Kean Responsive Design
Recreating Kean
With over 30 years of successfully serving the B2B insurance market, Kean realized that they were losing market share due to an increase of competitors expanding their digital footprint to serve a much more digitally native audience within consumer markets. In order to remain competitive, increase revenue and userbase, and transition their product offerings in a digital landscape, Kean recognized that they would need to meet customers at their needs, starting with a responsive online web presence.
Expanding into B2C
My initial market analysis included major price-point competitors, like State Farm (9.27% Cumulative NAIC Market Share), Progressive (21.32% Cum NAIC Market Share), and GEICO (15.78% Cum NAIC Market Share).
Key Market Research Findings - JD Power
In 2018, nearly 42% of Americans between the ages of 18-49 years of age purchased insurance online rather than in-person.
Both State Farm and GEICO made significant gains in customer satisfaction by increasing the digital presence throughout 2019-2020.
As of June 2020, "insurance company websites—for the first time in the study's 21-year history—officially surpass agents in terms of importance to client interaction and service by providing higher customer satisfaction."
Knowing this, along with the fact that Kean’s direct competitors were already well established online, goals were established for the project.
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Design a new modern and fresh logo for the company
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Design a responsive e-commerce website that is pleasing to use and that allows customers to browse through all products and easily filter by relevant data
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My Role & Activities
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User Research
UX/UI Designer
Branding
Copywrite
Research & Empathize
Initial Assumptions
Initial assumptions of "digitally-adept users" were focused on younger users, ages 20-40 who grew up exposed to digital products and felt comfortable using them for daily tasks.
Insights
As I dug through secondary research and conducted my own research, a surprising insight was that while this age range used digital products frequently, there was no clear evidence that their use or familiarity was greater than individuals in ages 20-59.
By keeping our target audience broad, we included users ages 35-49 who were entering a phase in their lives in which they were investing more heavily in bundled insurance products and tended to have more assets and income to support this investment, whereas, users 18-34 may be more inclined toward single-product purchases with needs that we could grow over time.
Methodology
Competitive Analysis- Analyzing Kean’s three biggest competitors in the market to help us understand how they have differentiated themselves to attract customers. How can we differentiate Kean as a result?
Survey- In an effort to secure more quantitative user feedback, we conducted a survey with participants to help us understand their purchasing choices, pain points, and expectations when choosing an insurance provider and plan.
Interviews - Meeting with users, or potential users, to gain insight into their experience and expectations and provide feedback for our research goals.
Card Sorting Exercises - When it comes to the Information Architecture of the site, how might users categorize and organize in a way that makes sense to them. Are there salient themes?
Research Goals
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Identify how users choose an insurance provider.
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Understand user goals and priorities when choosing an insurance provider.
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Understand any ‘pains’ that surround the process of purchasing insurance.
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Identify if users prefer online services to traditional in-person agents.
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Identify how often users actually interact with digital products (on a normal day).
Deliverables
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Research Findings - Surveys, Interviews, Card Sort
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User Persona
Validating User Behaviors & Trends- Key Findings
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Take-aways
Building a site that is easy to navigate, easy to use (quote and claim tools), and offers products in the way users expect, such as bundle options, is critical to meeting users at their needs.
The use of the word ‘easy’ and what it means to users in context would need to be validated in interviews, card sorts (navigation), and usability testing.
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Digging Deeper- User Interviews
Users need easy to use insurance websites and mobile interfaces
All interview participants stressed the importance of their providers’ website and mobile app in their daily/weekly/monthly interactions such as a non-invasive quote process, step-by-step claims tool, and mobile access.
Trust is Key
67% of users emphasized the importance of "trust" when choosing a provider. Trust could be established through customer reviews, peer recommendations, and brand awareness.
Easy is defined as ...
100% of users wanted an "easy to navigate" website. Easy was described as "upfront options", clear language throughout, single-password access for bundled accounts, and quick access to support.
Being valued and receiving value
50% of surveyed participants cited price as their number one reason for choosing a provider, whereas, interviewed participants associated "value" with convenience, ease of use, and reliable support.
Insights & Design Priorities
When designing the product, keep the interface and tools simple and self-explanatory, use bundling options, and claims support on the home page, avoid - if possible- multiple accounts requiring separate passwords.
Position product/services based on Kean's long history in the market, price, solid user reviews, and simplified package/bundle solutions.
When branding, trust and value are key! How do we build on 30 years in the industry to illustrate that in slogans, colors, layout, and logo?
Define the User Experience
Defining Kean’s Users
Digitally native user, head of household, ages 18-49, who identify with middle to upper-middle-class.
Deliverables
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Project Goals & Features
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Sitemap
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Task Flows
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User Flows
Defining their Experiences
Based on participants' feedback and with users like Daniel as the focus, the next step was to think about the features that would best meet the users’ needs while also aligning with Kean’s goals.
Keep costs low & provide easy digital solutions for customers
Increase customer-base, revenues, & market share by expanding services online
Provide a responsive e-commerce website that is pleasing to use and that allows customers to browse through all products and easily filter by relevant data
Have a new modern & fresh logo for the company
Kean's Goals
Easy/efficient processes to support busy lifestyles (quote and claim tools, navigation)
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Met Expectations- price, trust, support, and accessible service online & in-person
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Organized systems- feeling in control of the process (natural progression- not invasive with secure info)
User Needs & Expectations
Planned Features
From this, decisions were made to move forward a responsive site (desktop, tablet, mobile) that offered the features, including:
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a navigation system that categorized bundles on their own to make them easy to find
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a quote and bundle tool that allows user to get a sense of Kean’s value proposition but only requires secure information after a preliminary quote price is offered
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A claim tool that provided upfront details on documents needed before a user initiates the claim
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A search feature with filters so users could easily scan the site for their specific needs- enabled with location services to ensure pricing accuracy based on area.
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Customer testimonials highlighted on the home page, so prospective users could learn about the benefits of Kean
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multiple CTAs to connect with agents for added support throughout the product category pages
Sitemap - IA
Task & User Flows
Keeping Users Engaged
When building the user flows, it was important to think about the key tasks new users would be focused on completing, how they might be finding Kean (search engines, site visits), and how we might make the site easier to navigate to keep the user engaged in the process to reduce the bounce rate.
Ideate
Deliverables
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L0- FI Designs
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Mid-Fi Wireframes
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New logo
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Style Tile & UI Kit
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UI Responsive Design
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Brainstorming & Sketching
Homepage
Product Page
During the early stages of the ideate and design phase, my focus was to avoid creating another standard insurance website full of formalities and lacking in character. Research had shown that participants often feel overwhelmed when buying insurance as they sift through policy options, price points, and the endless barrage of definitions. There had to be a way to incorporate all those important elements, but also humanize and lighten the experience.
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It became a goal of mine to learn from those who have made the 'lighter side" of insurance more relatable. So I looked at the competitors famous for having fun in this industry, such as Lemonade, Geico, and Progressive. Pouring over their use of characters, illustrations, UI, and color - along with some help from the amazing design concepts on Dribbble, was exactly the inspiration needed to strike a balance between information, illustration, and photography.
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Keeping the wireframes simple and more in line with the standard left room to add a creative, humanistic, and lighthearted approach with colors and illustrations in the visual design that would follow.
Wireframes
Homepage
Nav Menu
Product Page
Log In Screen
User Account
Logo & Branding
With the foundation of the design features and layout of principle pages in mind, I began to expand on the design and branding deliverables. Throughout the research phase, participants repeatedly mentioned the importance of ‘trust’ and ‘brand awareness’ when choosing an insurance provider, so I felt it was important to do some user testing at this phase too.
Taking a series of 16 logo designs, we tested them with 33 participants between the ages of 20-50. Participants were asked to select the logo they felt best represented: Trustworthy, Modern, Clean, Clear, Fresh, Comforting, Caring, Connected, Supportive. Over 30 percent of participants selected the logo below.
Logos Tested
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Logo Chosen
Choices on colors that would become signature elements of the brand, UI, and overall design were also critical to brand awareness. In research, I found that green is associated with safety, luck, health, and wealth. Mixed with blues that traditionally represent trust, loyalty, confidence, and wisdom, the premise was to create a comforting and engaging combination of hues that updated the look of the brand in a digital environment yet felt familiar to users.
Brand Style Tile & UI Kit
Responsive UI Design
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All of the elements, colors, and layouts were then brought together in one cohesive design that included key user-centric features selected during the define phase. ​
navigation that categorized bundles on their own to make them easy to find
a combined quote and bundle tool that allows user to get a sense of Kean’s value proposition but only requires secure information after a preliminary quote price is offered
A claim tool that provided upfront details on documents needed before a user initiates the claim
A search feature with filters so users could easily scan the site for their specific needs- enabled with location services to ensure pricing accuracy based on area.
Customer testimonials highlighted on the home page, so prospective users could learn about the benefits of Kean
multiple CTAs to connect with agents for added support throughout the product category pages
Homepage
Product Page
Blush Illustrations by Veronica Iezzi
Focusing on User-Friendly Features
Bundle Friendly Navigation
In research, participants repeatedly emphasized the need, preference, and convenience of bundles- in card sorts, they also categorized bundles on their own for quick access.
Since this is deep navigation, on both tablets (shown here) and mobile a tiered design pattern is incorporated.
Bundles & Single Product Quotes in one Tool
Looking at competitors sites, I wanted to take the bundle tool one step further by combining it with a quote option- this caters to both users in need of combined policies and users looking for a single policy, such as auto only.
Step-by-Step Claims Support
Participants in research shared that one of the main 'pain points' with insurance providers is unclear claims processing. They wanted steps of what to expect and documents to prepare upfront before they initiated the claim. Knowing this, I created a simple four-step guide template for documents is needed in order to file a claim.
Search & Filters
Searching the site, even from a mobile device, is made easy through location-enabled services and simple filters to quickly narrow results.
Building Trust One Review at a Time
Trust was a key factor in choosing a provider. Highlighting user stories and videos will allow site visitors to quickly learn about the value proposition of Kean and why customers chose Kean as a provider.
Prototype
Usability Testing
Usability Test: Objectives & Goals
Ensure users can:
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navigate both simple browsing tasks and more complex quote tasks without stress or friction.
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easily make updates to their account as needed.
Observe and gather feedback on user delight, pain points, confusion, or friction in tasks..
Participants
Number of Participants: 3
Age Range: 20-50
Participants are within our target user audience and personas (Daniel).
100% Task Completion Rate
Usability Test- Key Findings & Issues
Task 1- Navigating from the homepage to a category page(s).
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Task 2 - Using the bundle tool to get a quote, create an account, set up, and complete payment options.
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Task 3 - Access their user account from the homepage to make changes to personal information, such as address.
Moderate to Serious Issues
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2/3 of participants did not want default or pre-selected items, the choice was critical to them and they wanted to feel in control of all choices.
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66 percent of participants wanted more explicit language or explanation for the transition from quote to create a user account.
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66 percent of participants - Logo should be more prominent especially if it is used to navigate home in lieu of a Home Page label.
Minor Issues
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More combined dropdowns could save users time and offer more clarity, such as a combined bundle option in one menu (ie: Auto + Homeowners) and ranges on deductibles (ie: $500 - $1000).
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Add numbers to indicate steps in the actual progress bar. ​
Overall Findings
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100% of usability participants referred to the site as: easy to use, easy to navigate, easy to find information in the menu.
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While we need to fine-tune the site bundle tool- all participants gave positive feedback on the overall design and task completion.
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100% of participants interviewed as well as 66% of those surveyed specifically look for providers with pre-packaged bundle offers.
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All participants liked the simplicity of the bundle tool and rated it easy to use or neutral.
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In feedback from 33 participants, the current logo was selected by over 30 percent of voters for representing a brand that is trustworthy, modern, fresh, and clean.
Lessons & Reflections
In a truly collaborative environment working amongst a team, this may have gone a completely different way visually. But at its core, the features required to meet overall needs, even if represented differently, should be consistent.
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What I'd do Differently ...
​I really wanted to create an authentic user experience that felt familiar but wasn't stressful or full of unknowns as many research participants expressed experiencing when purchasing insurance online. Knowing this, I would simplify things more, especially the quote and bundle tool.
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Long forms require scrolling but have fewer overall steps (think clicking that Next button); whereas modular short forms or single-question forms may require more clicks but could feel less arduous. Since the time of this project, I have made revisions to the prototype to shorten the forms, add a more authentic quote page, and update the UI on the forms.