MBP Bank
Responsive Website
PROJECT OVERVIEW
The product:
MBP Bank is a local bank that serves the Monterey Bay area in California. The typical users are individuals, families, and businesses around the area. MBP Bank’s goal is to make financial management easy for all types of users.
Project duration
June 2021 to July 2021
The problem:
Some banks’ online access creation flow makes users feel uncertain about how many steps are needed to complete the process. Users also feel frustrated with the verification process which asks to enter a lot of information, but at last still require them to call the representative in order to finish the verification.
Goal:
Design a MBP Bank website to be user friendly by providing clear navigation and offering a fast online account access creation process.
My role:
UX designer leading the MBP Bank website design.
Responsibilities:
Conducting interviews, paper and digital wireframing, low and high-fidelity prototyping, conducting usability studies, accounting for accessibility, iterating on designs and responsive design.
UNDERSTANDING THE USER
User Research Summary
I conducted user interviews, which I then turned into empathy maps to better understand the target users and their needs. I discovered that many target users treat online access to bank account as a convenient way when they need to manage their account activities. However, some online banking account access are overwhelming and confusing to create, which frustrated many target users. This caused a normally convenient experience to become challenging for them.
User Pain Points
NAVIGATION
Some bank websites take many steps to create online account access, but do not clearly tell users how many steps are needed in advance.
INTERACTION
Verification process is usually complicated, which is impossible to complete unless to call the representative for further verification.
EXPERIENCE
When the online account creation process is done, the websites just freezes without a clear confirmation, making users feel not sure if the process is done successfully.
Persona: Amanda
Problem statement:
Amanda is a busy full time employee who needs an online bank account creation flow with clear steps and easy verification because they want access to their bank account online conveniently.
User Journey Map
I created a user journey map of Amanda’s experience using the site to help identify possible pain points and improvement opportunities.
STARTING THE DESIGN
Sitemap
Difficulty with website navigation was a primary pain point for users, so I used that knowledge to create a sitemap.
My goal here was to make strategic information architecture decisions that would improve overall website navigation. The structure I chose was designed to make things simple and easy.
Paper Wireframes
Next, I sketched out paper wireframes for the website, keeping the user pain points about navigation and online access creation flow in mind.
The home screen paper wireframe focus on optimizing the browsing experience for users.
Paper Wireframe Screen Size Variation
Because MBP Bank’ customers access the site on different devices, I started to work on design for additional screen size to make sure the site would be fully responsive.
Digital Wireframes
Moving from paper to digital wireframes made it easy to understand how the redesign could help address user pain points and improve the user experience.
Prioritizing useful button locations and visual element placement on the home page was a key part of my strategy.
Digital Wireframe Screen Size Variation
Low-fidelity Prototype
To create a low-fidelity prototype, I connected all of the screens involved in the primary user flow of creating the online account access.
At this point, I had received feedback on my designs about things like placement of buttons and page organization. I made sure to listen to the feedback, and implemented several suggestions in places that addressed user pain points.
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View a sample of the MBP Bank low-fidelity prototype
Usability Study Parameters
STUDY TYPE
Unmoderated usability study
LOCATION
United States, remote
PARTICIPANTS
5 participants
LENGTH
15-20 minutes
Usability Study Findings
These were the main findings uncovered by the usability study:
CANCELING PROCESS
Once in the middle of the account creation process, users didn’t have a way to cancel the process at any point they want.
SECURITY QUESTION
Users prefer to have an optional security question section to enhance the security level of their accounts.
CONFIRMATION
After the account is set up, users want a confirmation sent to their emails for record.
REFINING THE DESIGN
Mockups
Based on the insights from the usability study, I made changes to improve the online account access creation flow. One of the changes I made was adding the option to cancel the process during each step using a simple cancel option. This allowed users more freedom to opt out the process if needed.
To make the confirmation step even clearer for user, I added a function that allowed a confirmation being sent to the user’s email.
Original Screen Size Mockups
Screen Size Variations Mockups
High-fidelity Prototype
My high-fidelity prototype followed the same user flow as the low-fidelity prototype, and included the design changes made after the usability study.
View a sample of the MBP Bank high-fidelity prototype
Accessibility Considerations
I used headings with different sized text for clear visual hierarchy.
I designed the site with alt text available on each page for smooth screen reader access.
GOING FORWARD
Takeaways
Impact
Our target users shared that the design was intuitive to navigate through, more engaging with the flow, and demonstrated a clear visual hierarchy.
What I learned
I learned that even a small design change can have a huge impact on the user experience. The most important takeaway for me is to always focus on the real needs of the user when coming up with design ideas and solutions.
Next Steps
Conduct follow-up usability testing on the new website.
