Validating demand for a low-cost learning device in India
A fake brand and two weeks of live testing, where what people want and what they'll pay for aren't the same number
- Role
- Product Designer
- Client
- Global Tech Enterprise (anonymised)
- Date
- Apr 2024 – May 2024 (2 months)
- Scope
- Experiment design, build, and analysis
- Team
- Product Designer, SEO Specialist, and Lead Strategist
- Tools
Miro
Figma
Webflow
GSAP
Context
Validate demand before committing to build
A global tech brand was preparing to invest in a low-cost learning device for the Indian market and wanted to validate demand before committing further. The open questions weren't ones a roadmap could answer. Laptop or tablet? Windows, Chrome, or Android? At what price?
The fake-door test
Build a fake brand, drive real traffic
We built a fake brand and two experimentation sites in Webflow. One ran a laptop vs tablet comparison at the same price, the other tested OS preference across three price points (Windows, Chrome, Android). Each site looked and felt like real e-commerce, with product specs, hardware bundles, and a full checkout flow. Google Ads drove targeted Indian traffic, Google Analytics tracked conversions, Hotjar tracked behaviour, and a post-purchase survey caught qualitative signal. I designed and built both sites with custom HTML, CSS, and GSAP, after aligning with the strategy lead on hypotheses upfront and translating them into testable flows.
What we learned
Desire and willingness to pay aren't the same number
Laptops took 92% of conversions, tablets 8%, with search volume 8x higher for laptops. Form factor was answered emphatically on day one.
OS was more interesting. When users were browsing, Windows took 48% of intent, Chrome 21%, and Android 31%. When the same users actually bought, the order flipped, with Windows dropping to 21%, Chrome rising to 32%, and Android (the cheapest) jumping to 38%. What people want is one signal, what they'll actually pay for is another.
Heatmaps confirmed substance mattered too, with battery life and specs drawing repeated hovers.
A few other findings worth noting: 58% added hardware packages at checkout (the Performance bundle won, suggesting real demand for upgrade paths), Tier 1 cities drove 74% of conversions, and 95% of traffic came through mobile.
Outcome
Validated demand, validated direction
The test answered the brief:
- Laptop over tablet
- Windows preferred at parity, Chrome or Android when cheaper
- Real demand for hardware bundles
We handed over a synthesised view of the findings and a clear recommendation: refine the value proposition and price, then retest with the intended audience.
For $5,000 in ad spend and two weeks of live data, the client got behavioural evidence to commit to (or step back from) a much bigger investment.
9000 +
users reached
2 weeks
Test duration
8 x
Laptop preference vs tablet
2
Structured A/B tests
