Interactive automotive visualizer for MATTER AERA 5000+ & AERA 5000
Automotive Visualizer
When the Aera launched, there was nothing for a prospective buyer to compare it to. The only way to form an opinion was to see it — and the only place to see it was a dealership.
The brief wasn't "improve the buying flow." It was earlier than that: give people a reason to want to show up. The digital experience had to carry the full weight of first impression — and then hand off to the showroom with intent already formed.
Objectives
360° visualizer to increase conversion to test ride and bookings. & Improve SEO through social sharing and inbound links.
Product scope
1 model, 2 variants, 7 colors. Prices visible per variant. No accessories in Phase 1.
End states
Book a test ride or Book a visit — both driven by user choice, not a hard funnel.
MY ROLE
End-to-end UX/UI — research, IA, interaction spec, visual design, handoff.
The System
8 configurators.
One consistent pattern.
I benchmarked the best vehicle configurators available — ranging from EVs to superbikes — looking specifically for how each handled the moment between discovery and decision.
Ultraviolette
Closest Indian EV comp. Strong visual hierarchy, weak share flow.
Tesla
Masterclass in scope restraint. Price-first, no noise.
BMW · Mercedes
Premium interaction standard. Floating hotspots for feature discovery.
Bajaj Pulsar
Mass market reference. Mobile-first patterns, Indian buyer behavior.
Ducati
Sound as experience. Rev button as emotional hook.
TVS · Triumph
Partnership product, similar buyer profile. Navigation and variant patterns.
01
The vehicle owns the screen always.
Every benchmark that held attention made the product the protagonist. Controls, labels, CTAs lived at the periphery. The moment UI chrome competed with the object, users stopped looking at the bike.
02
Variant and color are different decisions, they need different UI.
Variant is a specification choice that changes what you're buying. Color is personal expression. Collapsing both into the same selector type makes the interface feel like a form, not a showroom.
03
Feature discovery needs to feel like exploration, not documentation
BMW and Mercedes use floating hotspots — users click to zoom and learn about specific components. This pattern keeps the bike dominant while delivering spec depth on demand.
04
Sound and environment unlock a different layer of desire
Ducati's rev button wasn't a gimmick — it measurably increased time-on-page. Switching environments (day/night, city/highway) lets the user project themselves into ownership before they've made any commitment
User journey
Six steps from awareness
to walking in the door.
I mapped the full journey from first contact to showroom — then designed the visualizer to own the middle of it. The tool's job isn't to close the sale. It's to arrive at the dealership with the decision already made.
Awareness
Digital & physical ads.
Exploration
A guide introduces the tool
Configuration
Switches variants, tries colors, activates lights
Evaluation
Sees the cost and EMI split for the chosen variant
Save & share
Shares via templated image
Design explorations
Early explorations
Controls at the edge, bike at the center
Two layout directions tested from the start — bottom bar versus right sidebar — both making the same bet: the Aera owns the screen, the UI earns the periphery.
Icons before words
The control strip went through rounds without labels. The question was whether Environment, Variant, Lights were learnable enough to stand alone — or whether labels were scaffolding the user actually needed.
Scene before color
Early builds led with the environment selector. Set the world first, then dress the bike. The exploration order itself was a design argument.
Designs
Final designs
Desktop
Mobile
Outcome