Deconstructing a Product — Cred

The art of deconstruction is the process of taking any problem and breaking it down into a set of smaller problems. If we can solve all the smaller problems, the bigger one would be automatically solved. While solving any problem in real-life, we first usually tackle the smaller parts of it, similarly, the first step while analyzing any product would be to break down the problem and eventually tackle it as a whole.

“Most geniuses — especially those who lead others — prosper not by deconstructing intricate complexities but by exploiting unrecognized simplicities.” -Andy Benoit

In this article, I have deconstructed a very popular app, Cred, based on a few pointers. To give you an overview, Cred is a credit-card management application and a bill payment platform that rewards users every time they pay their credit card bills. In short, Cred works on facilitating credit card transactions of its users.

Below are a few points, corresponding to the AARRR framework for CRED. (P.S: You can refer the link to read more about the AARRR framework.)

Value for the user

1. One-stop solution to pay the credit card bills with utmost security.
2. Cred sends reminders near the due date so the user need not worry about missing payment due dates.
3. Cred points worth the bill paid is instantly added which can be used to earn cashback, rewards, or used to buy coupons of associated brands.
4. Pay rent using a credit card.
5. High-trusted users are pre-approved for a credit line of up to INR 5 Lakhs.

Activation of the user

1. Rewards for paying credit card bills — Captures users’ attention as they are rewarding the user for something that they have been doing every month without getting anything in return.
2. Credit score check — Instantly allows user to check their credit score even without logging in or asking for irrelevant details.
3. Credit card details are automatically pulled in from the mobile numbers, thereby reducing the friction and manual efforts, to get the desired value of the product.
4. Accepting users who have a credit score of 750+ to create a spark of being in the niche community.

Cred also supports bill payments for almost all the banks in India thereby ensuring easy activation for the users.

Driving Retention

1. Variable rewards — The nature of the rewards keeps changing with time. From burning coins to get cashback to adding various brands’ products catalogs offering discounts. The surprise element helps drive curiosity in the minds of users.
2. Offers on holiday destinations/popular brands — Initially, Cred app was used once or twice a month for users to pay credit card bills, but since the time they started offering deals on holidays packages and popular brands, the usage of the app has gone beyond just paying credit card bills.
3. Aesthetic appeal to the UI — This brings a sense of enjoyment to the users, thereby improving the overall interaction with the product.

Source of Revenue for the product:

1. Product Listing fees — The businesses whose products have been displayed on Cred’s catalogs pay the fees to Cred for sending business to them.
2. They have an immense amount of data about patterns of user spending and this can be used in multiple ways to help them generate revenue in the future.

Driving referral

1. Gems for referral — Cred offers 10 gems to users for each referral and these gems can only be earned through a referral program. The value of gems is much higher than cred points and the rewards associated with gems are even more exciting. For example, 20 Gems can earn a user Rs. 500 Flipkart Gift Card.

The above points are based on my analysis and understanding of the app as an end-user. I would love to hear your insights because no thought or idea is too small. Remember, everything begins with an idea. 😉

Disclaimer: This study is based on my own analysis and study. I don’t have any affiliation or an official source for anything mentioned.