How we 3x conversion of an Autonomous Sign Up flow in a Sales-based scale up in 4 months

Problem Context

For companies, selecting or changing a payroll manager is a critical decision, often involving significant research and a high level of trust. PayFit had launched its Self-Serve (Sales-less Sign-Up Flow) in April 2022, enabling prospects to explore and onboard without direct sales interaction. However, over time, the team struggled with limited insights into the funnel’s performance, creating a bottleneck in improving conversion rates.

Recognizing this challenge, I utilized a low-traffic period to conduct a Journey Discovery—a comprehensive performance audit that uncovered key pain points in the user journey. This initiative fueled the team with actionable insights and paved the way for a 3x increase in sales-less conversions.

The Process

Our objective was to deeply understand the user journey, address pain points, and implement changes that would significantly improve the Self-Serve funnel.

Understanding the Challenges

The primary issues affecting the funnel included:

• Insecurity of Usage: Prospects were unsure how to use the platform effectively.

• Fear of Abandonment: Users worried they wouldn’t receive adequate support during the process.

• Lack of Trust: The absence of personalized guidance created hesitation.

• Unclear Value Proposition: Prospects struggled to see the platform’s unique benefits.

Identifying and resolving these issues required detailed research and collaboration.

Overcoming Research Challenges

While conducting research, we faced timing constraints that limited our ability to interview customers directly. To navigate this, we:

• Leveraged interviews with SDRs (Sales Development Representatives).

• Analyzed onboarding sessions using tools like Mojo and Hotjar.

• Centralized existing feedback from internal stakeholders and support tickets.

• Mapped behavioral patterns to inform our understanding of user pain points.

Empathy Mapping and Impact Areas

Through empathy mapping, we identified three critical areas where users needed additional support to understand and trust PayFit’s value. We synchronized these findings with the directors to ensure alignment.

Competitor Benchmarking and Funnel Audit

To identify improvement opportunities, we:

• Benchmarked over 20 competitors, analyzing their user journeys and funnel designs.

• Conducted an in-depth audit of our own funnel to pinpoint quick wins and long-term improvements.

Insights and Ideation

Involving the entire team in this process was crucial:

• Included developers in user interviews to enhance their understanding of the challenges.

• Presented findings to the team and facilitated brainstorming workshops to generate actionable ideas.

• Engaged the team creatively—yes, I even sketched caricatures of coworkers for the workshop, and they loved it!

The ideation phase resulted in a prioritized list of solutions, focusing on improving communication, guidance, and trust within the funnel.

Implementation and Results

We turned the insights into action, delivering several key improvements:

• Redesigned the "Contact Us" Experience: Made it easier for users to reach out for assistance.

• Enhanced Funnel Communication: Improved messaging to build trust and clarify value propositions.

• Introduced User Guidance Features: Added live chat and feedback mechanisms for real-time support.

After four months of implementation, these changes led to a 3x increase in conversion rates on the autonomous sign-up flow.

Conclusion and Learnings

This project highlighted the transformative power of continuous discovery and user-centric design. Key takeaways included:

The Significance of Empathy in Design

Understanding users' emotions and needs allowed us to design solutions that directly addressed their concerns, fostering trust and confidence.

The Impact of Continuous Discovery

Regularly engaging with user feedback and data ensured that our decisions were informed, relevant, and effective.

The Importance of Collaboration

Close collaboration with SDRs, developers, and growth teams provided invaluable insights and fostered a unified approach to problem-solving.