Hip2Save—Redefining Digital-Era
Savings
A Smart Start to Saving More
Hip2Save, Collin Morgan’s brainchild, was started as a passion project that has become one of the most trusted names on the Internet for coupons and deals, as well as advice for saving money every day. The site enjoys an audience of millions of visitors every month, seeking reliable ways to lighten their budgets while still living a nice lifestyle.
Over the years, Hip2Save was able to engender a loyal following with its voice, vibrant community, and spirit for helping people save. Over the years, however, it became clear that for the brand to meet the demands of such a fast-growing audience with all its digital, the site needed more than an online book on just content; it called for a mobile-first digital ecosystem with the capacity to deliver savings in real time.
Hip2Save has broad reach and a strong level of community trust. But the digital platform had fallen behind user expectations. The key challenges included :
The Starting Point
- Old UI/UX – The website appeared cluttered, discouraging rapid identification and action on deals by users.
- Performance Regression – For flash sales and seasonal promotions, the website slowed down, which caused drop-offs in retention.
- The App Gap – With most users on mobile, the brand could not deliver timely value due to the absence of a native app.
- Content Overload – Yes, many deals, coupons, and blog posts existed, but poor filtering and categorisation hampered finding any of them.
- Backend Inefficiencies – Affiliate tracking and content workflows were hard to follow and, therefore, not agile when making time-sensitive deals.
Hip2Save had the audience and content profile of a brand but needed a simple and clear platform to match with its energy, scale, and mission.
Our Journey Begins
Hip2 has collaborated with Esferasoft to actualise their vision through a comprehensive redesign of their digital experience. Our work included:
- A full redesign and optimization of the website
- Development of customized mobile applications for iOS and Android
- Backend advancements for the performance, automation, and content control
- UI/UX strategy that is savings-first and lifestyle-driven
- The intent was clear: to build a seamless digital infrastructure that users discover, save, and thrive on—on any screen.
Disillusionment and possibly disillusionment were likely to descend upon most of us in light of expectations, often disappointed.
Discovery & Insights
research, stakeholder workshops, and competitive benchmarking.
1
Simplification has been the key in regard to deal detection, as visually enhanced filtering by category, price, urgency, etc. was embraced.
2
Users expected speed: time-sensitive deals required instant notifications and rapid browsing.
4
Smartphone use is no longer secondary – a huge majority identify their smartphones as essential due to apps.
3
Community tools like HipList were being underutilised due to clunky and unintuitive navigation.
5
Authentic content was the strength of Hip2Save; it was essential to maintain that voice while enhancing its delivery.
These insights laid the groundwork for a savings-first and mobile-driven digital strategy.
Strategy & Planning
Esferasoft designed a transformation roadmap with a five-pillar strategy at five different levels.
Mobile App Development
Native application to save costs while travelling on iOS and Android.
Push notifications and personal real-time engagement by means of Hiplist synchronisation.Content Monetisation & Affiliate Flows
Better-tracked and integrated partners for maximum revenue via affiliate sales.
Rotating time-sensitive deals can also be simplified.Rebuilding the Website
A brand-new layout for quicker and easier deal discovery with shorter paths toward navigation and all-new categorisation.
Define, for example, intelligent filters so that they can filter content according to type, urgency, or importance.Performance & Scalability​
CDN Integration, caching and lightweight codes are all facilitative measures against congestion involving traffic explosions.
Automating backend processes to further quicken publishing content and updating deals.Community-First Engagement
Better-integrating newsletters and feedback loops.
A more interactive HipList experience deepens loyalty.This is the strategy that ensured that Hip2Save would modernise its platform to elevate its scope as a real-time digital companion for savers.
Execution &
Innovation
The execution phase is where design innovation propels technical development into a frenzy of performance optimisation:
Website Revamp
Introduced a fully responsive design with faster navigation, improved product categories, and a user-friendly interface to highlight time-limited deals upfront.
Mobile Application Launch​
Included a native iOS and Android application with features of push deal alerts, integration of HipList, swipe-friendly menu, and deep linking for a better checkout experience.
Back-End Enhancement
Re-engineered the affiliate workflows and the CMS processes for the automated speed and accuracy of flash sales.
Optimising performance
The content delivery network and advanced caching strategies have rendered page load times extremely fast, even during spikes in user activity.
Tools for Engagement​
HipList was rewired with added in-app feedback functionalities for capturing user sentiments and continuous improvement.
This ensured a seamless execution of the savings journey, freeing up the users to make quick decisions and save smartly.
The Roadblocks We Overcame
The challenges are as follows:
- Balancing the editorial freedom with backend discipline so that publishing gets to be as fast as possible.
- Preventing users from being bombarded by push-notification bombardment with real-time notifications strapped to the gills to give them an easier experience.
- Seamless alignment of user preferences between HipList and whether it be web or mobile avenue.
- We created an intuitive interface that worked equally well for the seasoned deal hunters as well as first-time visitors.
Through iterative testing and working with stakeholders, these challenges were resolved without compromising performance or user trust.
The Impact & Results
performance and engagement metrics:
Accelerated growth on app installs by 3x over the first quarter.
Push notifications were opted into by over 70% of users, which brought about a significant increase in revisits to the website.
Page loads are now 45% faster, though it is expected to affect retention on mobile.
Improved CTAs and more fluid redirection contributed to a growth of 28% in affiliate conversions.
Time on the site rose to 34% longer than the previous year, and this is a strong reflection of deeper user engagement and trust. User feedback described it as "faster," "cleaner," and "more useful than ever.
From Deals to a Digital Destination
Hip2Save has grown from being just a coupon site to now a complete digital savings destination. With Esferasoft’s strategy, execution, and innovation, now the platform is made future-proof with scalability and mobility and aligned to its mission of making smart living easy for all.
Therefore, Hip2Save users have never had it so easy, quick, and rewarding to save money.