Rent.com (an eBay company), the most visited apartment listing site, needed to relaunch their underperforming Small Properties platform.
(Rob was Group Product Manager at Rent.com/eBay, from 2007 to 2011 - see Rob Canning Bio.)
New Small Properties Business Model and Interface
Rent.com’s Small properties business was monetizing poorly and required a complete overhaul of the business model. First, Rob explored several alternate business models and conducted detailed customer survey, competitive analysis, and financial projections for each. After Pay-Per-Lead emerged as the model most likely to succeed, Rob collaborated with the entire Product team to create specs and designs for changes throughout the site. Post-launch, Rob monitored performance and made tweaks and adjustments to the business model to ensure success. In addition to leading Product efforts, Rob held a General Manager role for the Small Properties business, leading and managing the Marketing and Customer Service teams.
Optimize Property listing Flow
Rent.com’s Small Properties 3-step listing flow had a completion rate of less than 10%. In order to address this, Rob evaluated customer fallout data, customer feedback loops, and competitor flows. Partnering closely with the UX design team, Rob then added tips for each step, simplified the photo upload tool, and devised AB tests for 1-page and 2-page flows, all of which resulted in a meaningful increase in flowcompletion rate.
Improved Small Properties Signup Form