Tactically planning for a business goal | Learnings to the world
By: Nonbinaryfish, Vini B Peixoto
Tags: Experiment, Okr, Framework, Tactics, Product Management

Tactically planning for a business goal

At Grupo ZAP, we have been using OKRs since October 2019. The first two quarters after that, the goal was reducing redundant costs for Viva Real and ZAP’s platforms — the two companies merged at the end of 2017 — and growth through traffic, which seemed the best viable option by then.

After 6 months, the main goals were reached, key results were achieved, but a new problem emerged.

A new problem for the second quarter of 2020

Despite cost reduction and traffic growth, an important business metric was down in the marketplace business unit — a business unit responsible for (way) more than 50% of Grupo ZAP’s revenue: liquidity.

Liquidity is measured by the following proxy metrics:

Viva Real’s conversion rate ;

; ZAP Imóveis’ conversion rate.

Below, a chart that shows how these metrics fluctuated during 3 and a half months before the second quarter of 2020.

Marketplace liquidity trend

COVID-19

The problem gets even more acute with the COVID-19 pandemic.

Coronavirus (COVID-19) charts and stats

My feelings and condolences to all families who have lost uniques, loving, and loved people all around the world and also in Brazil, that is being currently (un)led by a murderer-president.

Understanding the problem

In order to get a better picture of what was going on:

I and my beloved friends and co-workers Camila Vecino, Suelen Fenali, Rafael Chedid, and Diego Poblete started mapping every change made in the past 6 months that impacted conversion rate in the products;

Antônio Araújo, one of the product designers in the marketplace tribe, started running heat map analysis in the products and usability tests with users;

Suene Souza, a marvelous product leader, pointed us in the right direction, advising us in working ceremonies, and creating new ceremonies for COVID-19 pandemic that gathers people from all of the company’s departments.

After extensive work also with Flávio Pires and Mariana Morais, it was able to visualize all the main problems that caused (or could cause) the conversion rate drop in a mind map. Below, an example of a simplified version of it.

A simplified version of conversion rate problems mapping

Creating solution hypotheses to tackle the problems

As soon as we got a clearer understanding of the problems we were facing, it was time to start validating solution hypotheses to leverage marketplace liquidity.

Before that, the whole assistant team — the team I am currently working as a product manager — , once again in partnership with Flávio Pires and Mariana Morais, gathered together to brainstorm possible solutions for each one of identified and validated problems — thanks to all the incredible people I am very happy to daily work with: Priscila Negreiros, Nayra Martins, Inocêncio Neto, Renato Euclides, André Maldonado and Antônio Araújo <3

During the quarter, Adriano Negrão came up with a marvelous way for us to visualize our validated problems and solution hypotheses. Below, an example of a simplified version of it.

Tactical team board

Goal lane

Revert organic conversion rate negative trend:

KR : Viva Real’s conversion rate;

: Viva Real’s conversion rate; KR: ZAP Imóveis’ conversion rate.

Goal lane

Validated problems lanes

Backlog:

Inventory drop;

Advertiser’s perceived value;

Selected:

Visits not happening due to COVID-19;

Lack of asynchronous conversation methods;

LGPD in the lead form.

Validated problems lanes

Solution hypotheses lanes

Visits not happening due to COVID-19:

Video tour.

Lack of asynchronous conversation methods:

Chat.

Solution hypotheses lanes

Experimenting lanes

Visits not happening due to COVID-19:

Virtual tour.

Lack of asynchronous conversation methods:

WhatsApp.

LGPD in the lead form:

Single consent action;

Checkbox.

Experimenting lanes

Here, you can find an example of the above material presented.

Experimenting a lot

If you have not read how the Viva Real and ZAP Imóveis websites team developed a mechanism for a large scale A/B and multivariate tests using Google Optimize, check it out! That’s how all of our experiments are done to validate (or invalidate) solution hypotheses.

For each solution hypothesis, one or several A/B or multivariate experiments are run. Here, you can find an example on how a solution hypothesis has been iterated and validated.

Below, a screenshot of some of our experimentation learnings. You can find out how Grupo ZAP’s A/B and multivariate tests are documented here.

Experimentation learnings

Results so far

So far, the assistant team has been able to:

Better understand 21 previously validated problems ;

previously ; Select 17 problems to tackle;

to tackle; Generate 21 solution hypotheses for problems selected;

for problems selected; Validate 7 solution hypotheses ;

; And solve 5 problems with proposed solutions.

And that is how the marketplace liquidity proxy metric, conversion rate, has behaved since the beginning of experimentations.