Tankfarm Case Study
Overview
Summary
I led Tankfarm's digital acquisition funnel redesign, transforming unclear messaging into a trust-building brand experience that reduces friction, increases qualified leads, and improves customer satisfaction.
Key Results
35% increase in qualified leads, 25% reduction in acquisition cost.
15% user engagement, with ~30% fewer unqualified sales calls.
NPS improvement from 5 to 9, indicating stronger customer satisfaction.
Clearer market positioning and stronger user trust in Tankfarm as a modern propane provider.
Primary Role
Product Designer, UX Strategy & Research
Responsibilities
Defining the problem space, research synthesis, designing the online experience, collaborating on the acquisition strategy, delivering results.
Team
Design, Product, Marketing, Dev
Time Frame
Q3 2024
The Problem
Customer Growth Has Slowed… and Starting to Decline.
Tankfarm had a compelling offer, but unclear messaging and inconsistent UX weakened trust
Analytics showed friction in the quote flow led to high bounce rate and MQL-to-SQL drop-offs.
Paid traffic wasn’t converting into qualified leads.
Sales inefficiencies caused by unqualified leads entering the funnel.
CAC was too high and brand differentiation was poor.
Business Goals
More Qualified Leads, Less Wasted Spend.
Increase qualified leads for Sales team (MQL to SQL)
Decrease Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC)
Improve user engagement and quote flow lead conversion
Strengthen user trust and brand differentiation
The Process
Discovery
User Interviews & Surveying the Landscape
Conducted stakeholder interviews with internal sales and customer service team to gather any siloed information that can help get a better understanding of current members and applicants.
Ran competitive analysis on competitors' website, messaging, and reviewed online customer feedback to uncover customer needs and pain points.
Mapped customer journey and built an experience map.
Identified value propositions, trust blockers, UX gaps, and moments of confusion that can shape a customer frustration into the decision to switch providers.
The result was a strategic opportunity to attract discontented customers by offering a better experience.
Prioritizing User Needs
A look at the doubts, emotions, and opportunities shaping the customer journey.
Reframing the mental model
Focused on 3 pillars so users can choose with confidence and reduce cognitive load.
1. Ease of Switching
Create messaging around ease of switching and transparency in pricing.
2. trust-first UX
Build clarity, reduce friction in the quote flow, and lead with unique value proposition.
3. Unique Value
Highlight differentiators: FREE tank monitoring, No contracts, No cost switching
Repositioned the Priority
Putting it All Together
Streamlined Quote Flow
Simplified the quote flow to improve clarity, build trust, and reduce bounce.
Collaborated with Marketing
Crafted targeted ad visuals, emails, and website, ensuring consistent messaging across all channels.
Results
Confident Customers. Better Calls. Lower Costs. Less Mental Calories Burned.
Impact:
35% increase in qualified leads and 25% decrease in CAC
15% user engagement and ~30% reduction in unqualified sales calls
Net Promoter Score jump from 5 to 9.
Clearer positioning: more trust in Tankfarm as a modern propane brand.
What I Learned
Trust Is a UX Outcome, Not Just a Brand Promise.
Clarity = Conversion
Switching energy providers feels scary and inconvenient. People fear disruption more than price...trust is UX.
Next time I would conduct user interviews with real users earlier to validate assumptions faster.
Good UX is about guidance, not just flows. When users feel confident, they convert.
