Framing the Problem
Context
To see their competition status on Mercado Libre, sellers currently have to go through a long, slow flow that just isn't necessary anymore. The goal was to simplify this: give sellers direct access to their competition status so they can quickly spot what to fix in their listing and improve their position.
Key Question
Does shortening the seller's path to their competition data actually help them, or is the current multi-step flow just something they're used to?
"How might we give every Mercado Libre seller instant visibility into their competitive position, without interrupting the workflow they already rely on every day?"
Solution Direction
Show the competition status right inside the publication listing, the screen sellers are already on. Cut out the detour through the edit flow entirely, and put the information where sellers spend the most time every day.
Objectives
- Give sellers an interface to check their competition status in a simpler, more accessible way.
- Reduce the number of flows and clicks a seller needs to understand their competitive standing.
Design Thinking Process
The process started with surveys and interviews to understand where sellers spent most of their time on the platform. The research showed that the publication listing was the highest-engagement screen, yet competition data lived 2 screens deeper than that. So the challenge stopped being "redesign the competition data" and became "put it where sellers already are."
Current Flow: How Does the Seller Access the Listing?
Entry point
How does the seller access the publication listing?
Problem identified
The seller must go through 3 separate steps before they can view their competition status.
Current flow to check competition status
The seller opens the options menu and taps "Listado de publicaciones"
The seller sees all active and inactive listings across Mercado Libre and Mercado Shops
The seller has to open the edit view of each listing just to see their competition status. That's one more step, one more bit of friction.
3
Steps to reach competition data
Manual per listing
Required action
Sellers have to repeat this detour for every single catalog listing, and that friction adds up fast across their whole portfolio.
Research
The research combined surveys and platform data to see where sellers actually spent their time. Based on what we found, we built a new journey map that pointed toward the publication listing, the screen with the highest daily engagement, as the right place to put competition status.
How many sellers struggle to view their competition status?
25
Have trouble visualizing their competition status
7
Find it easy to locate their competition status
of 32 sellers surveyed
Interviews
"Competition status is very important to me because it guides me to improve my sales conditions, but it's always a slow process to find it."
"Competing in catalog allows me to sell much more, but I'd love to see my competition status somewhere more accessible, right now it's buried."
"Sometimes I find it difficult to correct my sales conditions, finding the guide to fix them isn't straightforward."
Solution
The publication listing already shows everything for a traditional listing: price, shipping, status. But for catalog listings, that space just sits empty. That's the opportunity. Instead of sending sellers through an edit detour, we could put the competition status right there, in that empty slot, on the screen they're already using.
The empty slot in catalog listings, the ideal spot to show competition status inline
We can cut one step entirely by leveraging the fact that the publication listing is already where sellers spend the most time. Embedding competition status there eliminates the need to enter the edit flow at all.
Redesigned Flow
By putting competition status directly in the listing, the flow goes from 3 steps to 2, and the seller never has to leave the screen they're already on.
The seller opens the options menu and taps "Listado de publicaciones"
Competition status is now visible right there, no extra steps, no detour into the edit flow.
3 → 2
Steps reduced
1 less
Screen to navigate
0
Extra taps needed
Publication Listing with Competition Status
The redesigned listing gives each seller an at-a-glance read of their competitive position, from "PERDIENDO" to "GANANDO," with clear guidance right next to the listing card. Sellers can immediately see what to fix without leaving the screen they're already on.
Te llevas el 10% de las ventas. 4 conditions to improve to become more competitive
Te llevas el 60% de las ventas. 3 conditions to improve to reach the top
Te llevas el 100% de las ventas. No conditions to improve, keep it up!
Impact
Sellers no longer need to enter the edit flow to check their position. Competition data comes to them now, not the other way around.
The redesign confirmed the publication listing, the highest-engagement screen, as the right place for actionable seller intelligence. That validated the core research finding.