Redeem Leaf

Company

Leaf Trading Cards, LLC

My role

Designer

Responsibilities

Research
User experience design
Information architecture
Wireframing
Design direction

Overview

In the card trading world, sometimes the cards that are supposed to be in a pack aren't ready at launch. That's where redemptions come in—customers get an IOU to swap for the real deal later, either online or by mail.

Redeemleaf.com is the go-to platform for handling these, making sure everyone from the internal teams to customers can easily redeem, track, and sort out their cards.

By diving deep into research and teaming up with developers and internal teams, I turned a process that used to be a headache into a smooth experience.

From headache to breeze, transforming frustration into satisfaction

Since the launch of the redesigned platform, redemptions processing increased by 66% on a monthly average. Additionally, customer login problems and technical support are now less than one percent of all incoming messages through the website.

66%

Increase in redemptions processed on average

<1%

Of customers experience
account issues

An inefficient and outdated platform

The existing redemption process was plagued by inefficiencies and bottlenecks, and an outdated interface. This led to the inability to process redemptions effectively and headaches for our team and customers.

“I have all the codes stored in a spreadsheet“

Turning challenges into opportunities

When I was approached with this challenge I didn't know anything about redemptions or how the internal processes worked. To understand the needs of all the users I resorted to different methods of research.

Discovery sessions

Sat down with stakeholders and internal users to gather information about needs, wants, pain points, and expectations of any future solution.

Contextual observations

I scheduled several sittings in which I observed the way users were using the platform and identify pain points that might not have come up during discovery sessions.

Customer feedback

Analyzed hundreds of customer comments left through our contact us channel to understand where our biggest opportunities are. With the help of AI, I was able to analyze large amounts of data quickly and efficiently.

“I can't access the page anymore, it says I'm not authorized“

Brainstorming and collaboration

With the insights from the discovery phase, I conducted brainstorming sessions with users and developers. This collaborative effort helped us identify goals and features for the end product.

Code creation

Individual and "batch" creation of codes with a simple step by step process.

Redemption updates

The ability to update redemptions in bulk or individually.

Shipping

The ability to connect via API to an external shipping platform to facilitate slip and label creation.

New interface

New mobile friendly interface with simplified login process and account recovery process.

Automatic updates

Automatic status and shipping information updates to customers' dashboard, including email alerts.

Testing the solution

The platform had limited testing internally and no testing externally before launch due to time and budget constraints. However, I was able to discover additional needs on this phase.

Ability to add notes to redemptions

Customer service realized that they needed a section where they could add notes to redemptions.

Shipping information bulk upload

During testing we discovered that in certain cases information from the shipping software was not being transferred.

What did I learn?

Throughout this journey I gained key insights and learned aspects of user experience design that will help me and the team be more effective on future projects.

Workflows are your best friend

Clear communication with users and developers about the specific features and goals of a product is important to meet the expectations and viability of any product. However, a workflow can help illustrate better processes and can help find gaps not obvious at first saving time and money.

The process is not linear

Throughout the process of solving a problem, others would surface, so the ability to be able to jump back and forth regardless of what stage of the process you are is essential.

Changes will happen

Being flexible and adaptable will help at times when inevitable trade-offs have to be made, especially when being the bridge between developers and users.

Release plans and beta testing

Due to time and budget constraints, there was no clear launch plan or live beta testing with external users. This would have helped ensure a smooth transition from the old system to the new system for internal and external users alike.