I am going to be conducting a competitor analysis, as I want to learn as much as possible about assembly instructions and what is currently being done out there. I will be looking at all types of assembly instructions. This includes paper, digital PDF, websites, and other interactive tools and applications. I will be using a checklist to help me compare them.
| Instruction | Manual Type | Was it easy to access? | Are they easy to understand? | What form is the content? | What does the user do if they get stuck? | Unique Feature |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| IKEA Paper Manual | Paper | Yes, comes with product | ||||
| IKEA Digital Manual | Yes, able to view all products | No | Diagrams | No option | Only diagrams - universally understood | |
| Argos Digital Manual | No, could only find one product on a random PDF | Yes | Diagrams and written content | Phone number for customer help line | Hints and safety instructions at the end | |
| BILT Intelligent Instructions | Mobile App | Yes, able to look at instructions for wide range of products | Yes | Interactive 3D, written language, text-to-speech | Phone number for manufacturer help line | Interactive 3D model |
| Viflux | Web App | No, have to request a demo | Yes | Digital diagrams, AI assistant | AI assistant | AI assistant |
| Easemble | Mobile App | Yes, able to look at instructions for wide range of products | Yes | Interactive 3D, written language, text-to-speech | No option | Allows you to create your own instructions |
The most popular and well known furniture store is IKEA. It has stores globally and everyone at some point has bought something from IKEA and assembled it. I wanted to have a look at what a leading manufacturer does with it’s instructions to learn from them and see what they are doing effectively and where they could improve on.
IKEA allow users to search for assembly instructions online and follow along from there. They predominantly use diagrams and illustrations for the products, with little to no written language throughout it. I think that these instructions do have their purpose and use, as they try to dumb down the assembly to just images. I still think though that there needs to be some sort of written language to guide the user as you have to look at the images multiple times to figure out what direction things go, which one goes on top of where.
Argos have a wide range of products, but they also sell flat-packed furniture which I didn’t realise. Online I wasn’t able to access instructions for everyone of their products but was able to find random PDF instructions for a shoe storage wardrobe. I loved the fact that they had written language and diagrams, which were both very clear and easy to follow. Since this was a random PDF there was no option to change the language. Overall I think that these instructions are pretty good, as they clearly outline the parts, and there are notes scattered around to give more detail and hints on certain steps. I also appreciated on the last page there is a ‘Guide to Wall Mounting and Fixings’, which gives some important safety information that might be helpful for people.
BILT Intelligent Instructions are one of the main digital competitors when it comes to instructions. They are an interactive 3D instructions application that is available on desktop and mobile. They focus mostly on industrial, workplace machines and appliances, targeting data centers, education, healthcare, and manufacturing. They do also provide instructions for household furniture and appliances but this is not their focus. As you can below I searched for an espresso machine and followed along. It uses prompts that can also be used text-to-speech, and the ability to click on different components to learn more about them. I will be undertaking a more thorough UX investigation and audit of all the digital competitors in the future, but for now it was really helpful to look into BILT.
Viflux is another digital instructions tool, but it doesn’t have it’s own app but is accessed through the web. Out of all the digital competitors it is probably the best one and also the closest to what I will be doing. I was only able to look at the Viflux website for reference as I wasn’t able to access the actual web application since I didn’t have a product with a Viflux QR code and there is only the option to request a demo. They do let you try a real guide to get a feel of the product. It has a really clean interface, clear visuals to guide the users through steps, and an AI chatbot to help the user if they have any questions. This is a top quality product and I am excited to look more into and understand how they get their users on the site and guide them through building furniture.
