Improving Activation Rates in the Philippines
OVERVIEW
We are initiating an 8-week plan to address a critical activation rate issue with our Philippines (PH) region, with the ambitious goal to increase the activation rate from 3% to 10%.
Our current PH activation rate is significantly underperforming compared to our internal standards, presenting both a challenge and a substantial growth opportunity.
ROLE
Product Designer | BUYANDSHIP
I worked closely with the PM, marketing and engineering team. I led the end to end UX and UI design, from defining the problem to deliver the final visual artifact.
Why Philippines?
Buy&Ship is a platform which provides international shipping and forwarding services, allowing users to shop from overseas online stores and have their purchases delivered to their doorstep.
PH only has a 3% activation rate, from sign-up to first order. This represents an 80% underperformance compared to the market baseline, as the internal activation rate is 20%.
This is a challenge and a substantial growth opportunity
- Improve activation rates will significantly increase customer base and revenue.
- Learnings and strategies can be applied to optimize other regions
- Enhanced understanding of user needs will inform future product development
PROBLEM
SOLUTIONS
Problem
The activation rate of PH region is the lowest
- According to user research, we located the key problems. New users are confused about what values Buy&Ship can offer to them, resulting in a low conversion rate from relevant registration to consolidate an item (14%).
- Unclear Value Proposition: We do not demonstrate the benefits of our product compared to our competitors to users.
- Confusion: For new overseas shoppers without experience, it can be confusing to understand the difference between forwarding shipping and proxy shopping.
Goals
01
Identify and eliminate the main friction points in the user onboarding process to increase the PH activation rate from 3% to 10%.
User Level
02
Develop a repeatable framework for activation optimization across channels.
Company Level
Research Insight
We conducted user research to gain insights into users. We received more than 200 surveys and scheduled interviews with 8 users. Based on the results, we created a journey map and a persona to help the team identify user needs.
😊 What we did well?
Users' feedback on order services in mobile apps and websites is positive, as the order flow is easy and helps them buy overseas products at low prices.
😒 What needs improvement?
It’s not easy to discover and understand our value from the Web or an App. This makes it difficult for them to make decisions.
Pain Point
1. Too deep path to discover information
“As a user, it’s hard to find the order or payment details such as order process.”
2. Similar services cause confusion for new user
“As a user, I have to think about the difference between forwarding and proxy shopping.”
3. Unclear of the company value proposition display
“As Buy&Ship, it hard to see the value of cheaper than other competitors from the pricing page as our unique selling point”
Define Our Hypothesis
We established various types of assumptions to determine our needs and identify the most suitable approach. After considering the market, scalability, and technical costs comprehensively, we decided on the hypothesis:
- Redesign the homepage and price page to establish the reliability and advantages of our platform
- Redesign the onboarding flow and add the product tour of both the website and mobile app to help users complete the first order by themselves.
- Redesign the welcome and get started page for the app
Feedback from Stakeholders
We received internal stakeholders’ feedback and optimized the design. This was the part of agenda:
Storyboard review
Design
Solutions
After receiving feedback from the storyboarding session, I created high-fidelity wireframes and conducted design critiques. I sought stakeholder input to confirm the design and collaborated closely with the engineering team to ensure the design solutions were implemented effectively.
The mockup was successfully delivered on time!
01
Onboaring flow
Our research indicates that the user aims to utilize forwarding services or place a proxy order and has decided to sign up. After signing up, we will offer options to help the user quickly find suitable services for their journey.
02
Revamp pricing page
For our pricing pages, we emphasize the popular prices that are most important to users. I have reorganized the page layout to enhance overall browsing experience.
Additionally, we've included a comparison section with competitors to help users better understand our advantages. We have also compiled more information into a FAQ section, enabling users to find answers more quickly.
03
App Welcome page & Get started page
Create new illustration that aligns with the updated branding guidelines and incorporate animation into the design.
04
Revamp Home page
We have improved the homepage layout before login to help new users better understand our services. We will also conduct A/B testing to validate this solution.
Impact and Next Step
A/B Testing
In December, we successfully launched the new version of Scope 1 in the Philippines and conducted A/B testing. Half of the registered users will experience the new registration and onboarding process, and we will continue to monitor any changes in the data.
Next Step
Based on the results, we will make necessary adjustments and roll out the new version across all regions. While I cannot provide specific numbers at this time, the new onboarding process has positively impacted activation and growth rates.
Project Takeaways
The limited time is the biggest challenge of this project. As the design owner, I need to bring the design to multiple stakeholders within a limited time and come up with a smooth design solution.
This project is the first one to follow the new workflow. The team and I are collaborating to improve the delivery process. For instance, conduct a more extensive design review and invite the development team to participate for more comprehensive feedback.
Design critique can identify and solve problems
During the design review, I will collect valuable feedback and issues related to development or operations that I have overlooked, which will be very helpful for my designs.
