Root Insurance,
an American car insurance company based in Columbus, Ohio, wanted to encourage new and existing users to use their Root mobile app. In the app, users take a test drive to assess their driving skills, and their driving score is used to determine the insurance rate they receive.
Root wanted to turn their driving data into a fun, gamified experience with regional sweepstakes, achievements, and a big “Best Driver in America” challenge. Our job was to create an engaging and effective solution that would boost test drive app adoption and retention—all while keeping the process lean, agile, and based on smart assumptions.
Through our discovery workshops, we found out that many users felt misled by the test drive process—their initial rate estimate almost always went up after completing it. Root’s data showed that most drivers weren’t as good as they thought they would be. We then shifted our focus on gamification that would encourage safer driving, helping users improve their scores and get better rates. However, due to technical and security constraints, this experience had to be separate from the test drive app while still using its data. This meant working within existing API and token limitations.
