MY ROLE
Product Designer, Intern
TYPE
Internship
DELIVERABLES
Membership Paywalls, Read More, Games, Podcasts
TIME
Jun - Sept 2025
LOCATION
San Francisco
OVERVIEW
The San Francisco Standard is an independent digital news outlet covering local news, politics, and culture. As a product design intern, I owned the end-to-end redesign of the metered paywall, the publication's primary revenue driver, optimizing subscription conversion for 1M+ monthly readers. I designed new content recommendation modules to drive multi-article readership, and launched the games hub and podcasts page to expand and capture new audience segments.
The Membership Paywalls
GOALS
Fund Local Journalism
Provide a revenue stream that helps local journalism grow.
PRODUCT REQUIREMENTS
Measurable Actions
Track clicks, conversions, and email captures to evaluate success.
Users, Journalism and Paywalls...
The New York Times
Los Angeles Times
The Economist
Washington Post
UX Analysis of the Existing Paywall
I analyzed the existing paywall experience across the entire article consumption flow to understand user friction points and identify opportunities for improvement.
1ST & 2ND ARTICLE
Soft Paywall
Article is free for users and requires prompts for sign in
3RD ARTICLE
Soft Paywall
Last free article and need for nudge towards subscription
4TH ARTICLE
Hard Paywall
Users needs to subscribe, needs clearer benefit for subscription
Who are the Users?
In the age of unlimited free content, convincing users to pay for access can be challenging....
The Busy Commuter
Consumes news on the go wants to get know daily updates in fast and personalized manner.
“I’ll pay if coverage feels uniquely ‘for me’ and worth my limited time and busy schedule”
The Newcomer
Recently moved to San Francisco and looking to get to know the city and community.
“I’ll pay if news helps me genuinely get to know the city better and is worth the money.”
Long-Time Locals
Settled older locals who want a deep dive into content and are strongly active in city politics.
“I’ll pay if the news adds value to my existing news consumption and gives me reasons to stay for long.”
Current Engagement Patterns
Design Principles
Newsletter Inclusion
Newsletters are a key means to provide access to SFS contend lead to subscription
Towards Subscription
Design should lead to successful subscription and loyal customers
Mobile First
Optimize for thumb friendly interactions and different screens sizes by optimal use of space
Upfront Incentives
Inform about additional tangible benefits beyond the immediate value appeal.
The Updated Paywall Designs
1st and 2nd Paywall
3rd Paywall (last free article)
4th Paywall
AB Testing and Contrainsts:
Read-More Recommendation Modules
GOALS
Increase Engagement
Encourage users to continue reading
Diversify content
Recommend related content as well as allow diversification opportunities
PRODUCT REQUIREMENTS
Point of Contact
Design in-line and end-of-article module
Flexibility to Author
Provide author final control over how users engage with their content
Existing Modules:
Design Approach
Turn single visits into deeper sessions
Modules guide readers from one article into multi-page content journeys.
Surface smarter recommendations
Uses real-time analytics (and future personalization) to show relevant stories by author, category, tag, and even podcasts.
Balance automation with editorial control
Providing flexibility to the editor to choose certain articles that they want to promote overriding automation in some cases
Increase Conversion and Revenue
More pages read means could lead to stronger conversion to memberships
Design Approach
Fresh visual design with images, titles, CTA’s, and tags
Smart recommendations by category, author, popularity
Editor Flexibility
Early steps toward personalization
Other hires include Moisés García, the mayor’s community liaison, who helped the campaign connect with LGBTQ and Latino groups; Aly Bonde, Lurie’s policy advisor, who led policy development; Annie Gabillet, the deputy communications director, who served as the campaign’s digital director; and Haakon Black, Lurie’s digital assistant and daily staffer.
From Politics
Democrats
California Legislature
July 8, 2025
Daniel Lurie has started pissing people off — and he’s OK with that
July 8, 2025
SF Democratic Party deadlocked on Engardio recall after tied vote
Other hires include Moisés García, the mayor’s community liaison, who helped the campaign connect with LGBTQ and Latino groups; Aly Bonde, Lurie’s policy advisor, who led policy development; Annie Gabillet, the deputy communications director, who served as the campaign’s digital director; and Haakon Black, Lurie’s digital assistant and daily staffer.
Other hires include Moisés García, the mayor’s community liaison, who helped the campaign connect with LGBTQ and Latino groups; Aly Bonde, Lurie’s policy advisor, who led policy development; Annie Gabillet, the deputy communications director, who served as the campaign’s digital director; and Haakon Black, Lurie’s digital assistant and daily staffer.
Other hires include Moisés García, the mayor’s community liaison, who helped the campaign connect with LGBTQ and Latino groups; Aly Bonde, Lurie’s policy advisor, who led policy development; Annie Gabillet, the deputy communications director, who served as the campaign’s digital director; and Haakon Black, Lurie’s digital assistant and daily staffer.
Games Experience
Routle: The Muni Guessing Game
Complete user experience
Internship Takeways!
Designing for Clarity
Learned how simplifying complex flows can directly impact conversion and client loyalty
Measurable Impact
Gained experience tying design choices to analytics and A/B tests - aligning creativity with business goals.
Building User Trust
Developed UI strategies that make users feel supported, essential for designing products people rely on daily.
Scalable Design System
Developed UI strategies that make users feel supported, essential for designing products people rely on daily.