Impact Center

🧠 Overview

Project Details

Role: Senior Product Manager
Product Type: Activation & Engagement Feature
Company: Ando Bank (Fintech Startup)
Timeframe: March–April 2022
OKR: Increase new user activation

At Ando, a mission-driven fintech startup, acquisition was strong — but activation was lagging. While ~90% of new users completed onboarding, fewer than 16% were reaching full activation, which required account funding and at least three transactions within 10 business days. To address this, I led the design and launch of the Impact Center — a personalized in-app dashboard that guided users through activation steps, highlighted rewards, and showcased the environmental impact of their banking activity.

🔍 Problem Statement

Before the Impact Center:

Users were guided through a "To Do's" module that listed incomplete actions but lacked clear value propositions
Key activation actions — account funding, direct deposit, savings account creation, transactions — were not prioritized or tied to reward visibility
Rewards (cash back, direct deposit bonuses, referrals) were available, but users had no single place to understand their eligibility or progress
The effort to switch primary banking to Ando was high; without visible value and mission alignment, users stalled in activation

Benchmarks & Gaps:

Ando's activation rate: 16%, far below the 36% industry benchmark
Needed to increase activation without creating friction, while reinforcing Ando's environmental mission

💡 Solution – The Impact Center

A centralized, in-app engagement hub to:

Clearly show users their remaining activation steps
Display potential rewards and progress toward earning them
Include a calculator for:
- Potential cash back earnings
- Referral and direct deposit rewards
- CO₂ emissions reduced through Ando's environmental projects
Reinforce Ando's mission-driven brand by connecting banking activity to tangible environmental benefits

🔧 Strategy & Execution

🎯 Research & Validation

Conducted user interviews to test early concepts; feedback praised clarity and design
Benchmarked against activation strategies from leading neobanks
Internally proposed the environmental impact calculator to align with Ando's sustainability mission

🛠 Role & Responsibilities

Defined requirements for the calculator algorithm, validated and tested calculations
Created low-fidelity wireframes, flow diagrams, and a design brief for product designers
Partnered with engineering to integrate activation tracking logic and ensure real-time reward eligibility updates
Worked with compliance to:
- Add disclaimers clarifying reward terms and eligibility
- Adjust UX flows to clearly communicate steps needed for rewards

📣 Go-to-Market

Press release, email campaigns, social media posts
In-app and push notifications to drive awareness
Website updates, including a public-facing calculator for acquisition marketing

📱 Product Demo

Impact Center Walkthrough

A walkthrough of the Impact Center showing the personalized dashboard, activation steps, and environmental impact calculator.

⚖️ Key Trade-offs & Decisions

Decision	Rationale
Include environmental impact data	Reinforce Ando's unique mission and increase emotional engagement
Public calculator on website	Extend impact messaging to acquisition funnel
Reward visibility tied to actions	Make benefits tangible and directly connected to behavior
Compliance-driven disclaimers	Protect the company while ensuring transparent user communication

📈 Results & Impact

✅ Account Funding Increase

+8% 60 Days Post-Launch

Significant improvement in account funding rate within the first 60 days of launch.

🤝 User Referrals Growth

+5% Referral Lift

Increased user referrals as the Impact Center highlighted referral rewards and benefits.

📊 Activation Rate Improvement

+11% 16% → 27%

Major improvement in overall activation rate, closing the gap toward industry benchmark.

🚀 Hero Metrics (60 Days Post-Launch)

Account Funding

+8%

User Referrals

+5%

Activation Rate

+11%

💬 Reflection

The Impact Center demonstrated that clear guidance + visible value = higher activation. By combining financial incentives with mission alignment, we addressed both rational and emotional motivators for users to complete their onboarding journey.

This project reinforced my belief that activation levers must connect immediate user value with long-term brand loyalty.

Clear guidance + visible value = higher activation - The combination of step-by-step guidance with tangible rewards proved highly effective
Mission alignment drives engagement - Connecting banking activity to environmental impact created emotional connection
Reusable framework for future features - Created a template for tying rewards and mission-driven content into core banking UX

Activation & Engagement Feature