Overview
Staying Area Enhancement
Increasing DiDi drivers’ perception of feature value to boost user retention.
DiDi is a leading global mobility platform that offers a range of transportation services including ride-hailing, with more than 550 million users worldwide.
I joined the DiDi Global Driver-facing team in the summer of 2022, where I worked on delivering a solution that helped increase users’ perception of the money-earning benefits of the Staying Area Feature, resulting in a significant increase in user retention rate and business revenue.
Project Details
Role: Product Designer
Context
In Summer 2022, DiDi launched its Staying Area Feature that allows drivers to remain in their areas of choice
Our project revolved around a feature known as "Staying Area”, designed to empower drivers to choose a specific area to stay in order to optimize their rides in high-demand or high-surge places.
Problem
If drivers are actually earning more from the feature, why did they stop using it?
Too Helpful for Our Own Good
After conducting A/B testing in Monterrey, we found that the 7-Day User Retention Rate was lower than expected. However, backend data revealed that users who utilized the feature earned significantly more. The challenge arose from a disconnect between facts and perceptions; users weren't aware of their increased earnings despite benefiting from the feature. Subsequent interviews and research confirmed this gap in user perception.
Approaches
I located problems through data, and interviews and developed solutions through ideation, iteration and collaboration.
User persona & Painpoints
Helping Income-seekers perceive the money-earning value of the feature
After synthesizing the user interview results, we discovered that Income-seekers were not satisfied with the feature for the following two reasons:
Did not perceive more money-earning value out of the feature.
Even if they had perceived it, it is hard to recall the feature when having money-earning intentions.
After the synthesis, our design goal became clear.
Solutions
A set of effective design strategies to retain users after rounds of design research.
To address pricing inconsistencies and improve user trust, we introduced a series of experience and system-level changes. First, we removed coupon-adjusted pricing from product cards unless the savings were automatic, ensuring compliance and aligning with user expectations. We then introduced an interactive “Clip Coupon” badge, guiding users to a detail page where they could review terms and activate offers—shifting from passive display to intentional action. For complex coupons, the same entry point routed users to detailed explanations without overloading the product tile. Finally, we established a scalable pricing hierarchy—base price, loyalty discount, clipped coupon, and final price (in cart)—applied consistently across surfaces to create clarity, maintain legal integrity, and support long-term growth.
Impact
Significant increase in both UX and Business metrics
User Retention
+ 6.4%
Rides Acceptance Rate
+ 5.6%
Gross Revenue
+ 3.6%
We delivered a set of persuasive design iterations, we were able to achieve a 6.4% more 7-day User retention rate, a 5.6% Increase in Rides Acceptance Rate, and a 3.6% increase in Gross Revenue for the Test Group compared to the Control Group during our second A/B Testing in Cuernavaca, Mexico.
Due to NDA, I can only show so much here. Would love to chat with you to share more details!