How I redesigned a low-performing feature into a revenue driver for the #1 real estate app in Kazakhstan.
Product Design, UX audit, benchmarking, logic, final designs
Krisha.kz is Kazakhstan’s
real estate
platform with over
1
#
4M
monthly users.
In a nutshell
Don’t have time to read through all of this? I got you, here’s a short version of what I did.
Subscription feature was underused and confusing.
Problem
Redesign it to boost usage and revenue.
Task
User research, benchmarking, design iterations, delivery.
Actions
+3%
feature usage
Result
+20%
in revenue
Grew in stakeholder management.
Bonus
Situation
Subscribe to Search — is one of a Krisha.kz
features that allows users to save filtered searches and receive listing notifications. However, usage
was low and the UX was confusing,
especially for agents who rely on speed.
Task
Redesign the subscription experience to:
Increase feature usage and visibility
Improve notification clarity
Drive growth in monthly revenue
by 1–3% (+6–18M ₸)
Challenge
To drive growth we couldn’t just put a price tag on the feature, that would be unfair so we needed to show that this feature worth it and actually works.
Action
I conducted a UX audit then mapped the user flow to get a holistic view.
Old flow
Benchmarking
Before designing the mobile feature, I ran a competitor analysis of 6 apps,
each with valuable ideas we could adapt.
Ran qualitative interviews and Identified core issues:
Low feature awareness
3 out of 5 agents didn’t notice it
Agents want speed
All saw fast reaction to listings as critical
Poor control UX
Users can’t manage notification frequency or priority
Cluttered experience
Messaging tab is overloaded and confusing
Design Decisions
Old - Had two separate features of which logically was the same, with “Heart” icon you save search, with receive notifications you get the new listings.
Updated - now we have it all in one as a “subscribe to search” button not creating multiple entities and confusing user
Let users get control over subscription
As well as we clearly indicating for how long it will be working. Previously when users subscribed they didn’t know for how long they’ll be subscribed for. And here’s where we introduce the new option to receive it instantly but for a cost of a coffee cup.
Reworked subscription center
to grant users more control
Improved notification copy
to better distinguish between different search subscribtions
Now users can see names that they’ve set in the message and better distinguish between different ones
Working on button placement and copy
to ensure that feature is easy to discover.
I then deprioritized versions that didn’t perform well based on hallway testing
and visual clarity and stuck to V1
Improved feature discoverability
I proposed a banner to raise feature visibility based on competitor benchmarking, but postponed it due to missing component support.
I identified a pattern in user behavior and proposed smart messages for repeated searches that users are making to improve feature adoption.
Explored banners...
...and smart nudges to increase feature adoption
Final designs
Total scope
Result
After launching feature received positive feedback,
we saw growth in revenue and additionally people started using it more.
+3%
in revenue
+20%
feature usage
Reflection
I realized the importance of managing collaboration dynamics. In early phases, too many voices in the room slowed progress. I’ve learned to speak up when the format isn’t working — shaping not only the design but also how we work together.
What I would improve
Make saved searches more prominent, my hypothesis is that if we add a separate block on the main screen it will be easier to discover and it will help to grow business even more, because we are helping users to find housing faster.
Messages center overhaul - through collaborative sessions I uncovered deeper UX issues than initially scoped, which helped the team realign expectations and assess technical constraints.
Special thanks to my team
Karina Kassimanova
Head of design
Oleg Lebedev
Product manager
Dima, Madina
Design buddies