#Growth
#E-Commerce
#CrossPlatform
#B2C
Breaking the Growth Plateau
🚀 A strategic redesign of Shopee’s authentication system that unlocked the 'Silver Economy'.
In 2020, Shopee hit a "subsidy ceiling", discounts alone could no longer drive sustainable revenue. We needed net new users. However, our rigid sign-up process created a bottleneck for our highest-LTV demographic (Age 40-65). We pivoted to a Trust-First Strategy, prioritizing psychological safety to unlock a 24% uplift in high-value acquisition.
Lead Product Designer
3 weeks (Sprint)
1 PM, 2 Engineer,
1 Researcher, 1 Analytic
The "Login Wall" Bottleneck
Shopee operates on a Vertical Browsing Model: users must log in before viewing product details. This makes the login page the absolute front door of our growth funnel. In 2020, despite massive scale, new user growth plateaued right before the critical Q3 holiday season.
The "Front Door" Bottleneck Shopee's vertical browsing model forces authentication before value discovery.
The Login Wall (Red Node) acts as a hard filter, where friction caused a direct plateau in new user growth
The "Aha!" Moment
We initially bet on OAuth (Google/FB) for speed. But data showed a shocking trend: Sign-ups actually declined among our most valuable demographic (Age 40-65)
Why were they leaving?
We initially hypothesized the flow was "too slow." But qualitative interviews revealed the blockers weren't about speed—they were about Memory and Trust.
The Memory Barrier
Legacy flows relied on Email/Passwords. Mobile-first seniors struggled to recall passwords created years ago on desktop, leading to immediate churn
"I have 5 different passwords, I can't remember which one is for Shopee..."
The Privacy Barrier
Asking for sensitive data (Exact DOB, Gender) upfront triggered mistrust. In an era of scams, "Data Minimization" became a user requirement
"Why does a shopping app need my exact birthday? Is this safe?"
SOLUTION 01
Access
From Password to Phone
After
The "Trust" Flow (Mobile)
We deprecated the Email-centric flow and enforced Mobile Number + OTP. For this demographic, a phone number is their digital identity—memorable and secure
Aligned with mental model of security
SOLUTION 02
Privacy-Preserving UX
Optimizing interaction logic using Psychology
Before
Validation on Complete
Button remained Disabled until all fields were filled. Created anxiety and felt like a pass/fail exam
After
Progressive Encouragement
We redesigned the profile form to align with the user's mental model of privacy, switching from Exact DOB to Age Ranges (e.g., 40-50)
SOLUTION 03
Solving the "Cold Start" Problem
My Proposal
New users were landing on a generic homepage, causing bounce. I pitched adding an "Interest Selection" step to feed our **AI Recommendation Engine** immediately.
The Design Trade-off
Needed data for AI targeting (Business), but didn't want to block users (UX).
Solution: The "Soft Skip" Pattern
Business Impact
+24%
Acquisition (40-65)
+9%
GMV Uplift
10M+
Users Impacted
Reflection
This project redefined my approach to growth, proving that for high-value demographics, Trust > Speed is the true driver of conversion. By treating Code as Design Material, I was able to map database schemas to negotiate scope with engineers, transforming a "No-Go" feature into a launchable reality. Ultimately, this experience shifted my focus from simply building screens to designing for the Algo, ensuring that every user interaction serves as the foundational data layer that powers long-term personalization.
