Launch a shiny, new app without focusing on just how new it is
472 installs in 2 months
It's finally ready — after months of giving design reviews, writing UX copy, and eagerly prodding engineers to code and QA — the app is here. Now it's time to launch it. Key stakeholders wanted the brand to be perceived as an innovative force in the home warranty sector. But not all parts of the product had been given a Silicon Valley facelift. And the competitors? They'd had apps for what seemed like forever.
We decided on channels: A promo for realtors, a social media post, an email to subscribers, and a kick-ass App Store listing. And a goal: Get downloads from current subscribers — no lead-gen yet. Easy, right?
UX Copywriting, Brand Copywriting, Marketing Design, Marketing Planning, Product Design Feedback, Logistics
Preliminary user testing indicated good usability, even for users who were relatively unfamiliar with technology. That meant marketing materials could be free of "instructional" content. We chose, instead, to focus on the features, especially the ease of scheduling a home service, i.e. the app's raison d'être.
As for the design language, we wanted to let the app UI shine, while keeping with current trends. So we opted for a touch of gradient to match the app and a gray diagonal stripe to give all the materials a feeling of forward motion.
After several hours of brainstorming, the marketing team landed on a realtor promo: Entice realtors to convince their clients to download the app by offering $50 Service Rewards for anyone that logged into their account through the app. (Psst…Service Rewards act as dollars toward home maintenance services).
I had the elements for the flyer — promo, purpose of the app (requesting a service) and some screens. I knew we wanted to stick to the format of previous flyers to some extent (deal and company/product info on the back; design flair and sales rep info on the front) but I also knew that this flyer needed to have a little bit extra.
The first iteration did not do so well. Feedback included:
"Those are phones? I couldn't even tell. And that white box on the back feels like someone grabbed a piece of paper and glued it onto another piece of paper.”
Marketing Stakeholders @Super
Yikes — definitely not the innovative, tech-forward angle we were going for.
We went through a few more rounds, especially on the front.
There was a version with cascading phones that showcased desktop functionality, but the app didn't offer the same functionality so that was nixed for fear realtors would feel cheated.
There was a version with phones that just had screens from the app, but that felt redundant (it's what was on the back) and didn't leave enough room for sales rep info. There were a few other versions, but nothing that was quite right.
Then came the stylized lineart phone — a style we'd used previously to convey Silicon Valley innovation. Comments on the final version were more positive:
"That's clever — you kept the phone theme, but didn't create any confusion over what people can and can't do with the app."
Bonus: We changed the headline copy because the proclamation of "The App Is Here!" drew too much focus to the fact that the app wasn't there previously.
Key stakeholders loved the throwback phrasing (Read: Apple's "There's an app for that" campaign) and felt that it implied all the innovation and convenience that has come to be associated with the original ad campaign. Win-win!
Broken dishwasher? Gutters that need cleaning? Owning your own home is great, but caring for and repairing it falls on you. Enter Super — a subscription service that makes owning a home feel as simple as renting one. All you have to do is call or email us when you need something done in your home, and we’ll take care of the rest.
And now you’ve got an app for that.
Now you get the same great Super features you’re used to from the convenience of your phone. Need to schedule a servicer for a repair? The app can do that. Need a Concierge job done? You can schedule that, too. Want to see where your servicer is in real time? No problem.
It’s just another way Super takes care of your house so you can enjoy your home.
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