Project

WedMeGood

Led marketplace expansion onboarding 30K+ vendors in 6 months

My Role
Program Manager
Year
2019
Team Size
17 People
Category
Program Management
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Challenge

Problem Statement

WedMeGood faced significant challenges in scaling its vendor network to meet growing user demand, with inefficient acquisition processes, duplicate listings, and poor vendor quality control.

As Program Manager for Business Operations, I was tasked with revamping vendor acquisition process for platform serving 1.5M users. The existing system was manual, fragmented, and resulted in poor data quality, limiting marketplace growth potential.

Market Context

Indian wedding industry, valued at $50 billion, was rapidly digitizing. WedMeGood needed to capture market share by offering comprehensive vendor network to serve couples.

Business Objectives

Scale Vendor Network

Rapidly expand marketplace vendor base to meet user demand

Vendor acquisition rate: 20,000 new vendors within 6 months

Improve Data Quality

Reduce duplicate listings and incomplete vendor profiles

Duplicate reduction rate: Decrease duplicates by 60% within 6 months

Increase Revenue

Drive subscription revenue through expanded vendor base

Annual Recurring Revenue (ARR): Increase to $2.5M

Vendor Acquisition

Vendor onboarding process was manual and disjointed, leading to duplicate listings, incomplete profiles, and poor vendor retention. Without centralized CRM system, leads were being lost, and follow-ups were inconsistent. Lack of standardized processes created bottleneck for business growth.

User Research

45
Participants
3 weeks
Research Duration
4
Research Methods

Methods Used

Vendor InterviewsProcess MappingInternal Stakeholder SessionsC-suite Collaboration

Key Insights

  • Vendors struggled with complex, time-consuming onboarding process
  • Internal teams lacked visibility into acquisition pipeline
  • Duplicate vendor leads created confusion and wasted resources
  • Follow-up processes were inconsistent and often neglected

Market Research

Market Size

400,000
potential wedding vendors across India
12.5%
annual growth

Industry Trends

Increasing digitization of traditional wedding service providers
Growing competition from emerging wedding tech platforms
Rising expectations for seamless onboarding experiences
Vendor preference for platforms with largest user bases

Competitive Analysis

WeddingWire
Strengths
  • •Strong vendor relationships
  • •Simple onboarding
Weaknesses
  • •Limited geographical coverage
  • •Manual verification process
Opportunities
  • •Streamline vendor acquisition
  • •Improve vendor quality control
WedMeGood (Pre-Optimization)
Strengths
  • •Large user base (1.5M)
  • •Strong brand recognition
Weaknesses
  • •Fragmented acquisition process
  • •High duplicate rate
  • •Manual lead management
Opportunities
  • •Implement end-to-end CRM
  • •Automate verification
  • •Standardize onboarding
Weddingz
Strengths
  • •Curated vendor listings
  • •Strong quality control
Weaknesses
  • •Limited scale
  • •Slow acquisition process
Opportunities
  • •Balance quality with scale
  • •Implement tiered verification

Lead Conversions

22%

Converted to active vendors

Below industry average of 35%, indicating process inefficiency

Duplicate Listings

28%

Vendor listings were duplicates

Creating confusion for users and wasting acquisition resources

Follow-ups

45%

Leads received proper follow-up

Missed acquisition opportunities and poor vendor experience

My Role & Approach

Led end-to-end process optimization of vendor acquisition by implementing centralized CRM system and standardized workflows. Directed cross-functional team of 17 members across sales, operations, and technology to execute digital transformation while ensuring business continuity.

Key Decisions

Implement end-to-end CRM system

Adopt agile methodology for implementation

Establish tiered verification process

Team

S

Self

Program Manager, Business Operations

Led program strategy and cross-functional implementation

ST

Sales Team

Vendor Acquisition Specialists

Executed outreach and onboarding processes

TT

Tech Team

Developers & QA

Built CRM integration and automation tools

OT

Operations Team

Verification & Support

Ensured vendor quality and resolved issues

Process Analysis

To understand root causes of acquisition challenges, I conducted a comprehensive analysis of existing vendor onboarding journey. Through process mapping and data analysis, we identified critical bottlenecks and failure points that were limiting our vendor network growth.

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Voice of Customer

“The onboarding process took weeks, and I had to submit the same information multiple times to different people.“
— Wedding photographer vendor
“I was never sure if my listing was approved or what additional information was needed. The lack of communication was frustrating.“
— Venue manager vendor

Key Insights

Fragmented Lead Management

Leads were being captured through multiple channels (website, events, referrals) with no centralized tracking system, resulting in lost opportunities and duplicate outreach.

Manual Verification Bottleneck

Each vendor required manual verification by already-stretched team members, creating a significant backlog and slowing acquisition velocity.

Inconsistent Follow-up

Without standardized workflows, follow-up timing and quality varied greatly between team members, affecting conversion rates and sales.

Data Silos

Vendor information existed in multiple systems (spreadsheets, email, CMS) without synchronization, leading to duplicate entries and incomplete profiles.

Limited Performance Visibility

Executives lacked clear visibility into acquisition metrics and pipeline health, making strategic decision-making difficult.

Risk Assessment

Risk Assessment

RiskCategoryImpactLikelihoodMitigationStatus
Business disruption during process transitionTechnicalHighMediumPhased implementation approach with parallel systems during transition periodMitigated
Data migration challenges from legacy systemsTechnicalHighHighComprehensive data cleaning before migration, validation processes post-migrationMitigated
Resistance to new processes and toolsTechnicalMediumHighEarly team involvement in design, comprehensive training program, champions within each teamMitigated
Verification quality declining with increased volumeTechnicalHighMediumImplement tiered verification with automation for low-risk checks, reserve manual effort for critical verificationOngoing

Constraints

TimelineLimited budget for technology implementation

Required phased approach and prioritization of highest-impact features

TimelinePressure to achieve results before peak wedding season

Necessitated rapid implementation with MVP approach

TimelineLimited technical resources available for implementation

Required selection of configurable off-the-shelf solutions rather than custom development

Solution Design

Based on analysis, I designed comprehensive solution to transform our vendor acquisition process. New approach centered on implementing end-to-end CRM system with standardized workflows, automated verification steps, and clear visibility into acquisition pipeline.

Solution architecture included Salesforce CRM as central hub, integrated with existing platforms, and supported by redesigned processes and team structures. This enabled us to track vendors from initial lead to active listing while eliminating inefficiencies.

Implementation Strategy

Agile implementation with 2-week sprints and phased rollout

Implementation Phases

4 weeks
Deliverables
  • Detailed process maps
  • CRM configuration
  • Integration architecture
Challenges
  • Balancing complexity with usability
  • Maintaining business continuity
  • Stakeholder alignment

Technologies Used

Salesforce CRMJiraIntegration APIsAnalytics DashboardsAutomated Verification Tools

System Components

Lead Capture System

Standardize vendor lead collection across all channels

Technologies:
Web formsAPI integrationsMobile capture
Vendor CRM

Centralize vendor data and acquisition workflow

Technologies:
SalesforceCustom ObjectsAutomation Rules
Verification Engine

Streamline and partially automate vendor verification

Technologies:
Tiered verification frameworkDocument processingBackground checks

Implementation

I led implementation of vendor acquisition transformation using agile approach. Working with cross-functional team, I executed in iterative cycles, rapidly delivering value while continuously improving based on feedback and performance data.

Key implementation components included CRM deployment, process standardization, automated verification workflows, and comprehensive team training. Prioritized features that would have most immediate impact on acquisition velocity while building foundation for future enhancements.

Impact & Outcomes

Impact & Results

Vendor Acquisition

30000
Vendors
Within 6 months

Duplicate Reduction

85
%
3 months

Annual Recurring Revenue

3.5
M USD
Post-implementation

Conversion Rate Improvement

65
%
Quarter-over-Quarter

User Feedback

Priya Kumar
The new acquisition process transformed how we work. We're now much more efficient and can focus on quality conversations rather than administrative tasks.
Rahul Singh
The onboarding experience is so much smoother now. I was able to get my venue listed and start receiving inquiries within days rather than weeks.
Divya Sharma
The dashboards and reporting give me clear visibility into our acquisition performance. We can now make data-driven decisions about resource allocation and growth strategy.
Priya Kumar
The new acquisition process transformed how we work. We're now much more efficient and can focus on quality conversations rather than administrative tasks.
Rahul Singh
The onboarding experience is so much smoother now. I was able to get my venue listed and start receiving inquiries within days rather than weeks.
Divya Sharma
The dashboards and reporting give me clear visibility into our acquisition performance. We can now make data-driven decisions about resource allocation and growth strategy.
Priya Kumar
The new acquisition process transformed how we work. We're now much more efficient and can focus on quality conversations rather than administrative tasks.
Rahul Singh
The onboarding experience is so much smoother now. I was able to get my venue listed and start receiving inquiries within days rather than weeks.
Divya Sharma
The dashboards and reporting give me clear visibility into our acquisition performance. We can now make data-driven decisions about resource allocation and growth strategy.
Priya Kumar
The new acquisition process transformed how we work. We're now much more efficient and can focus on quality conversations rather than administrative tasks.
Rahul Singh
The onboarding experience is so much smoother now. I was able to get my venue listed and start receiving inquiries within days rather than weeks.
Divya Sharma
The dashboards and reporting give me clear visibility into our acquisition performance. We can now make data-driven decisions about resource allocation and growth strategy.
Amit Patel
The verification process is much more straightforward, and I appreciate the clear communication at each step. It builds confidence in the platform.
Neha Gupta
Having standardized processes has made training new team members so much easier. We can scale our team without sacrificing quality or consistency.
Amit Patel
The verification process is much more straightforward, and I appreciate the clear communication at each step. It builds confidence in the platform.
Neha Gupta
Having standardized processes has made training new team members so much easier. We can scale our team without sacrificing quality or consistency.
Amit Patel
The verification process is much more straightforward, and I appreciate the clear communication at each step. It builds confidence in the platform.
Neha Gupta
Having standardized processes has made training new team members so much easier. We can scale our team without sacrificing quality or consistency.
Amit Patel
The verification process is much more straightforward, and I appreciate the clear communication at each step. It builds confidence in the platform.
Neha Gupta
Having standardized processes has made training new team members so much easier. We can scale our team without sacrificing quality or consistency.

Lessons & Next Steps

Key Insights

Process Before Technology

I learned that redesigning processes before implementing technology solutions leads to better outcomes than trying to fit processes to technology.

Cross-functional Collaboration

The project's success hinged on effective collaboration between sales, operations, and technology teams, requiring strong alignment and communication.

Data-Driven Optimization

Implementing clear metrics and dashboards allowed us to identify bottlenecks quickly and make targeted improvements.

Change Management

Early involvement of team members in design and clear communication about benefits were essential for successful adoption.