How might we motivate financial advisors completing open tasks and accomplishing their goals?
Product
FinCompare is a comparison portal, offering small and medium-sized businesses digital access to loans and financial solutions.
Challenge
After transitioning to a SaaS model and opening the platform to external advisors, we noticed that new users weren’t engaging as expected.
Solution
I took the lead, did in-depth research to find out why, and redesigned the platform’s entry point to encourage more user interaction and engagement.
This is what I have done to get the clear picture:
Quantative Analysis
I analyzed the data we have to identify tasks that consume significant amount of user time.
User Interactions
I analyzed session recordings to see how users engage with the platform.
User Interviews
learnt where users experience challenges or moments of delight while using the product.
Interviews with support team
Talking to support colleagues helped me to learn about the reasons why users were calling.
Here are the main problems that led to user dissatisfaction and diminishing motivation:
Why is it so complicated?
Unfamiliar with SME financing, users struggled to complete tasks and relied on customer service, resulting in low activity among new users.
How much money can I get?
With varying commissions, new users couldn’t estimate their income per case or monthly earnings.
What should I do now?
New users rarely used the platform, forgetting processes and next steps, leading them to call customer service for guidance.
Is there is any update?
Users didn’t know if a bank offer had been made or if there were any updates to their application, leaving them feeling lost and dissatisfied.
While company´s business model is built on the monthly fee, it is essential that users see continuous value of being a partner, which in the world of financial advisors means closing deals. Therefore, the business objective was to reduce the time the users need to work on the application before it is sent to the bank.
After synthesizing research findings into a journey map, I identified key opportunities to improve the user experience for financial advisors:
Despite the team's preference for a different solution (constraints and limitations), for this case study, I opted to focus on boosting user motivation through the introduction of a new dashboard. I created several low-fidelity concepts keeping in mind the requirements I defined in a previous step.
Version with a focus on tasks to be done and left-side menu with icons only to have more space for the content on the screen. Also, prioritized open cases in the center of the screen to grab users' attention to the cases where is action required.
In this version I prioritized the financial KPIs that are relevant to the financial advisors. Also, ideated on the version how to show revenue in progress and tips to improve the application.
Next iteration on the left-side menu and greeting the user. More prominent cards with financial stats with a revenue in progress in the center. It also provides a clear CTA to most relevant cases and gives updates on what's happened while user was away. With this version, I moved further.
After several iterations on UI, here is the final version of the dashboard:
Transparent Income and Revenue
New financial widgets are meant to help users see the value of their partnership with the platform and motivate them based on their financial performance.
Clear Status and Next Steps
This section highlights recent applications with clear status indicators and direct links to required actions reduces the steps needed to reach key tasks.
Recent Updates
A notifications section with a quick overview of all changes since the user's last visit, is saving time and reducing confusion.
Open Cases
This widget shows all cases, helps users to quickly identify where their focus is needed.
Product Performance Insights
Introduced a performance chart that visualizes the success of different financial products, helping users make informed decisions.
Empowering Users with Knowledge
Added a section linking to the help center, offering articles that enhance users’ knowledge in SME financing, fostering independence and confidence.
Prioritized tasks
Designed a new tasks section that highlights deadlines and provides direct links to applications, with options to filter tasks by today, this week, or this month.
As previously mentioned, the dashboard project is currently on hold due to internal company reasons. However, once the initiative is resumed, my next steps will be as follows:
1. User Testing and Feedback: Conduct usability tests on the current design version with users to gather actionable feedback.
2. Design Iteration: Refine and enhance the design based on the insights from user feedback, ensuring it meets user needs and improves the overall experience.
3. Development Support: Collaborate closely with the development team to ensure the successful implementation of the design, addressing any challenges that arise during the development process.
I am looking forward to it!