top of page

'For you' Hub: Redefining how members discover cashback 

Details

2024

Research, Product strategy, Competitor analysis, Data analysis, Experimentation design

Overview

As part of Cashrewards’ personalisation vision and app-first strategy, I designed and launched the ‘For You’ hub – a personalised space for curated offers, tailored promotions, and easier tracking of favourited merchants. Built as a modular, experiment-driven platform, the hub enables us to continuously test how personalisation improves merchant discovery, engagement and cashback conversions.

for-you.jpg

DISCOVERY

The known problem 

Based off previous research, Cashrewards lacked a personalised space where members could easily discover the breadth of available merchants. This gap limited engagement and retention, while also reducing merchant visibility and retail media opportunities. The existing Favourites section was under-utilised and functioned more as a static list than a discovery driver.

​

I was tasked with rethinking how Favourites could evolve into a personalised, curated hub that both engaged members and advanced business goals around personalisation. My role went beyond UI design — it required strategic problem framing, competitive analysis, and experimentation planning to define what “For You” should be and how it would deliver value.

My work included:
 

  • Data-driven insight generation: Analysed Amplitude behavioural data to uncover how members currently engaged with Favourites and personalised rails on the Shop page. This revealed low repeat visits and limited depth of interaction, signalling that the section needed to be reframed as more than a static list.

  • Strategic positioning of “For You”: Articulated the difference in value between the Shop page (a broad merchant directory) and a personalised hub (a dynamic, member-first experience).

  • Experimentation and engagement mechanics: I defined creative, testable approaches to keep members returning — such as curated collections, dynamic recommendations, and gamified discovery elements.

  • Stakeholder buy-in and retail media alignment: Collaborated with Product, Marketing, and CX stakeholders to demonstrate how a curated hub could not only engage members, but also unlock retail media opportunities for merchants.

DISCOVERY

Data-backed evidence for feature investment

Through a mix of user interviews and behavioural data analysis, I uncovered both awareness gaps and untapped engagement opportunities that made the case for transforming Favourites into a personalised hub.

From user interviews:
 

  • Members were often unaware the Favourites feature even existed.

  • Those who knew about it didn’t see enough value, expecting notifications when a favourited merchant had an offer (not available at the time).

​

From data analysis:
 

  • Favourites was averaging just 23 unique clicks/day, showing minimal interaction.

  • However, engagement volume across Favourites still reached 9k unique users, suggesting latent potential if reframed strategically.

  • In contrast, personalised rails on the Shop page proved highly effective — increasing CTR from 5% → 9%.

  • Adding just two personalised rails on Shop also lifted daily conversions (without search) from 1.70% → 2.14% — a 25% increase.

From a strategic perspective, the evidence showed that while the existing Favourites page was underperforming, personalised content was already proving its value elsewhere in the app. These insights built the strategic case that secured stakeholder buy-in for the For You hub. By surfacing curated content in a dedicated hub, we could:
 

  • Increase user awareness of personalisation features.

  • Drive higher engagement and repeat visits.

  • Unlock stronger merchant visibility and retail media opportunities.

Favourites+Shop Page.jpg

DISCOVERY

Defining the gap: Shop Page vs. Personalised Hub

To strengthen the case for a dedicated personalised hub, I defined a clear distinction between the Shop page (a broad merchant directory designed for search and comparison) and a personalised hub (a dynamic, member-first feed designed for discovery).
 

I conducted competitor analysis across leading cashback, retail, and lifestyle apps, benchmarking how they differentiate their Explore/Home tabs from personalised feeds. The analysis showed common patterns:
 

  • Shop/Directory tabs → structured around categories, filters, and search.

  • Personalised tabs → curated recommendations, dynamic content, and engagement mechanics (e.g., collections, trending offers, gamified suggestions).
     

This competitive framing helped demonstrate that Cashrewards had a gap in its experience. While we had strong foundations in a directory-style Shop page, we lacked a discovery-driven environment that kept members engaged beyond transactional behaviour.

Competitor analysis.jpg

By introducing a personalised hub, we weren’t just catching up with competitors — we were carving out a new channel for merchant visibility, user engagement, and retail media growth.

IDEATION

Design and concept exploration

In the ideation phase, I collaborated closely with other designers to explore concepts that could reframe Favourites into a more engaging, personalised experience. Our explorations were anchored in three strategic directions:

 

  • Personalisation at the core: Testing alternative design formats such as stories and collections to inject more personalised content into Favourites, making the experience feel dynamic and member-first.
     

  • From static list to curated hub: Reimagining Favourites as a central place for merchant discovery, surfacing relevant offers in a structured and visually engaging way.
     

  • Driving daily engagement: Designing mechanics to inspire members to return more frequently, including 1:1 personalised offers and exclusive benefits tailored to their shopping behaviour.

ideation.jpg

DISCOVERY

Launching "For you" as an experiment

After aligning with key stakeholders, we replaced and redesigned Favourites into the For You hub — a unique space for curated collections, tailored promotions, and tracking favourite merchants.

 

The first iteration introduced “Collections”, an experimental approach designed to help members discover new merchants and explore offers beyond traditional search.

For you - collections.jpg

METRICS / RESULTS

'For you' uplifts app engagement 

  • 45% increase in unique visits to "For you": Weekly unique visits to 'For you' (13k per week) is higher than previous Favourites (9k per week). 'For you' is definitely set to surpass Favourites in views and engagement as time goes by.

  • For 2024, Favourites was averaging 23 unique clicks per day. Since 'For You' launch, we now see an average of 191 unique clicks per day.  

Collections proves users are interested in other forms of merchant discovery

  • 12% of active users viewed a collection 

  • 30% conversion – viewed a merchant from a collection

  • 20% of users who interacted with a collection returned within a week, showing potential for retention benefits.

EXPERIMENTATION

Swipe to Favourite - A painted door test to further engage members in other forms of merchant discovery

After launching For You, early results showed that members were highly receptive to alternative ways of discovering merchants — with curated collections driving above-average engagement and click-through rates. Building on this momentum, I explored how to make merchant discovery more intuitive and habitual.

 

I designed the Swipe-to-Favourite interaction: a lightweight, gesture-based experience that allowed members to quickly browse merchants and save those they liked. 

For you - Swipe to Favourite.jpg

METRICS / RESULTS

Strong intent for interactive merchant discovery

The test achieved a 9.2% CTR, with 65% of users who clicked the banner completing the CTA flow. This demonstrates clear appetite for this mechanic. These results provided a strong signal to stakeholders that investing in swipe-based discovery could increase merchant visibility and repeat engagement.

OPTIMISATION

The next iteration of "For You"

Based on SUPR-Q feedback, I optimised For You by making Favourites more visible, refreshing Collections, and introducing a tailored daily Hot Offer to drive stickiness and habit. I also added Category Highlights to surface top merchants from previously browsed categories. Finally, I proposed breaking up the linear UI into new layouts to improve scannability, discovery, and flexibility for retail media placements.

for-you-new.jpg
bottom of page