Vivian Ortiz

WORK

Vivian Ortiz

WEBSITE REDESIGN | BRAND EXPERIENCE & CONVERSION
COMPANY
Wave
YEAR
2025
ROLE
Brand Creative Lead
SCOPE

  • Creative Direction

  • Website Experience

  • CRO Collaboration

WEBSITE REDESIGN | BRAND EXPERIENCE & CONVERSION
COMPANY
Wave
YEAR
2025
ROLE
Brand Creative Lead
SCOPE

  • Creative Direction

  • Website Experience

  • CRO Collaboration

WEBSITE REDESIGN | BRAND EXPERIENCE & CONVERSION
COMPANY
Wave
YEAR
2025
ROLE
Brand Creative Lead
SCOPE

  • Creative Direction

  • Website Experience

  • CRO Collaboration

A brand evolution built to do more than
look good.

A brand evolution built to do more than look good.

Here's how we applied a new brand to high-stakes pages — without breaking what was already working.

Here’s how we applied a new brand to high-stakes pages — without breaking what was already working.

+45%

Homepage visitor-to-signup CVR, YoY

Homepage
visitor-to-signup CVR, YoY

Homepage
visitor-to-signup CVR, YoY

+65%

Receipts signup-to-paid CVR, vs. prior 12 weeks

Receipts signup-to-paid CVR, vs. prior 12 weeks

Receipts signup-to-paid CVR, vs. prior 12 weeks

+4.72pp

Homepage signup-to-Pro CVR, YoY

Homepage signup-to-Pro CVR, YoY

THE Challenge

Most rebrands ship and pray. We couldn't afford to.

Most rebrands ship and pray.
We couldn't afford to.

Most rebrands
ship and pray.
We couldn't afford to.

Wave's conversion rates were hard-won. A refresh that looked great but tanked signups wasn't a win — it was a liability. My job was to make the new brand real across every touchpoint and prove it could perform.

The homepage was the highest-stakes page. And the most visible constraint: six competing priorities, one hero section.

The mandate: Don't break the site

THE APPROACH

Every decision had to
earn its place.

Every decision had to earn its place.

Every decision had to earn its place.

The new identity had already been rolled out across marketing. The public website was the final—and most critical—piece.

Most pages received a careful application of the refreshed identity: new colour, typography, and consistent messaging.

But our highest-traffic, highest-converting pages needed something different. More than a visual update.

The new identity had already been rolled out across marketing. The public website was the final—and most critical—piece.

Most pages received a careful application of the refreshed identity: new colour, typography, and consistent messaging.

But our highest-traffic, highest-converting pages needed something different. More than a visual update.

Finding the balance between product and personality

Finding the balance between product and personality

Test and learn

Show the product.
Make it click.

Show the product.
Make it click.

Before redesigning our highest-stakes pages, I worked across A/B testing and user research to understand what was helping visitors—and what was getting in their way.

A/B testing helped us evaluate page elements: what to show, where to show it, and how different approaches performed.

User testing revealed something more fundamental. When visitors saw the product above the fold, they could describe what Wave did and compare it to QuickBooks without prompting. When they didn't, they struggled to explain the product.

The insight was clear: showing the product created understanding faster than illustrations or abstract messaging.

That finding became a guiding principle for the redesign.

Exploring how messaging, imagery, and product visibility shape the first impression

Exploring how messaging, imagery, and
product visibility shape the first impression

Testing what to show, where to show it, and what actually moves conversion

Testing what to show, where to show it, and what actually moves conversion

BEFORE | Feature-led hero, form-heavy, illustration mascot, key value props buried below fold.

AFTER | Benefit-led headline, product dashboard above fold, Google badge, cleaner conversion path.

What changed
Why it mattered

Benefit-led headline

Visitors needed to feel the product, not read a feature list

Product above the fold

Comprehension happens in seconds — or not at all

Animation over illustration

Motion showed the tool working instead of relying on copy alone

Motion showed the tool working instead of relying on
copy alone

Motion showed the tool
working instead of relying on copy alone

Social proof placement

Social proof
placement

Early testimonials reduced signup CTR by 0.2 percentage points. 

We prioritized product clarity before detailed social proof.

Early testimonials
reduced signup CTR by
0.2 percentage points. 

We prioritized product
clarity before detailed
social proof.

THE RESULTS

A fresh look.
A measurable lift.

A fresh look.
A measurable lift.

Following the website refresh, internal performance reporting showed improvements across key conversion metrics.

Homepage visitor-to-signup conversion increased 45% year over year, while the Receipts page saw a 65% increase in signup-to-paid conversion compared with the preceding 12 weeks.

Seven weeks after launch, additional reporting showed higher year-over-year Pro subscription conversion rates across all four core pages measured.

A consistent brand experience, designed for every screen

A consistent brand experience, designed for every screen

Different products. One cohesive experience. Built to make the value clear

Different products. One cohesive experience. Built to make the value clear

New signups

vs. 7 weeks prior
New signups

vs. last year
Pro plan subs

vs. last year

Homepage

+0.12pp

+0.06pp

+4.72pp

Invoicing

+0.27pp

+0.91pp

+3.96pp

Payroll

−0.08pp

+1.67pp

+5.11pp

Accounting

−0.54pp

−0.85pp

+6.92pp

Overall

+0.10pp

+0.55pp

+6.92pp

The challenge was to give Wave a new look without compromising its biggest conversion channel.


The aftermath: Pro subscription conversion rates were up year over year across every core page measured.

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