Date
2023.11-2024.02 (Pivoted and launched a new product within 4 months)
Role
Founding Product Designer (Wore all hats: UX, UI, Research, Strategy)
Company
@teamsparta Inc.
(A high-growth edtech startup focused on coding education, generating over $40M in revenue)
Contribution
Designed and launched Korea’s leading CRM automation platform, combining UX strategy and data integration to scale automation, boost client revenue 6x, and secure 50+ contracts.
CRM marketing
Why CRM matters?
However, In some industries,
CRM isn’t optional - it’s a sales engine.
Especially in retail, F&B, education, and appointment-based services, a well-timed message can significantly boost repeat visits and average order value - making it a channel that demands careful, strategic attention.
Starting point of effic
And....Effic started with an internal pain point at Team Sparta, a leading coding edtech company.
0-1 result
So how did the first launch go ?
In short - not great. As is often the case.
We even hosted a CRM A/B testing webinar that drew many marketers and operators. But despite strong interest, signups for Effic’s A/B testing tool were low. That’s when we realized - something was off. CRM marketers were looking for something else.
Start point
That's when we decided to pivot effic - after uncovering the hiddens needs of CRM users.
This moment led us to realize that CRM marketers had unmet, hidden needs we hadn’t yet uncovered. So we began interviewing people across different roles and industries - each managing CRM in their own unique way - to better understand what they truly needed.
Everyone needed a CRM for different reasons, but small businesses and startups struggled since they couldn’t afford heavy investment in automation.
Pivoting scenario
Let’s take a look at how this CRM bottleneck played out in a marketing team at a growing startup.
Scenario 1 : CRM Marketing Team
Situation
Now let's shift to a lean HR team in a midesize company - facing the same roadblock, just in a different form.
Scenario 2 : HR Team
Meanwhile, in a lean HR team, sending interview reminders feels like a full-time job,not because hiring is booming, but because there’s still no easy way to automate it.
Manual, error-prone, and exhausting, especially for small teams.
Reminder fatigue is real.
Challenge
Though on different teams, they shared the same burden: endless CRM task handoffs
Whether it was interview reminders or marketing follow-ups, users had to repeat the same tasks over and over. But the bigger issue? They couldn’t automate anything without a developer - slowing everyone down and creating team-wide friction.
In other words, the current CRM automation leads to unnecessary delegation of work.
Target reframing
We misread the target at 0-1 stage,
but that helped us redefine it clearly.
We initially misidentified our product’s target audience, which led us to revisit and refine our targeting strategy for better precision.
Previous wrong target
The previous mistake in targeting was underestimating how much users want to rely on developers and overlooking how important the frequency of CRM automation is.
Re-framed target
But our real overlooked target was businesses that need frequent CRM automation, see CRM as part of their product value, want to set it up without relying on developers, and have a limited budget for CRM.
Start point
That’s when I reimagining new CRM automation: No code, no delays, no developer handoffs.
I started to reimagining our tool help them to maximize CRM efficiency at a more affordable price than existing management tools, allowing small businesses and startups to integrate it seamlessly into their operations.
What if setting up CRM automation was as simple as scheduling an alarm?
What if marketers could create and run automated campaigns on their own, without writing a single line of code or waiting on developers?
What if developers never had to deal with CRM requests again?
Start point
With the solution in place,
it’s time to bring it to life visually.
This stage involves defining the UI hierarchy and enhancing it with visualizations while shaping the system’s framework, including user flow, IA, and data flow.
Start point
I turned their mental flow into a clear,
left-to-right UX Structure
After interviewing dozens of PMs and marketers, I uncovered a shared mental model: they don’t just write messages, they basically design them.
This insight shaped a step-by-step UI flow that mirrors how they naturally think.
A dominant left panel to guide the journey. And A flexible right panel to fine-tune each step - just like marketers do in their heads.
UI walkthrough
Let's walk through the how I created effic's efficient 4 steps! throughout Jessica & Emma's eyes. Without relying on developers.
UI walkthrough
Step 1 : Select Recipients
Who should get this message?
💬 “Before, I had to export this and ask someone to run a query.”
Now, Jessica opens the recipient panel. She selects:→ “Signed up within the last 3 days, didn’t use their coupon.”
UI walkthrough
Step 2 : Add filters
Who should we avoid sending this to?
💬 "I used to worry about annoying users. Now I just check a box."
Next, Jessica adds a fatigue control rule: → Exclude anyone who got a message in the last 72 hours. (3days)
UI walkthrough
Step 3 : Write the message
What do we want to say?
💬 "Looks personal. But I only wrote it once.”
Write once, personalize for all. Jessica writes: “Hi {{Name}}, your coupon’s still waiting!” → Hi Alex, your coupon’s still waiting!
UI walkthrough
Step 4 : Set the timing
When should it go out?
💬 “No more begging for scheduling changes. It’s all in my hands now.”
Jessica chooses when the message should go out: → “Send exactly 3 days after signup, at 10AM.”
