Reimagining Corporate Gifting Flows

Context 

In July 2022, I joined Cultivate in Boulder as their first and only UX designer. The company, with over a decade of experience in corporate gifting, sought to build an online solution similar to competitors like Loop & Tie, &open, and Snappy. My role was to redesign their existing platform, starting with creating a design system and improving key features.

The Challenge

Cultivate PCG needed to streamline their Send a Gift Flow (SAGF) to compete with modern gifting platforms. The existing process was cumbersome and not user-friendly, potentially impacting user adoption and satisfaction.

My Role

As the sole UX designer, I was responsible for:

• Creating a comprehensive design system

• Redesigning the Send a Gift Flow

• Improving contact management

• Designing new features like gift scheduling and message customization

• Redesigning the redemption website for web and mobile

The Process

Research and Analysis

Despite limited access to user data, I conducted:

• Competitive analysis of platforms like Loop & Tie, &open, and Snappy

• Internal stakeholder interviews with Sales and Client Success teams

• Analysis of available data from Hotjar and Google Analytics

Design System Creation

I spent a month developing a design system that aligned with Cultivate PCG's marketing assets and guidelines, ensuring consistency across the platform.

Iterative Design

The 'Gifting Flow' redesign involved multiple iterations:

1. Streamlining the gift-sending steps

2. Improving contact management with bulk upload and manual entry options

3. Introducing gift scheduling functionality

4. Designing customizable messaging for gift emails and landing pages

5. Redesigning the redemption website for a seamless user experience

Key Features Developed

• Contact Management Tool: Enabled uploading of up to 200 contacts via spreadsheet or manual entry

• Gift Scheduling: Allowed users to plan and automate gift sending

• Message Customization: Created tools for personalizing gift messages and landing pages

• Redemption Website Redesign: Improved the e-commerce experience for gift recipients, including complex features like the "ticket program"

The Outcome

While quantitative data was limited due to my departure before long-term metrics could be gathered, the redesigned flow and new features significantly modernized Cultivate's offering. The improvements in user interface and functionality positioned the company to better compete with leading online gifting platforms.