From Idea to Impact, Tamara Smart - 10% Adoption Rate

Role

Product Design

At

Tamara

Sr. Product Designer, Product Manager, UX Research, Engineer

With

Overview


Tamara Smart is Tamara’s first membership program, designed to provide users with a stress-free repayment experience while rewarding loyalty. The program quickly gained traction, achieving a 10% adoption rate within its first two months. Today, Tamara Smart has become a revenue driver, solidifying its place as a core offering within Tamara’s ecosystem.


3 million tamara users

IOS and Android

Product design

Platform

Users

Key areas

“It’s very stressful keeping track of all my payments on different dates”

- Tamara User

Starting with Research

To understand how a membership program can be beneficial for our users we took a step back and with the help of UX Researcher conducted 20 in-depth user interviews to understand their current pain points using Tamara today. These 3 main pain point were uncovered:

After using Tamara, many users felt stressed, constantly keeping track of multiple payments. This led to feelings of anxiety and a negative emotional association with the Tamara.

Anxiety after using Tamara

Users expected Tamara to provide protection when ordering from merchants that accept Tamara. They wanted assurance that if a merchant scammed them or if their items didn’t match the online description, Tamara would step in to support them.

Lack of Protection from Tamara

Lack of rewards for loyal users

Loyal Tamara users felt they deserved exclusive benefits like discounts, premium support, and rewards to acknowledge their continued engagement.

Brainstorming and First Solutions

Since memberships were already common in the GCC, we took an innovative approach to our program to help it stand out.

In our first iteration, we decided to give users as much flexibility as possible. Instead of paying a fixed amount each month, they could choose from three options for how much they wanted to pay. This solution was also backed by research showing that users prefer flexibility over a rigid payment schedule.

Iterations and missteps

In our effort to create a unique membership experience that stands out in the market, we were tasked with designing an engaging yet novel user flow. While the goal was clear, we faced challenges in balancing usability with novelty.

Despite several iterations, the concept ultimately was too complex. Usability testing confirmed our hypothesis: the steep learning curve of the novel approach negatively impacted the programs usability.

Back to the drawing board

How does success look like?

🎯

Features that solve users main pain points

👩‍💻

Intuitive design users grasp instantly

☺️

Successful user adoption of the MVP program

Solutions

Based on insights from our first usability test, we developed targeted solutions to address pain points and ensure the membership program delivers clear value to users

🎯 Solution for “Anxiety after using Tamara”

Pooling all user payments on the 1st of the month to match salary payments, making tracking easier and less stressful.

A seamless and intuitive opt-in flow from checkout, making it easy for users to discover Tamara Smart and join the program.

👩‍💻Intuitive design users grasp instantly.

🎯Solution for “Lack of rewards & protection”

Introducing cashback, rewards, and buyer protection for Tamara Smart users, ensuring they feel valued and secure.

A simple onboarding flow that highlights payment screen changes for Tamara Smart members, helping users quickly adapt to the new UI.

👩‍💻Intuitive design users grasp instantly.

IMPACT

After launching the Tamara Smart membership program, it achieved a 10% adoption rate in its first two months. Today, the program is one of Tamara's revenue drivers.