Challenge
As part of our experiential learning for Luxury and Retail Digital Solutions MBA core course at NYU Stern, we were partnered with Condé Nast to increase user engagement and growing the user base in the era of digital transformation. Legacy luxury and media brands face increasing pressure to grow digital audiences, deepen engagement, and unlock new monetization streams while maintaining editorial integrity and brand prestige.
For The New Yorker, this challenge was twofold:
adapting to increasingly sophisticated, digitally native consumers,
while translating long-standing cultural authority into meaningful, value-driven app experiences that encourage repeat usage and long-term loyalty.
The project required synthesizing primary and secondary research to identify how personalization, community, and convenience influence digital behavior across news, fashion, and lifestyle platforms, and translating those insights into actionable, revenue-generating digital solutions.
Solution
I helped develop and pitch two digital product strategies designed to deepen engagement and drive monetization within The New Yorker app:
Community-Driven Engagement Features
A gamified, profile-based experience encouraging habitual reading, social discovery, and long-term retention. Features included personalized content tracking, tiered rewards, social visibility of reading behavior, and curated recommendations rooted in editorial intelligence.B2B Trendline Sponsorship Model
A premium, brand-safe monetization strategy allowing select partners to sponsor cultural and intellectual trendlines; aligning advertisers with The New Yorker’s authority rather than interrupting the reader experience.
These recommendations were grounded in primary research, competitive analysis across news, fashion, and lifestyle apps, and user-behavior insights focused on personalization, convenience, and content value.
Leadership and Client Communication
As the Team Lead, I served as the primary point of contact with the client, facilitated discussions, aligned deliverables with expectations, and guided the team through research synthesis and presentation development. This role strengthened my ability to manage stakeholders, navigate ambiguity, and translate academic frameworks into executive-ready recommendations.
I developed a high-quality strategic deck that synthesized insights across media, fashion, retail, and digital platforms, presenting a clear narrative that connected consumer motivations to monetization opportunities. By drawing parallels across industries and framing insights visually and strategically, I translated complex research into compelling recommendations for the client and stakeholders.
UX Design and LowFi Prototyping
Using research findings and behavioral insights, I designed a low-fidelity wireframe of the proposed app experience to demonstrate how community-driven features, personalization, and tiered access could improve retention and engagement. This process strengthened my ability to bridge research, strategy, and interface design; bringing abstract insights to life through tangible user experiences.
