YIP.COM
An online learning marketplace that aimed to be the number one online location for both students and tutors to find each other, no matter the topic. ​​
Responsibilities
I served as a Product Lead for five years, overseeing the end-to-end development of an online learning platform. In this role, I designed and optimized customer journeys to enhance user satisfaction and engagement at every stage. My responsibilities included conducting in-depth customer research to identify needs and translate them into actionable technical requirements. I developed low- and high-fidelity wireframes, prototypes, and user flows, collaborating closely with design and development teams to bring concepts to life.
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I led a Scrum team, coordinating sprints and ensuring timely releases of new features every 4–5 weeks, while continuously refining the platform based on user feedback. My work involved balancing strategic stakeholder priorities with the practical aspects of product delivery, ensuring alignment with organizational goals. Additionally, I facilitated user testing sessions, gathering insights from both internal and external users to inform improvements in UX/UI design and overall platform functionality.
The Journey
I spent four years as Product Lead at YIP, guiding the platform's evolution from ideation to a comprehensive online learning ecosystem. Starting with a Ukrainian development team and later transitioning to a Chinese team to optimize costs and speed, we moved from beta testing to launching an MVP, refining the platform through strategic backlog management and prioritizing features based on revenue potential and user experience.
What began as a marketplace for connecting students with tutors for live sessions grew into a platform offering webinars, live group sessions, 1:1 private sessions, and on-demand learning. By engaging with users daily, participating in online classes, and conducting in-depth interviews with tutors and students, we identified gaps in traditional online learning models, inspiring features like "Webinar Events."
Throughout this journey, I led efforts to hire talent, establish KPIs to measure success, and integrate a CRM system to drive purchases through email initiatives. My focus was on creating a seamless, user-centric experience while aligning development with business goals.
What I'm Proud Of
I’m incredibly proud of what we achieved at YIP with such a small, dedicated team—just one product lead, one designer, and four developers. Together, we built an entire online learning platform, evolving it from a simple tutor marketplace into a dynamic ecosystem offering webinars, live group sessions, 1:1 private classes, and on-demand learning.
One of our most successful features, "Webinar Events," was born directly from conversations with our tutors and students, identifying gaps in traditional online learning models and creating something truly valuable for our users.
Our team’s agility was key to this success. We prioritized user experience at every step, ensuring the features we delivered not only delighted users but also drove revenue growth.
By staying close to our users, participating in classes, and continuously refining our backlog based on feedback, we maintained a sharp focus on delivering impactful, user-centric solutions. It’s a testament to what a small, committed team can achieve with clear priorities and a deep connection to the people they serve.
Mistakes We Made
Reflecting on our journey at YIP, we made several missteps that shaped our learning and growth as a team. One key mistake was not having a dedicated UX/UI designer from the start. This delayed our ability to create an intuitive, user-friendly experience and required significant rework later to meet user expectations.
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Another challenge was launching as a global online marketplace right away. We underestimated the complexities of attracting and retaining both tutors and students at scale, as well as managing cross-border payments seamlessly. Starting smaller and more localized would have helped us establish a stronger foundation.
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Additionally, we made the platform broad and topic-agnostic from the beginning, which diluted our focus. Starting with a specific subject area could have allowed us to build expertise, gain traction faster, and expand more strategically.
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Finally, not engaging a digital marketing company early on hindered our ability to effectively reach our audience and scale quickly. Professional guidance in this area would have accelerated user acquisition and awareness at a critical stage of growth.
These mistakes taught us invaluable lessons about focus, specialization, and the importance of having the right expertise from the outset.