As part of my product discovery work, I led an initiative exploring a potential gift-an-article feature for subscribers. The goal was to understand how this benefit could strengthen subscriber value, drive engagement, and attract new readers through organic sharing. I began with a broad competitive analysis—both within and outside the media industry—to identify how other companies position sharing features, what motivates users to share content, and what language or UI patterns create clarity and trust.

To ground our insights in real user behavior, I designed a Dscout Express research mission focused on understanding whether consumers use gift-article features today and, importantly, why or why not. We explored what prompts people to share, which channels they choose, how publishers communicate this benefit, and whether sharers receive feedback about how their gift was used. We also examined the experience from the recipient’s perspective to uncover what encourages continued engagement or trial.

Recommendations included:

• the importance of awareness and ongoing reminders

• thoughtful placement in onboarding and nudge journeys

• clear UI indicators directly on articles—such as counters showing remaining gifts and prominent prompts on exclusive content

• messaging for both the gifter (“discuss, inform, share”) and the recipient (“enjoy more articles like this with a one-week trial”) emerged as key levers

• our competitive analysis also surfaced the value of an educational page that clearly explains how gifting works, setting expectations, and reducing friction across the experience