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Jackson Shuttleworth

1 episode

Episodes

Behind the product: Duolingo streaks | Jackson Shuttleworth (Group PM, Retention Team)

Dec 15, 20241h 28m

Guest: Jackson Shuttleworth - Group Product Manager at Duolingo, leading the retention team. Jackson has been instrumental in optimizing Duolingo's streak feature, a key driver of user retention and engagement. Key Takeaways: Test Extensively: Duolingo has conducted over 600 experiments on their streak feature, emphasizing the importance of testing hypotheses rather than debating them endlessly. Focus on Early User Experience: Significant retention improvements were found by focusing on getting users to a seven-day streak, where loss aversion begins to significantly impact user behavior. Clarity Over Complexity: Simplifying the user interface and clearly communicating the mechanics of the streak feature have been crucial in making it effective and engaging. Flexibility vs. Perfection: Balancing flexibility (like streak freezes) with incentives for maintaining perfect streaks helps keep users engaged without cheapening the value of the streak. Celebrate User Achievements: Using animations, haptics, and other delightful elements to celebrate user achievements can enhance engagement and retention. Topics Covered: Duolingo streak feature, user retention strategies, experiment-driven product development, balancing flexibility and engagement, impact of user interface design on retention.

Notable Quotes

โ€œStreaks are a great engagement hack. I'm of the opinion that any team, any app out there can introduce a streak, and if you figure it out, it probably works to retain users.โ€

Engagement mechanics

โ€œYou could argue this one feature created billions of dollars of value.โ€

Impact of streaks

โ€œI'm always interested about how other companies have implemented streaks and what they've learned.โ€

Learning from others