CASE STUDY
Growth referrals journey
Redefined how users discover, share, and earn through referrals by designing a system grounded in motivation and timing — not marketing gimmicks. A data-led, human-centered redesign that turned a stagnant referral program into a self-sustaining growth engine.
Turning a referral feature into a growth engine
Every experiment started with one goal: make referrals feel natural, human, and rewarding. I redesigned the end-to-end journey, introduced a tiered incentive model, and delivered a real-time referral dashboard so people could see progress and rewards at a glance.
We expanded referral touchpoints across the product, tested evergreen placements, and explored AI-assisted personalized messaging to increase share intent, all in support of Gusto’s FY26 growth vision.
Outcome: A more intuitive referral experience designed to drive sharing behavior, increase referral leads, and fuel revenue growth over time.
Outcomes
- +40% lift in referral leads via tiered incentives
- +8% Net ARR growth from optimized referral touchpoints
- ~3 experiments conducted per month
We focused on
- Led a cross-functional effort to shape a North Star vision for FY26, simplifying a complex referral journey into clear, motivating progress states.
- Developed a net-new referral and rewards experience featuring layered bonuses, ready to launch during the holiday cycle for incremental conversion lift.
- Scaled the tiered incentive + tracking system to sustain engagement and transparency across the funnel.
- Layered contextual “a-ha” moments and evergreen in-app placements to keep referral activity active and visible.
- Leveraged AI to automate and augment referral insights—empowering employers with personalized, context-aware experiences, including AI-generated referral messages that became part of the future intelligent growth vision.
What helped
- Tight partnership across Product, Growth, Research, and Engineering to merge experimentation velocity with design clarity.
- Rapid iteration informed by qualitative UXR to validate comprehension, reward language, and conversion triggers.
The work behind the results
From research to launch, these artifacts show the strategy behind the Refer & Earn engine — content hierarchy, wireframes, prototypes, and growth experiments that powered the FY26 tiered incentive program and unlocked customer “a-ha moments”.
What I learned
This project reinforced the power of designing beyond features—designing for momentum. The FY26 vision wasn’t just about modernizing Referrals; it was about turning it into a self-sustaining growth engine that balanced user motivation, business timing, and scalable platform behavior. It required more than a single experience; it called for a dynamic, AI-informed system that could adapt, reward, and evolve over time.
What I took away was simple: meaningful impact comes from aligning three things—systems that learn (AI + data), experiences people trust (clarity and motivation), and strategies that compound (growth loops). When those align, products don’t just work, they accelerate.