human-centered photography and respectful visual elements, which earned leadership praise for elevating the program beyond a transactional offer
• Iterated designs in partnership with stakeholders, incorporating usability testing insights and addressing technical constraints
• Contributed to a scalable design framework, enabling future program enhancements without sacrificing clarity

Solution

We delivered a seamless, secure online Military Discount program that:

• Verified military status digitally through SheerID and linked it to Home Depot accounts
• Enabled one-step redemption across all channels with a scannable QR code
• Replaced a repetitive, in-store-only ID check with a one-time digital verification — removing a major barrier for military shoppers and strengthening Home Depot's competitive position
• Earned positive feedback from leadership for the human-centered design and seamless UX

Key Takeaways

• Balancing consistency, usability, and feasibility is critical when designing for multiple platforms
• Third-party partnerships require close collaboration to ensure technical and UX alignment
• Authentic visuals and respectful storytelling can deepen brand trust and emotional connection