Streamlined Contractor Onboarding

How I Helped Boost 3Play Media's Applicant Conversion 3x in Just 4 Weeks

Company
3Play Media
Role
Lead product designer
Team
PM, 2 developers, VP of operations, head of marketing, CEO
Dates
Summer 2021
Summary
During the pandemic, remote gig work was a blessing for many. 3Play Media wasn’t able to meet demand with its existing contractor base during this time, so as a result, I drove a four-week design sprint and redesign of the application process and onboarding experience to uncover ways to help meet capacity and improve utilization.

Overview

During COVID, 3Play Media struggled to meet the growing demand for remote gig work. I led a four-week sprint, collaborating with the VP of Operations, Head of Marketing, a product manager, and two engineers to develop an automated onboarding system, aligned with a refreshed brand.

This launch resulted in an immediate increase in overall conversion rate from 12% to 38%. The team was able to meet 95% of job deadlines, and time spent on manual interventions each week dropped from 20 hours to 4 hours supervising applicants.

Background

Line chart of unmet demand: new jobs on market rising faster than contractors from January to June 2021. Caption: During the first half of 2021, our supply of talent couldn’t keep up with demand for accessibility services.

With schools and companies moving online due to COVID-19, 3Play Media saw a sudden spike in demand for its accessibility services, like captioning and audio descriptions.

The team was understaffed, leading to missed deadlines, customer dissatisfaction, and potential loss in revenue and reputation.

UX Audit: Current Journey

To improve the user experience, I audited the application process to identify pain points. This helped me address key questions:

  • Where are most applicants dropping off?
  • Are there any issues with usability, accessibility, or scalability?
  • Can we automate any processes or consolidate systems to reduce overhead and tech debt?
Screens from the existing six-step contractor application journey, mapped in Figma.
After identifying problem areas, we mapped the complex application journey in Figma and shared it with stakeholders. We also reviewed contractor survey feedback to better understand needed improvements.

Identifying Team Goals

I led team workshops to prioritize goals and define key performance indicators (KPIs) for the contractor application redesign. From these, I identified five top-level opportunities with both high-level and UX-specific KPIs.

1. Improve the End User Experience

Boost completion rates, long-term engagement, and referrals while addressing tech debt and process dissatisfaction.

2. Reduce Manual Intervention

Automate the scoring system and design dashboards for more efficient applicant management.

3. Increase Fraud Resistance

Implement scalable safeguards to prevent fraudulent activity.

4. Align with the New Company Rebrand

Use refreshed language and imagery to differentiate our application process and modernize the design system with a focus on accessibility.

5. Improve Localization and New Services

Increase completion rates, applicants, long-term engagement, and referrals. Address tech debt and dissatisfaction.

Historically, NPS and applicant satisfaction weren’t measured, but early foundational research I led in 1:1 contractor interviews revealed general dissatisfaction with the application process.

Design: Early Iteration

During the one-week design phase, I created several versions of the future applicant flow. Despite the tight timeline, the team iterated quickly through synchronous (meetings, working sessions) and asynchronous (Figma comments, Slack, emails) communication.

Flowchart of the redesigned applicant flow with decision points for eligibility, email verification and scoring.
After identifying the problem areas, we mapped the complex application journey in Figma and shared it with stakeholders for clarity. We also analyzed contractor survey feedback to gain deeper insights into the needed improvements.
Annotated seven-step user journey with edge cases.
Annotated user journey, with edge cases defined

Results

After 3 weeks of development, the new application was rolled out on July 12th, 2021.

Slack message celebrating the launch of the new contractor application, with many emoji reactions.

We saw an immediate increase in conversion rates from 12% to nearly 40%.

This was due to eliminating drop-offs at key engagement points and introducing external triggers to remind contractors to resume where they left off.

Stacked bar chart of applications started by week; the share of completed applications jumps after July 12, 2021.