The Science of Change

Trying something new is hard at the macro level. Yelp reviews reduce that uncertainty that comes with new things. But how do they help businesses achieve organic and meaningful reviews? In this episode, host Kristen Berman is joined by Akhil Kuduvalli Ramesh, VP of Consumer Product at Yelp. He explains why Yelp prefers quality over quantity when it comes to reviews and how your Yelp review creates community and helps new businesses. They also talk about high-frequency low-risk experience while taking a look at some studies and other companies’ strategies, like Spotify’s approximate nearest neighbor search. Stay tuned and learn the many features that are promoting human connection at Yelp!

Jump straight into:

(01:17) - Engineering behind a review: Reminders, thank you notes and opportune timing to enhance more reviews.

(07:42) - Why do people write reviews? The common denominators the most frequent Yelp contributors share.

(13:19) - Promoting human connection: The best hacks to make first reviews flow organically and be longer.

(16:57 - Understanding search processes’ verticals for different business categories in Yelp (and how they created the reorder button). 

(26:15) - The perks of being a responsive business owner (and how Yelp facilitates clever questions to be answered by more than one person).

(32:41) - Looking for something wildly different than ice cream: On Yelp’s target diversification and the appearance of new kinds of experiences.

Episode resources

Connect with Akhil through LinkedIn

Yelp

Thank you for listening to Science of Change podcast. Reach out to Kristen through LinkedIn and visit The Irrational Labs website for more information on behavioral science. 

This show is presented by SetSail and produced by Kristen Berman and Studio Pod Media. The executive producer is Rachael Roberts. All episodes are written by Kristen Berman and Ying Lin with experts, script editing by Jack viewer. Special thanks to Lydia Trupe for fact checking and citations. Music and editing provided by nodalab. 

You’ve probably heard of Asana or maybe you already use it in your workplace. In this episode, Paige Costello, Core Product Leader at Asana, joins the show to explain the features that help codify and amplify some of the key components that make work to actually work. We talk about interesting concepts such as deadline visibility, social loafing, long-term planning and authentic acts of recognition. Let's take a look at what work actually is and which are the most important (and sometimes hidden) gears that create productive work environments!

Jump straight into:

(01:42) - The coordination layer: Asana's role in helping teams plan and achieve their work together.

(05:45) - A visual connection: How Asana’s accurate deadline display turns procrastination into motivation.

(10:05) - Is social loafing a real thing? Team productivity, accountability systems, being evaluated and why public tasks are so effective to overcome social loafing.

(15:28) - Traction, focus and engagement drive: The tools that make it easier to break down big projects into small tasks.

(21:41) - A manager’s best friend: Asana’s insights to make long-term planning and goal tracking easier.

(25:37) - Setting the norm: Templates, updates and other features that help Asana work for every team structure and user.

(31:03) - The power of compliments: Enabling specific and authentic acts of appreciation and the future of collaborative work management.

Episode resources

Connect with Paige Costello through LinkedIn

Asana

Thank you for listening to The Science of Change podcast. Reach out to Kristen through LinkedIn and visit The Irrational Labs website for more information on behavioral science. 

This show is presented by SetSail (follow on LinkedIn)and produced by Kristen Berman and Studio Pod Media. The executive producer is Rachel Roberts. All episodes are written by Jack Bueher. Music and editing provided by nodalab.

In the last few years, buy now pay later has become the hottest development in the digital payment space. The flexibility of this type of models can bring many benefits for companies that know how to implement them, but the irrational decisions that can arise should also be part of a company's responsibility. In this episode, our host Kristen Berman talks with Nupur Kantamneni, responsible for Consumer Product, one of three product pillars at Affirm. We delve into the behavioral strategies that provide such a flexible business model for Affirm, as well as mental models and the positive emotions that come with free stuff. Join us and discover how loans inside Affirm are radically different from other credit companies!

Jump straight into:

(01:09) - Exploring how Affirm is helping users to understand the way that carts, payment methods and terms work.

(07:46) - The compromise effect: The truth about comparison, decisions to save money and picking the middle options.

(11:32) - Establishing mental models: The science behind the successful onboarding experiences within Affirm’s savings accounts.

(15:58) - Positive emotions that come with free stuff: Why the appeal of zero interest with full transparency and no hidden cost is simply irresistible.

(18:48) - Affirm two ways to make revenue: Does the ‘buy now pay later’ model encourage people to spend more?

(24:13) - The challenge to set up our own payments and the alignment of incentives that lets Affirm stand out.

(29:33) The opportunity to move my payment date: What are Affirm's flexibility offers that other lenders do not provide?

(35:06) Virtual debit cards and the types of consumer products that Affirm is trying to offer to users and why some work and others don’t.

(39:24) - Choosing priorities and Affirm’s responsibility to improve the life of its users.

Episode resources

Affirm

Predictably Irrational by Dan Ariely

Nupur Kantamneni Linkedin

Thank you for listening to The Science of Change podcast. Reach out to Kristen through LinkedIn and visit The Irrational Labs website for more information on behavioral science. 

This show is presented by SetSail (follow on LinkedIn) and produced by Kristen Berman and Studio Pod Media. The executive producer is Rachael Roberts. All episodes are written by Kristen Berman and Ying Lin with experts, and script editing by Jack viewer. Special thanks to Lydia Trupe for fact-checking and citations. Music and editing provided by nodalab.

What are the most common mistakes people make looking for love online - and how do apps try to solve them? In this episode, host Kristen Berman talks with Jin Chua and Matt Gray, a pair of product leaders working at Match, one of the largest dating platforms in the US. They both share fundamental product design decisions to increase engagement between users, as well as the company’s philosophy on attraction and the hard work from their team of dating experts giving super useful insight. Listen and discover the science behind opening the conversation by just being yourself!

Jump straight into:

(01:09) - Profile Engineering: How does Match’s team of dating experts know the type of information that increases feelings of connection between strangers?

(07:57) - Getting Started: The platform’s onboarding process and the need for interaction to achieve a sense of compatibility.

(16:37) - Overcoming the ‘shopping mindset': The most common mistakes that people make when looking for a match.

(22:23) - The ‘Ghostbuster’ feature: Fundamental product design decisions to increase engagement with messaging and gender differences in the dating world.

(28:30) - The 37% rules, opening line alternatives, and features that make it easier to decide if it’s better to keep meeting new people or settle down.

(34:28) - Addressing the adoption rate of video calls inside the app and how dating apps will work in the future.

Episode resources

Match

Follow Jin Chua on LinkedIn

Follow Matt Gray on LinkedIn

Thank you for listening to The Science of Change. Reach out to Kristen through LinkedIn and visit The Irrational Labs website for more information on behavioral science. 

This show is presented by SetSail (follow on LinkedIn) and produced by Irrational Labs and Studio Pod Media. Our executive producer is Rachael Roberts, all episodes are written by Kristen Berman and Ying Lin with expert script editing by Jack Buehrer. Special thanks Lydia Trupe for fact checking and citations.

Let’s take a ride into some of the behavioral principles that made Lyft a trustworthy transportation solution for millions. In this episode, host Kristen Berman is joined by the almighty Kira Wampler. Kira has had a wildly incredible career launching and growing dozens of products. We talk about her time at Lyft: diving into the brand’s core philosophy of “treating better” and how rating systems and incentives took Lyft into a more human approach. We also discuss her current efforts at Redesign Health, where she's trying to drive medical adherence and design chronic care. Plus, Kira shares the process of helping caregivers’ jobs with Jasper, a smart planner for cancer care. 

Jump straight into:

(01:09) - “We treat you better”: Kira's work approach during her first days working at Lyft and why positive interactions are actually contagious. 

(05:03) - The Undercover Lyft Program: A successful content experiment that got Lyft on the world's radar.

(12:24) - The incentives that worked (and the ones that didn’t): On the Lyft Mentor Program and how it consolidated trust among new drivers.

(26:04) - Energizing Lyft users: Implementing a tipping system for drivers and ambiguity aversion.

(32:39) - A peer-to-peer ride sharing: The complexity of Lyft’s choice architecture when the app was launched.

(36:15) - Redesign Health: How Kira is taking her expertise to fund the future of the healthcare sector with companies like Jasper.

(43:20) - How is Jasper working to help people to take their medication regularly?

Episode resources

Connect with Kira through LinkedIn

Redesign Health

Thank you for listening to The Science of Change. Reach out to Kristen through LinkedIn and visit The Irrational Labs website for more information on behavioral science. 

This show is presented by SetSail (follow on LinkedIn) and produced by Kristen Berman and Studio Pod Media. The executive producer is Rachael Roberts. All episodes are written by Kristen Berman and Ying Lin with experts, script editing by Jack viewer. Special thanks to Lydia Trupe for fact checking and citations. Music and editing provided by nodalab. 

Bert Lui is Co-founder & CPO at SetSail, an AI-powered sales tracking, motivation, and empowerment solution. Not only have they changed the classic incentive system within sales organizations, they figured out how to drive the right behaviors within that incentive system in sales. We deep dive on the trade-offs between extrinsic and intrinsic motivations, how being charismatic affects your sales, the thin line between compliments and gratitude and the pros and cons of quotas. So let's get ready to -wait for it- Set sail on this super fascinating episode of The Science Of Change!

Jump straight into:

(01:12) - Motivation to sell more and better: How SetSail makes it easier for sales reps to prioritize deals through goal visibility. 

(06:01) - Intrinsic vs extrinsic motivation: On charisma and behavioral indicators that are essential to predict a closing deal.

(13:03) - The pros and cons of leaderboards:  A practical example of what a weekly contest and prizes look like for sales reps inside SetSail.

(20:59) - Playing to win: How does the SetSail reward model motivate middle and low ranked (and recent winners) sales reps?

(25:16) - Don’t overthink it: Psychological tips to reduce the fear of rejection, sales quotas and the goal to experiment on compensation size.

(29:10) - Real-time feedback: What does Bert think the future of sales will look like? 

Episode resources

Connect with Bert through LinkedIn SetSail

Thank you for listening to The Science of Change. Reach out to Kristen through LinkedIn and visit The Irrational Labs website for more information on behavioral science. 

This show is presented by SetSail (follow on LinkedIn) and produced by Kristen Berman and Studio Pod Media. The executive producer is Rachael Roberts. All episodes are written by Kristen Berman and Ying Lin with experts, script editing by Jack viewer. Special thanks to Lydia Trupe for fact checking and citations. Music and editing provided by nodalab.

Letting a person into your home involves a careful evaluation process, but with the right behavioral principles, it can become a task that you can easily perform from your smartphone. In this episode, the talented Product Leader Jiaona Zhang shares the most significant lessons learned while being part of the Product Development team in Airbnb, such as the importance of progress trackers, real time feedback and host measurement beyond the guest reviews. Listen and learn how to build experiences that delight and bring the best out of each user!

Jump straight into:

(01:10) - Today’s guest Jiaona Zhang introduction.

(02:30) - Consider using progress trackers: Insights from the onboarding flow design for hosts at Airbnb.

(09:03) - Trying to hit the mark: The science that makes uploading photos to Airbnb a less daunting experience.

(10:59) - Rapid and relevant feedback: How Airbnb achieves small incremental changes in hosts' behavior and deals with bad experiences.

(17:00) - Enabling more honest reviews: The secret sauce behind the rating system development in Airbnb.

(23:07) - Measurement beyond the ratings: How response time impacts the way in which the app measures each host (and how that measurement improves the host behavior).

(27:47) - Carrots and sticks: The value of public recognition and enhancing the communication between guests and hosts.

(32:36) - Micro learnings from setting new norms: The link between interaction and comfort (and providing guests the choice to interact).

(35:38) - Everyone wants to be delighted: Lessons from Jiaona’s early gaming experience that have impacted her PM skills.

(40:11) - A spirit of optimization: What change has Airbnb established over the last 10 years?

Episode resources

Connect with JZ through LinkedIn and Twitter

Thank you for listening to The Science of Change. Reach out to Kristen through LinkedIn and visit The Irrational Labs website for more information on behavioral science. 

This show is presented by SetSail (follow on LinkedIn) and produced by Irrational Labs and Studio Pod Media. Our executive producer is Rachael Roberts, all episodes are written by Kristen Berman and Ying Lin with expert script editing by Jack Buehrer. Special thanks Lydia Trupe for fact checking and citations.

It’s well known that Netflix has made history by revolutionizing the way we consume and interact with TV series and movies. This process has required considerable experimentation and result testing, leading to the invention of a past time we now know and love: binge-watching. In this episode, Gibson Biddle, one of the leaders who established the fundamentals for Netflix success joins the show to have an insightful conversation from what predicts our movie preferences to conversion rates of free trials. We also get into a light chat on the ethics of autoplay and deep dive into the theory of revealed preferences. Ready for some Netflix and chill with Gibson and host Kristen Berman? Click the play button and enjoy this new episode of The Science of Change!

Jump straight into:

(01:10) - Introducing Gibson Biddle: A product leader who helped pave the way to success at Netflix.

(02:46) - Early test results focused on retention improvement: Why waiting and anticipating may be the key to maximizing happiness from an experience.

(09:45) - Non-intuitive preferences, enjoyment, and prediction errors: Is movie rating actually helping Netflix improve retention?

(15:23) - Past behavior makes future choices: The essential data behind movie taste prediction.

(17:33) - Revealed preferences and the effects of highlighting movies and shows: How much of my taste is determined by the algorithm?

(23:43) - The radical binge-watch invention: A conscious perspective on the efficiency of episodic TV formats.

(27:42) - Rapid-fire questions: Adapting the algorithm, the value of new members, free trial reminders, and Gibson’s career on A/B testing for consumer behavior research.

(37:07) - Positive actions payback: Explaining reciprocity principles and quitting brand benefits to grow trust in consumers.

(39:49) - The balancing act between discipline and chaos: Gibson’s career advice on constant experimentation. 

Episode resources

Connect with Gibson through Twitter and LinkedIn

Gibson Biddle: Product Leadership & Strategy

Thank you for listening to The Science of Change. Reach out to Kristen through LinkedIn and visit The Irrational Labs website for more information on behavioral science. 

This show is presented by SetSail (follow on LinkedIn) and produced by Kristen Berman and Studio Pod Media. The executive producer is Rachael Roberts. All episodes are written by Jack Bueher. Music and editing provided by nodalab. 

Next week, behavioral scientist and co-founder of Irrational Labs Kristen Berman returns. This time, she’s sitting down with even more product pioneers and thought leaders from your favorite apps. 

You’ll hear conversations with guests like former Netflix product head Gibson Biddle as Kristen gets to the bottom of binge-watching. Listen to marketing powerhouse Kira Wampler breaking down how Lyft got us to ride in cars with strangers. VP of Webflow and former product leader at Airbnb explains how their review system created trust for both hosts and guests alike. And CPO Bert Lui from SetSail is changing the sales game, with an all new incentive system - rooted in none other than behavior science. And that’s just the beginning. 

What do these conversations tell us about our own behavior? What can we learn from the impact these apps have had on how we behave? And what tactics could be beneficial to your product? Kristen answers these questions and more with this 8-episode run taking us from February to mid April. So get ready to deep dive into The Science of Change! 

This show is presented by SetSail and produced by Kristen Berman and Studio Pod Media. The executive producer is Rachel Roberts. All episodes are written by Jack Bueher. Music and editing provided by nodalab.