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Auto Refinance Conversion Redesign
Caribou Financial
Mobile-first re-architecture improving view-to-submit conversion by 57%
Executive Summary
Caribou's refinance flow was built for desktop while 80% of users were on mobile - driving stagnant conversion, drop-offs before offer selection, and over-reliance on partner-acquired traffic. The redesign introduced pre-fill and phone authentication to remove the highest-friction points, generating seven-figure projected annual impact from organic traffic.
Measured Impact
+57% view-to-submit conversionImproved organic funnel efficiency
Hundreds of incremental submissions per monthReduced reliance on partner-acquired leads
Seven-figure projected annual revenue impactStrengthened sustainable organic growth
+40–60% lift across partner channelsIncreased cross-channel conversion consistency
Overview
As Senior Product Designer, I led strategy, system architecture, and cross-functional alignment across design, engineering, analytics, compliance, and legal - balancing usability, technical feasibility, and regulatory requirements to deliver measurable business impact.
- Supported Devices: Mobile-first, full desktop support
- Timeline: Dec 2024 – Sep 2025 (MVP launched Apr 2025)
- Primary Audience: Organic search users, partner traffic, returning customers
These challenges weren't isolated symptoms - they were structurally interconnected. This table maps how each phase addressed a distinct layer of the problem:
Overview
Impact
Quantified revenue leakage and structural acquisition risk
Focus Area
Conversion Risk & Funnel Leakage
Key Signals
Home / Offers / SSN drop-offs; Partner reliance vs. organic; 80% mobile misalignment
Discovery
Impact
Identified cognitive overload, trust breakdown, and step fatigue drivers
Focus Area
Root Cause Validation
Key Signals
Analytics segmentation; Loan officer insights; User testing + competitor benchmarking
Design
Impact
Scalable, compliant, cross-channel conversion system
Focus Area
Conversion System Architecture
Key Signals
Wizard flow + progress; Variant testing at drop-offs; Pre-fill + fallback + auth trade-offs
Production
Impact
Durable infrastructure enabling sustainable growth and future AI extensibility
Focus Area
Platform Operationalization
Key Signals
MVP launch + QE; Rails + React-Bootstrap alignment; API dependency + design system + debt reduction
Discovery
Research & Synthesis
Conducted in collaboration with the Project Manager, we interviewed users with recent refinance experience to understand motivations, expectations, and financial awareness - revealing higher financial literacy than assumed, validating the removal of tooltips and explanatory copy that added friction without adding value for an already-informed audience.
Tested flow variations across landing page structure, offer and product presentation, review page inclusion, and account creation - removing the progress bar and trust marks despite common convention, as competitive research and experience showed both anchor user attention to complexity and doubt rather than forward momentum, adding friction for users already committed to the process. Findings were synthesized across participants in FigJam, mapping drop-off patterns to inform architecture decisions.
Flow Variant Analysis
UX Flow Workshop
Facilitated an in-person whiteboarding session with the VP of Product to map the end-to-end flow, data requirements, pre-fill logic, and fallback paths - translating research findings into a streamlined architecture. The session produced the wizard-based flow structure, phone authentication entry point, and pre-fill with fallback strategy that became the foundation for the redesign.
Architecture & Data Mapping
Design
Core Principles & Innovations
- Simplification & Mobile Optimization: Streamlined landing pages, wizard-style steps, and reduced clutter
- Trust & Engagement: Added trust marks, contextual T&Cs, and subtle animations
- Smart Features & Integrations: Third-party data pre-fill, phone verification, co-borrower support, post-submission document uploads
I documented APIs in partnership with engineering and the third-party pre-fill vendor, and ensured compliance while resolving trade-offs with prioritized checklists. Visual design produced in collaboration with a visual designer working from my UX specifications and component direction.
Verify Identity
Personal Information
Vehicle Match
Production
- Launched MVP in April 2025, collaborating with PM, engineering, analytics, and legal teams
- Optimized code for speed and consistency using Rails + React-Bootstrap
Landing Page
Before
After
Offer Selection
Before
After
Decisions & Trade-offs
- Phone authentication: replaced email auth - 80% of users complete the journey on mobile, making phone the natural and lower-friction path.
- Pre-fill accuracy: validation layers and fallback paths absorbed third-party risk without exposing it to users.
- Simplified offer review: upfront clarity and trust signals compensated for removed redundancy.
- Removed footer, trust marks, and explanatory copy: reduced friction without sacrificing flow.
Synthesis
By resolving technical, regulatory, and usability trade-offs, the redesign positioned Caribou for sustainable, organic-first growth., the redesign improved conversion efficiency while strengthening long-term organic growth and reducing dependency risk.
Next Project
Back to Work
Auto Refinance Conversion Redesign
Caribou Financial
Mobile-first re-architecture improving view-to-submit conversion by 57%
Executive Summary
Caribou's refinance flow was built for desktop while 80% of users were on mobile - driving stagnant conversion, drop-offs before offer selection, and over-reliance on partner-acquired traffic. The redesign introduced pre-fill and phone authentication to remove the highest-friction points, generating seven-figure projected annual impact from organic traffic.
Overview
As Senior Product Designer, I led strategy, system architecture, and cross-functional alignment across design, engineering, analytics, compliance, and legal - balancing usability, technical feasibility, and regulatory requirements to deliver measurable business impact.
- Supported Devices: Mobile-first, full desktop support
- Timeline: Dec 2024 – Sep 2025 (MVP launched Apr 2025)
- Primary Audience: Organic search users, partner traffic, returning customers
These challenges weren't isolated symptoms - they were structurally interconnected. This table maps how each phase addressed a distinct layer of the problem:
Layer
Impact
Focus Area
Key Signals
Overview
Quantified revenue leakage and structural acquisition risk
Conversion Risk & Funnel Leakage
Home / Offers / SSN drop-offs; Partner reliance vs. organic; 80% mobile misalignment
Discovery
Identified cognitive overload, trust breakdown, and step fatigue drivers
Root Cause Validation
Analytics segmentation; Loan officer insights; User testing + competitor benchmarking
Design
Scalable, compliant, cross-channel conversion system
Conversion System Architecture
Wizard flow + progress; Variant testing at drop-offs; Pre-fill + fallback + auth trade-offs
Production
Durable infrastructure enabling sustainable growth and future AI extensibility
Platform Operationalization
MVP launch + QE; Rails + React-Bootstrap alignment; API dependency + design system + debt reduction
Discovery
Research & Synthesis
Conducted in collaboration with the Project Manager, we interviewed users with recent refinance experience to understand motivations, expectations, and financial awareness - revealing higher financial literacy than assumed, validating the removal of tooltips and explanatory copy that added friction without adding value for an already-informed audience.
Tested flow variations across landing page structure, offer and product presentation, review page inclusion, and account creation - removing the progress bar and trust marks despite common convention, as competitive research and experience showed both anchor user attention to complexity and doubt rather than forward momentum, adding friction for users already committed to the process. Findings were synthesized across participants in FigJam, mapping drop-off patterns to inform architecture decisions.
Flow Variant Analysis
UX Flow Workshop
Facilitated an in-person whiteboarding session with the VP of Product to map the end-to-end flow, data requirements, pre-fill logic, and fallback paths - translating research findings into a streamlined architecture. The session produced the wizard-based flow structure, phone authentication entry point, and pre-fill with fallback strategy that became the foundation for the redesign.
Architecture & Data Mapping
Design
Core Principles & Innovations
- Simplification & Mobile Optimization: Streamlined landing pages, wizard-style steps, and reduced clutter
- Trust & Engagement: Added trust marks, contextual T&Cs, and subtle animations
- Smart Features & Integrations: Third-party data pre-fill, phone verification, co-borrower support, post-submission document uploads
I documented APIs in partnership with engineering and the third-party pre-fill vendor, and ensured compliance while resolving trade-offs with prioritized checklists. Visual design produced in collaboration with a visual designer working from my UX specifications and component direction.
Verify Identity
Personal Information
Vehicle Match
Production
- Launched MVP in April 2025, collaborating with PM, engineering, analytics, and legal teams
- Optimized code for speed and consistency using Rails + React-Bootstrap
Landing Page
Before
After
Offer Selection
Before
After
Decisions & Trade-offs
- Phone authentication: replaced email auth - 80% of users complete the journey on mobile, making phone the natural and lower-friction path.
- Pre-fill accuracy: validation layers and fallback paths absorbed third-party risk without exposing it to users.
- Simplified offer review: upfront clarity and trust signals compensated for removed redundancy.
- Removed footer, trust marks, and explanatory copy: reduced friction without sacrificing flow.
Synthesis
By resolving technical, regulatory, and usability trade-offs, the redesign positioned Caribou for sustainable, organic-first growth., the redesign improved conversion efficiency while strengthening long-term organic growth and reducing dependency risk.
Next Project
Measured Impact
+57% view-to-submit conversionImproved organic funnel efficiency
Hundreds of incremental submissions per monthReduced reliance on partner-acquired leads
Seven-figure projected annual revenue impactStrengthened sustainable organic growth
+40–60% lift across partner channelsIncreased cross-channel conversion consistency