LEGO® · Meaningful Signups
I showed how to meet business goals while supporting play. It sparked leadership discussion on trust-based growth.
I led Research and Strategy with 1 Design Lead and 4 PMs in 4 weeks.
This project focuses on directional design.
Context
With #1 brand reputation in the world, LEGO® has to balance growth with trust.
For the digital org, that means growing signups without being salesy.
Imagination
creativity
fun
learning
caring
quality
Brand Values
Problem
Efforts to increase conversion felt like a constant ad.
3 surface-specific road maps consolidated into 7 different signup nudges. And delayed production made unlocking features empty promises.
Current
Hidden (Optional in Profile)
New Direction
Pushy (Popups Everywhere)
Opportunity
So, we decided to anchor the solution in brand values.
Building upon trust instead of seeing it as an obstacle.
Imagination
creativity
fun
learning
caring
quality
Focus for This Project
Key Insight
The new system didn’t care about kids’ play experience.
Signup popups showed up right as kids were building and playing.
Building and Play Interruptions
Physical Context
And it didn’t consider how close by the parents were at what time.
Accounts have to be approved by an adult but they’re not always there.
Kid - Parent - Phone Proximity
Reframe
What if authenticating up front actually built more trust than repeatedly asking later on?
Kids could keep playing and adults would set up everything in one go.
Proposing Required Signups
Because that’s also what people expect.
“My parents assume I have to sign up for an app these days anyways”- 9 year old (during test at school)
Trade Offs
But this approach shouldn’t gate keep LEGO® building experiences.
Through more in-depth roadmap discussions with PMs, we decided to allow joining Build Together (a company priority) even without an account.
Bypass for Social Building
Approach
However, requiring signups for the rest was essential meeting growth targets.
Since parents are close by when the app is installed, account conversion rates are likely to be higher then.
From Stakeholder Presentation
And by maintaining a non-invasive mental model families have from other apps, LEGO® isn’t compromising on their brand reputation.
This prevents long-term damage to the business that come with broken trust.
Response
“We've never considered this, but you raise great points and we should add this to the roadmap”
— PMs and PM Lead
From Stakeholder Presentation
Impact
We successfully prevented the signup system that would have lost brand reputation.
Product leadership shifted their mindset from interruption to trust, focusing on sustainable growth for 1M+ builders.
Sometimes the most valuable design work is preventing the wrong solution and building the case for better alternatives.
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