PEAK6 / Zogo Finance

Skill completion up 36%.

I redesigned how Zogo teaches, from lessons to rewards, and took the same system to banks through an embeddable SDK.

Zogo app screens: learning path, a lesson, explore, stats, badges and rewards

How it moved the business

What I shipped

  • Redesigned mobile appA less-is-more overhaul down to the features learners loved, with stronger white-label support for partner brands.
  • Redesigned learning loopLessons, streaks, skill badges and rewards, plus new mini games to learn by playing.
  • Partner SDK and config toolA turnkey embed for banks and credit unions, set up without engineers.
  • Partner analytics dashboardRedesigned, so partners see how their learners engage at a glance.
  • AI news summariesZogo's first AI feature: daily finance news in 3–7 takeaways.
  • Smarter onboardingPersonalization up front, then straight into a first lesson.
  • Beta features tabA research testbed in the app: video shorts, a crossword and head-to-head trivia.

What I changed at Zogo

  • One design system that re-skins itself for every partner's brand
  • Brand and features became configuration, not custom work
  • My working prototypes doubled as the sales team's SDK demos
  • Two-week sprints with design QA first, so team QA got shorter and sharper

Team results from product analytics and A/B tests; I led the design behind them. For partner banks and credit unions, engagement is the ROI: better-informed customers pay on time and use more of their institution's services.

The problem

Everyone got the same start.

Every new learner got the same generic first lessons. Partners got thin data to report on, and identity checks interrupted the moment people redeemed their first reward.

The key decision

Short onboarding, or a smarter one?

Option A

Keep it short

Fewer steps and less drop-off, but generic lessons and thin partner data.

Option B · Chosen

Ask more up front

Personalization and identity checks first, then straight into a lesson.

Why

A/B tests showed the extra steps didn't hurt conversion; it rose 10%. Partners got richer reporting, and gift card redemption went from friction point to moment of delight.

Also shipped

The work, up close.

The SDK inside a partner's online banking, in the bank's own brand.
Zogo news summaries: short key takeaways for a finance story, with related lessons
AI news summaries: 3–7 takeaways, linked to related lessons.+27% lesson starts
Zogo onboarding sequence: personalization questions leading into a first lesson
Onboarding: more setup, straight into a first lesson.+10% conversion

More from the project

A few more screens.

The 360 Integration configuration tool for SDK partners, with features switched on and off per partner
01Partner configuration: partners choose which features to turn on, without technical help.
A New Reward dialog in the partner configuration tool
02Partners set up their own rewards in the same tool.
Zogo embedded in a sample bank's web and mobile banking, styled in purple
03The same SDK in another partner's brand. The interface adapts to each partner's logo and colors.
Zogo app screens: a two-day streak, a completed skill badge, and a gift card redemption
04Streaks, skill badges and gift card rewards.
Zogo onboarding screens asking about financial goals and confidence
05Onboarding personalization questions.
A hand holding a phone showing a Zogo lesson question about investment risk
06A lesson question on device.
Zogo news summary with key takeaways, and a News Recap Quiz in the games tab
07News summaries and the News Recap Quiz.
Zogo marketing site page for credit unions and community banks
08Zogo's marketing site for credit unions and community banks.
Zogo marketing site team and careers pages
09Zogo's team and careers pages.

01 / 09

Next case study

Poker Power

Also at PEAK6: rebuilding navigation and the first game to triple retention.