SAM
MURPHY
DESIGN
SAM
MURPHY
DESIGN
CLEARING 2022
Connecting with a misunderstood audience
ROLE
Senior Product Designer partnering with another Senior Designer. Responsible for research synthesis, discovery, and UX.
GOAL
To transform chronic pain care and gain the trust of patients by understanding them on a deeper level
OUTCOME
Tested and successfully validated a care-forward business model by launching a new onboarding
51.6
million
people
in the US have chronic pain
and only
7,012 specialists
are trained to treat it
Despite the best intentions, Clearing’s initial product-forward approach wasn’t landing.
When I joined, the business was at an inflection point. Clearing’s mission was noble and ambitious: expand access to chronic pain care for millions. Patients would complete a digital medical intake in order to receive a custom prescription compound cream and personalized digital exercises. Below is the story of how we used design to pivot from a misaligned product to a solution that truly addressed the needs of chronic pain sufferers.
Judged, dismissed, abandoned
We kicked off the project with ethnographic research—interviewing 12 people with chronic pain from diverse background and stages in life. They shared experiences of being judged by doctors, being told they were imagining their pain, getting labeled drug-seekers, and ultimately feeling left to navigate a complex healthcare system on their own.
The pivotal point of this project for me was realizing that these participants weren’t only looking to fix their pain. They wanted to be understood. It became clear that our solution needed to go beyond physical relief—it had to address the emotional and psychological aspects of chronic pain as well.
All paticipants needed support, but the nature of it varied depending on how long they’d been dealing with chronic pain.
PAIN STARTS
Diagnosis Detectives
1-5 years in pain
- Felt isolated from loved ones + overwhelmed from searching
- Desperate for a diagnosis
- Needed answers from a doctor
PAIN STILL UNRESOLVED
Tenacious Triers
6-10 years in pain
- Felt frustrated by failed treatments + judged by doctors
- Had some clarity into their pain
- Needed support from a care team
ACCEPTANCE
Multitasking Managers
11+ years in pain
- Felt deeply resentful of doctors
- Lived their life keeping flare-ups under control
- Needed structure + check-ins
User personas were created as a part of this research, each grouped by pain duration.
A care-forward companion
Participants were asked to design their ideal care system—basically if they had a magic wand, what would they want for themselves. We then used this to shift our business model. From there, Clearing hired relief coaches for ongoing support, doctors would provide comprehensive treatment plans, and patients would stay on track and complete tasks through an app.
Promising personalized care
We had a week to figure out a direction for our new onboarding. We started by creating rapid Figma prototypes to user test but quickly realized participant impressions were skewed when they couldn’t input their own answers. This led us to team up with the engineering team to build a coded, fully functioning flow where participants could input real data and see real-time responses. When promising personalized care, they expected feedback that addressed their specific pain and life experiences.
Choose your path
After learning that there was no one-size-fits-all approach for such a complicated journey, we designed a flow that guided users down one of five distinct paths based on their selected goals. Each path would then dynamically adjust based on our persona’s complex needs and experiences.
Generic
Focused on a combination of treatments and support
feel long term relief
understand my pain
work with pain doctors
be heard and supported
access pain relief products
manage pain in my daily life
5,898
Relief Coach
Focused on emotional/general support
be heard and supported
manage pain in my daily life
1,856
Doctor
Focused on doctor-led care and educational moments
understand my pain
be heard and supported
1,378
Treatment
Focused on treatments offered with less focus on support
feel long term relief
access pain relief products
958
Number of users that went down each path posts-launch
*RX path mimicked the old product-led offering as a baseline of the test
RX
Focused on quick relief through prescriptions and products*
access pain relief products
538
As someone who values the details, the toughest part of this project for me was stepping back from polishing the design before launch. With time constraints and no design system, we decided to deliver a functional solution to test with even if the visuals weren’t perfect. I learned a lot about trusting the process during this project.
What I learned
Care-forward flows improved conversion over RX
The RX path (a replication of our original product-only flow) was selected the least and converted at the lowest rate, proving to the business that care-forward wasn’t just right; it was essential to providing impactful care to patients.
Personalized flows allowed for more targeted testing
Our bifurcated approach was a goldmine for targeted testing. It allowed us the tweak our messaging for each of the three distinct personas. We could now validate with data, what each group needed to see in order to convert. See examples of the targeted tests we ran, here.
Promising personalized care demanded synchronous doctor’s visits
Adding synchronous visits would have sent our subscription costs soaring and our existing $50/month model was already tough on most patients, who begged for insurance options.
Enter COVID-19, where new billing codes unexpectedly solved Clearing’s pricing challenges. Check out my Continuous Care project for more.
Curious for more?
I analyzed the inputs of 3,676 users who went through the funnel
I focused on two key variables: age range and pain duration. From there I was able to successfully segment our patients into the three personas within each path (Relief Coach, Generic, etc). This helped me understand which messaging resonated best with each persona which becamse the foundation for even deeper experimentation.
Generic path findings
be heard and supported
work with pain doctors
manage pain in my daily life
access pain relief products
understand my pain
feel long term relief
I focused on two key variables: age range and pain duration. From there I was able to successfully segment our patients into the three personas within each path (Relief Coach, Generic, etc). This helped me understand which messaging resonated best with each persona which becamse the foundation for even deeper experimentation.
The results
Patients who selected 4 pain goals in the Generic Focus had a higher conversion rate (10%) compared to those who selected all pain goals (3%)
Our hypothesis
There were 3 different mindsets when starting onboarding:
- Those that knew both what they wanted and didn’t — Patients selecting 4 pain goals had a clear idea of what they were looking for in their care, and likely arrived with higher intent
- Those actively in pain while onboarding — Our research revealed that long-term chronic pain can cause a lack of focus and cognitive distortions, and often, people are searching for care when they are actively in pain.
- Those unsure about the type of care they needed — Those without a clear idea of their needs had lower intent and were more likely to drop off later in the process.
Next steps
Based on my analysis, we identified the “Tenacious Triers” within the flow by their age and pain duration. This group had the highest conversion rates within the Generic Focus (13%).
We knew that “Triers” were starting to understand their pain and what treatments have or haven’t worked, making them skeptical but motivated to find relief.
To better cater to them within the Generic Focus, we ran AB tests personalized to their needs. We surfaced information about how we could help their specific type of pain, provided details info about the care team, and reassured them that we evaluate past treatments to find new paths toward relief.
Relief Coach path findings
be heard and supported
manage pain in my daily life
I focused on two key variables: age range and pain duration. From there I was able to successfully segment our patients into the three personas within each path (Relief Coach, Generic, etc). This helped me understand which messaging resonated best with each persona which becamse the foundation for even deeper experimentation.
The results
Prior to launch, we expected patients going through the Relief Coach Focus to be primarily interested in emotional support and less interested in physical products. While users were required to select “be heard and supported” to go down this flow, a lot of them also selected “access pain relief products” and “work with pain doctors”.
From my analysis, we concluded that the users not converting in the Relief Coach Focus were likely our “Diagnosis Detectives”, while those going through the Relief Coach Focus, and converting, were also our “Tenacious Triers”.
Our hypothesis
We hypothesized that the Relief Coach audience was actually searching for an integrated approach to pain care. They recognized the value of being heard and supported but also wanted additional services. This audience resembled our new care-forward service the most.
Next steps
From my analysis, we concluded that the users not converting in the Relief Coach Focus were likely our “Diagnosis Detectives”, while those going through the Relief Coach Focus, and converting, were also our “Tenacious Triers”.
By tailoring our approach, we were able to better cater our AB tests to the specific needs of each audience, improving overall user engagement and conversion rates.
- Generic Focus — We addressed the needs to “Diagnosis Detectives” that were dropping off in this focus, by providing more information and support around finding the root cause of their pain.
- Relief Coach Focus — We spoke directly to “Tenacious Triers” by emphasizing the integrated approach and the additional aspects of pain care they were looking for.
SAM
MURPHY
DESIGN
SAM
MURPHY
DESIGN
CLEARING 2022
Connecting with a misunderstood audience
ROLE
Senior Product Designer partnering with another Senior Designer. Responsible for research synthesis, discovery, and UX.
GOAL
To transform chronic pain care and gain the trust of patients by understanding them on a deeper level
OUTCOME
Tested and successfully validated a care-forward business model by launching a new onboarding
51.6
million
people
in the US have chronic pain
and only
7,012 specialists
are trained to treat it
Despite the best intentions, Clearing’s initial product-forward approach wasn’t landing.
When I joined, the business was at an inflection point. Clearing’s mission was noble and ambitious: expand access to chronic pain care for millions. Patients would complete a digital medical intake in order to receive a custom prescription compound cream and personalized digital exercises. Below is the story of how we used design to pivot from a misaligned product to a solution that truly addressed the needs of chronic pain sufferers.
Judged, dismissed, abandoned
We kicked off the project with ethnographic research—interviewing 12 people with chronic pain from diverse background and stages in life. They shared experiences of being judged by doctors, being told they were imagining their pain, getting labeled drug-seekers, and ultimately feeling left to navigate a complex healthcare system on their own.
The pivotal point of this project for me was realizing that these participants weren’t only looking to fix their pain. They wanted to be understood. It became clear that our solution needed to go beyond physical relief—it had to address the emotional and psychological aspects of chronic pain as well.
All paticipants needed support, but the nature of it varied depending on how long they’d been dealing with chronic pain.
PAIN STARTS
Diagnosis
Detectives
1-5 years in pain
- Felt isolated from loved ones + overwhelmed from searching
- Desperate for a diagnosis
- Needed answers from a doctor
Tenacious
Triers
6-10 years in pain
- Felt frustrated by failed treatments + judged by doctors
- Had some clarity into their pain
- Needed support from a care team
PAIN STILL UNRESOLVED
ACCEPTANCE
Multitasking
Managers
11+ years in pain
- Felt deeply resentful of doctors
- Lived their life keeping flare-ups under control
- Needed structure + check-ins
User personas were created as a part of this research, each grouped by pain duration.
A care-forward companion
Participants were asked to design their ideal care system—basically if they had a magic wand, what would they want for themselves. We then used this to shift our business model. From there, Clearing hired relief coaches for ongoing support, doctors would provide comprehensive treatment plans, and patients would stay on track and complete tasks through an app.
Relief coach
answers questions, listens, coordinates care, support through flare-ups
Relief
dashboard
keeps patients on track with their treatment plan and offers digestible tasks
Documentation
keeps records in one place to give patients a full picture of their care
Treatments
prescribed by their doctor, offering a mix of physical and digital therapies
Conversational
Empathetic
Educational
Personalized
Symptom tracking
show effectiveness of care so patients and doctors can track progress
Promising personalized care
We had a week to figure out a direction for our new onboarding. We started by creating rapid Figma prototypes to user test but quickly realized participant impressions were skewed when they couldn’t input their own answers. This led us to team up with the engineering team to build a coded, fully functioning flow where participants could input real data and see real-time responses. When promising personalized care, they expected feedback that addressed their specific pain and life experiences.
20
user tests
170
chronic pain participants
15
iterations
Choose your path
After learning that there was no one-size-fits-all approach for such a complicated journey, we designed a flow that guided users down one of five distinct paths based on their selected goals. Each path would then dynamically adjust based on our persona’s complex needs and experiences.
Generic
Focused on a combination of treatments and support
feel long term relief
understand my pain
work with pain doctors
be heard and supported
access pain relief products
manage pain in my daily life
5,898
Relief Coach
Focused on emotional/general support
be heard and supported
manage pain in my daily life
1,856
Doctor
Focused on doctor-led care and educational moments
understand my pain
be heard and supported
1,378
Treatment
Focused on treatments offered with less focus on support
feel long term relief
access pain relief products
958
RX
Focused on quick relief through prescriptions and products*
access pain relief products
538
Number of users that went down each path post-launch
*RX path mimicked the old product-led offering as a baseline of the test
As someone who values the details, the toughest part of this project for me was stepping back from polishing the design before launch. With time constraints and no design system, we decided to deliver a functional solution to test with even if the visuals weren’t perfect. I learned a lot about trusting the process during this project.
Example screens from new onboarding
What I learned
Care-forward flows improved conversion over RX
The RX path (a replication of our original product-only flow) was selected the least and converted at the lowest rate, proving to the business that care-forward wasn’t just right; it was essential to providing impactful care to patients.
Personalized flows allowed for more targeted testing
Our bifurcated approach was a goldmine for targeted testing. It allowed us the tweak our messaging for each of the three distinct personas. We could now validate with data, what each group needed to see in order to convert. See examples of the targeted tests we ran, here.
Promising personalized care demanded synchronous doctor’s visits
Adding synchronous visits would have sent our subscription costs soaring and our existing $50/month model was already tough on most patients, who begged for insurance options.
Enter COVID-19, where new billing codes unexpectedly solved Clearing’s pricing challenges. Check out my Continuous Care project for more.
Curious for more?
I analyzed the inputs of 3,676 users who went through the funnel
I focused on two key variables: age range and pain duration. From there I was able to successfully segment our patients into the three personas within each path (Relief Coach, Generic, etc). This helped me understand which messaging resonated best with each persona which becamse the foundation for even deeper experimentation.
Generic path findings
I focused on two key variables: age range and pain duration. From there I was able to successfully segment our patients into the three personas within each path (Relief Coach, Generic, etc). This helped me understand which messaging resonated best with each persona which becamse the foundation for even deeper experimentation.
be heard and supported
work with pain doctors
manage pain in my daily life
access pain relief products
understand my pain
feel long term relief
The results
Patients who selected 4 pain goals in the Generic Focus had a higher conversion rate (10%) compared to those who selected all pain goals (3%)
Our hypothesis
There were 3 different mindsets when starting onboarding:
- Those that knew both what they wanted and didn’t — Patients selecting 4 pain goals had a clear idea of what they were looking for in their care, and likely arrived with higher intent
- Those actively in pain while onboarding — Our research revealed that long-term chronic pain can cause a lack of focus and cognitive distortions, and often, people are searching for care when they are actively in pain.
- Those unsure about the type of care they needed — Those without a clear idea of their needs had lower intent and were more likely to drop off later in the process.
Next steps
Based on my analysis, we identified the “Tenacious Triers” within the flow by their age and pain duration. This group had the highest conversion rates within the Generic Focus (13%).
We knew that “Triers” were starting to understand their pain and what treatments have or haven’t worked, making them skeptical but motivated to find relief.
To better cater to them within the Generic Focus, we ran AB tests personalized to their needs. We surfaced information about how we could help their specific type of pain, provided details info about the care team, and reassured them that we evaluate past treatments to find new paths toward relief.
Relief Coach path findings
I focused on two key variables: age range and pain duration. From there I was able to successfully segment our patients into the three personas within each path (Relief Coach, Generic, etc). This helped me understand which messaging resonated best with each persona which becamse the foundation for even deeper experimentation.
be heard and supported
manage pain in my daily life
The results
Prior to launch, we expected patients going through the Relief Coach Focus to be primarily interested in emotional support and less interested in physical products. While users were required to select “be heard and supported” to go down this flow, a lot of them also selected “access pain relief products” and “work with pain doctors”.
From my analysis, we concluded that the users not converting in the Relief Coach Focus were likely our “Diagnosis Detectives”, while those going through the Relief Coach Focus, and converting, were also our “Tenacious Triers”.
Our hypothesis
We hypothesized that the Relief Coach audience was actually searching for an integrated approach to pain care. They recognized the value of being heard and supported but also wanted additional services. This audience resembled our new care-forward service the most.
Next steps
From my analysis, we concluded that the users not converting in the Relief Coach Focus were likely our “Diagnosis Detectives”, while those going through the Relief Coach Focus, and converting, were also our “Tenacious Triers”.
By tailoring our approach, we were able to better cater our AB tests to the specific needs of each audience, improving overall user engagement and conversion rates.
- Generic Focus — We addressed the needs to “Diagnosis Detectives” that were dropping off in this focus, by providing more information and support around finding the root cause of their pain.
- Relief Coach Focus — We spoke directly to “Tenacious Triers” by emphasizing the integrated approach and the additional aspects of pain care they were looking for.
SAM
MURPHY
DESIGN
SAM
MURPHY
DESIGN
CLEARING 2022
Connecting with a misunderstood audience
ROLE
Senior Product Designer partnering with another Senior Designer. Responsible for research synthesis, discovery, and UX.
GOAL
To transform chronic pain care and gain the trust of patients by understanding them on a deeper level
OUTCOME
Tested and successfully validated a care-forward business model by launching a new onboarding
51.6
million
people
in the US have chronic pain
and only
7,012 specialists
are trained to treat it
Despite the best intentions, Clearing’s initial product-forward approach wasn’t landing.
When I joined, the business was at an inflection point. Clearing’s mission was noble and ambitious: expand access to chronic pain care for millions. Patients would complete a digital medical intake in order to receive a custom prescription compound cream and personalized digital exercises. Below is the story of how we used design to pivot from a misaligned product to a solution that truly addressed the needs of chronic pain sufferers.
Judged, dismissed, abandoned
We kicked off the project with ethnographic research—interviewing 12 people with chronic pain from diverse background and stages in life. They shared experiences of being judged by doctors, being told they were imagining their pain, getting labeled drug-seekers, and ultimately feeling left to navigate a complex healthcare system on their own.
The pivotal point of this project for me was realizing that these participants weren’t only looking to fix their pain. They wanted to be understood. It became clear that our solution needed to go beyond physical relief—it had to address the emotional and psychological aspects of chronic pain as well.
All participants needed support, but the nature of it varied depending on how long they’d been dealing with chronic pain.
PAIN STARTS
Diagnosis
Detectives
1-5 years in pain
- Felt isolated from loved ones + overwhelmed from searching
- Desperate for a diagnosis
- Needed answers from a doctor
Tenacious
Triers
6-10 years in pain
- Felt frustrated by failed treatments + judged by doctors
- Had some clarity into their pain
- Needed support from a care team
PAIN CONTINUES UNRESOLVED
ACCEPTANCE
Multitasking
Managers
11+ years in pain
- Felt deeply resentful of doctors
- Lived their life keeping flare-ups under control
- Needed structure + check-ins
User personas were created as a part of this research, each grouped by pain duration.
A care-forward companion
Participants were asked to design their ideal care system—basically if they had a magic wand, what would they want for themselves. We then used this to shift our business model. From there, Clearing hired relief coaches for ongoing support, doctors would provide comprehensive treatment plans, and patients would stay on track and complete tasks through an app.
Relief coach
answers questions, listens, coordinates care, support through flare-ups
Relief
dashboard
keeps patients on track with their treatment plan and offers digestible tasks
Documentation
keeps records in one place to give patients a full picture of their care
Treatments
prescribed by their doctor, offering a mix of physical and digital therapies
Symptom tracking
show effectiveness of care so patients and doctors can track progress
Conversational
Empathetic
Educational
Personalized
Promising personalized care
We had a week to figure out a direction for our new onboarding. We started by creating rapid Figma prototypes to user test but quickly realized participant impressions were skewed when they couldn’t input their own answers. This led us to team up with the engineering team to build a coded, fully functioning flow where participants could input real data and see real-time responses. When promising personalized care, they expected feedback that addressed their specific pain and life experiences.
20
user tests
170
chronic pain participants
15
iterations
Choose your path
After learning that there was no one-size-fits-all approach for such a complicated journey, we designed a flow that guided users down one of five distinct paths based on their selected goals. Each path would then dynamically adjust based on our persona’s complex needs and experiences.
Generic
Focused on a combination of treatments and support
feel long term relief
understand my pain
work with pain doctors
be heard and supported
access pain relief products
manage pain in my daily life
5,898
Relief Coach
Focused on emotional/general support
be heard and supported
manage pain in my daily life
1,856
RX
Focused on quick relief through prescriptions and products*
access pain relief products
538
Doctor
Focused on doctor-led care and educational moments
understand my pain
be heard and supported
1,378
Treatment
Focused on treatments offered with less focus on support
feel long term relief
access pain relief products
958
Number of users that went down each path post-launch
*RX path mimicked the old product-led offering as a baseline of the test
As someone who values the details, the toughest part of this project for me was stepping back from polishing the design before launch. With time constraints and no design system, we decided to deliver a functional solution to test with even if the visuals weren’t perfect. I learned a lot about trusting the process during this project.
Example screens from new onboarding
What I learned
Care-forward flows improved conversion over RX
The RX path (a replication of our original product-only flow) was selected the least and converted at the lowest rate, proving to the business that care-forward wasn’t just right; it was essential to providing impactful care to patients.
Personalized flows allowed for more targeted testing
Our bifurcated approach was a goldmine for targeted testing. It allowed us the tweak our messaging for each of the three distinct personas. We could now validate with data, what each group needed to see in order to convert. See examples of the targeted tests we ran, here.
Promising personalized care demanded synchronous doctor’s visits
Adding synchronous visits would have sent our subscription costs soaring and our existing $50/month model was already tough on most patients, who begged for insurance options.
Enter COVID-19, where new billing codes unexpectedly solved Clearing’s pricing challenges. Check out my Continuous Care project for more.
Curious for more?
I analyzed the inputs of 3,676 users who went through the funnel
I focused on two key variables: age range and pain duration. From there I was able to successfully segment our patients into the three personas within each path (Relief Coach, Generic, etc). This helped me understand which messaging resonated best with each persona which became the foundation for even deeper experimentation.
Generic path findings
Patients looking for a combination of treatments and support
be heard and supported
work with pain doctors
manage pain in my daily life
access pain relief products
understand my pain
feel long term relief
The results
Patients who selected 4 pain goals in the Generic Focus had a higher conversion rate (10%) compared to those who selected all pain goals (3%)
Our hypothesis
There were 3 different mindsets when starting onboarding:
- Those that knew both what they wanted and didn’t — Patients selecting 4 pain goals had a clear idea of what they were looking for in their care, and likely arrived with higher intent
- Those actively in pain while onboarding — Our research revealed that long-term chronic pain can cause a lack of focus and cognitive distortions, and often, people are searching for care when they are actively in pain.
- Those unsure about the type of care they needed — Those without a clear idea of their needs had lower intent and were more likely to drop off later in the process.
Next steps
Based on my analysis, we identified the “Tenacious Triers” within the flow by their age and pain duration. This group had the highest conversion rates within the Generic Focus (13%).
We knew that “Triers” were starting to understand their pain and what treatments have or haven’t worked, making them skeptical but motivated to find relief.
To better cater to them within the Generic Focus, we ran AB tests personalized to their needs. We surfaced information about how we could help their specific type of pain, provided details info about the care team, and reassured them that we evaluate past treatments to find new paths toward relief.
Relief Coach path findings
Patients primarily looking for emotional and general support
be heard and supported
manage pain in my daily life
The results
Prior to launch, we expected patients going through the Relief Coach Focus to be primarily interested in emotional support and less interested in physical products. While users were required to select “be heard and supported” to go down this flow, a lot of them also selected “access pain relief products” and “work with pain doctors”.
Our hypothesis
We hypothesized that the Relief Coach audience was actually searching for an integrated approach to pain care. They recognized the value of being heard and supported but also wanted additional services. This audience resembled our new care-forward service the most.
Next steps
From my analysis, we concluded that the users not converting in the Relief Coach Focus were likely our “Diagnosis Detectives”, while those going through the Relief Coach Focus, and converting, were also our “Tenacious Triers”.
By tailoring our approach, we were able to better cater our AB tests to the specific needs of each audience, improving overall user engagement and conversion rates.
- Generic Focus — We addressed the needs to “Diagnosis Detectives” that were dropping off in this focus, by providing more information and support around finding the root cause of their pain.
- Relief Coach Focus — We spoke directly to “Tenacious Triers” by emphasizing the integrated approach and the additional aspects of pain care they were looking for.