Chegg International Expansion Strategy
To expand Chegg’s SaaS offering into international markets, I took a balanced approach that prioritized growth while managing operational complexity and addressing localized user needs.
Key Highlights
- ⭐ Prioritized market entry based on TAM, competitive dynamics, and LTV projections
- ⭐ Rolled out local currency presentment (LCP) and optimized regional pricing
- ⭐ Streamlined product localization with scalable tech architecture
- ⭐ Balanced regional customization with core platform consistency to maximize margin
Results
Achieved double-digit growth in new international subscriber segments within the first year of rollout.
Deep Dive: Local Currency Presentment (LCP)
Situation
At Chegg, I led efforts to grow international conversion by making our offering more relevant in key markets. Our objective was to increase international subscriber counts by improving conversion and reducing checkout abandonment. Grounded in user research, we removed barriers to purchase and moved quickly to show progress amid declining product-market fit due to ChatGPT.
Partnering with my designer and engineering lead, I ran continuous discovery to explore the international opportunity space. Journey mapping and funnel analysis revealed major drop-off on our Pricing & Packaging page, pointing to a value disconnect. Improving passthrough became a key lever to lift conversion.
Task
Customer interviews, session replays, and usability tests revealed that international users dropped off because the Pricing & Packaging page felt misaligned—prices were in USD, value props were U.S.-centric, and users often left to convert pricing. To act quickly, I prioritized low-risk, scalable improvements. We identified three: local currency presentment (LCP), localized value props, and pricing adjustments. I led with LCP for its high impact, ease of execution, and minimal disruption to unit economics.
To validate the approach, we rapidly prototyped LCP experiences and ran usability testing with international users, which clearly showed improved comprehension and trust. Confident in the user value, I socialized the initiative across stakeholders.
Action
While the initial response to LCP was extremely positive, a clear tension emerged: the business wanted to launch in India to maximize impact, while Legal flagged regulatory risks. I brought both teams together, framed the tradeoffs, and proposed a path forward. We would run our first A/B test in Turkey, a lower-risk market, while accelerating due diligence for India in parallel. This allowed us to maintain momentum without compromising compliance.
I led a cross-functional team to ship an MVP that displayed localized pricing in Turkish Lira while continuing to transact in USD behind the scenes. This approach allowed us to move quickly, reduce engineering complexity, and avoid disruptions to billing or finance systems.
Result
The A/B test showed a 7% lift in international conversion by improving passthrough rates, validating our hypothesis that localized pricing presentation alone could significantly improve relevance and reduce friction. This success became the foundation for Chegg’s international expansion playbook: starting with local currency presentment, layering on regulatory compliance and localized UX, and ultimately optimizing value props and price points to maximize conversion without sacrificing revenue. By scaling this model, we not only increased acquisition in new markets but also improved retention by reducing prices for existing subscribers where appropriate.
Deep Dive: Localization and Compliance
Situation
Following our launch of local currency presentment, regulators in key markets viewed it as a signal of market entry, triggering legal obligations.
Task
To continue scaling internationally without regulatory risk, we needed to support tax compliance, especially around VAT collection and transparency, while protecting conversion rates.
Action
I partnered with Legal and local counsel to identify country-specific requirements and led the development of flexible checkout UI components that supported VAT itemization where required, without surfacing unnecessary costs in unaffected markets. This included tailoring UX for high-regulation countries like Indonesia without introducing global complexity.
Result
We launched compliant, conversion-friendly checkouts across multiple markets, unlocking the next phase of our international strategy. Our adaptable infrastructure allowed us to scale pricing and packaging experiments confidently in new regions.
Deep Dive: Price Testing
Situation
With LCP and compliant UI in place, we had the infrastructure to begin testing price sensitivity in international markets.
Task
Our objective was to increase conversion in price-sensitive regions while limiting ARPU impact and avoiding additional operational complexity.
Action
I partnered with Finance to identify market-specific price anchors using benchmarks like the Big Mac Index. We then ran A/B tests on base and bundle packages to find price points that maximized conversion while maintaining revenue viability. Once validated, I led the rollout of new pricing across each market, including lowering prices for existing subscribers—an intentional move to reduce churn and improve perceived value. To prevent abuse from VPN users attempting to access lower prices, I also worked with Engineering to implement IP-based VPN detection and default those users to U.S. pricing.
Result
In some markets, we increased conversion rates by up to 57%. While this required price reductions of up to 50%, we offset the impact on revenue by expanding volume and improving retention among existing subscribers. This approach became a repeatable growth lever in our international expansion strategy, allowing us to scale sustainably while adapting to local market dynamics.