Kaus
A B2B insurance company looking to expand into the B2C market.
Focus
Goal
Year Completed
Research and end-to-end
Create a website that will cater to a new market.
2021
Kaus is an insurance giant getting into direct-to-consumer sales. Previously, they have done B2B sales with the help of agents, but they are trying to expand to consumers, particularly young adults.
One of the most critical factors Kaus would like to have is the ease of use of the digital product. As they know, navigating through insurance is often difficult and confusing for younger people. The second is ensuring that customer service is not neglected.
Kaus is trying to appeal to a new segment of their business.
Insurance information is often confusing for younger adults who aren’t too familiar with how it works.
Challenges
Product Goal
Design a new insurance website that appeals to younger adults while providing all the information needed to decide on purchasing an insurance product.
Understand the new customer.
Simplify the process of purchasing insurance.
Make insurance information easy to understand.
Customer service should remain a priority with the new product.
Research
The research was the first step in tackling the project. In this phase of the project, understanding the needs of both the business and its targeted customers is crucial. I conducted research on the specified users to discover their needs, wants, and frustrations when shopping for insurance.
Understanding the market was also important. As an insurance company with competitors, finding what is typically included in related products was a starting point for ideating potential designs and features.
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Competitive Research
Customizable insurance products are a commonality among insurance companies selling to young adults.
Educating the customers on the products with guides, content, etc., assures them that their products and services are of good quality and value.
Simplicity and ease of use are emphasized in the digital products.
Understanding the various situations that individuals in this market often find themselves in is vital for selling insurance products.
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Users Researched
Young adults in their 20s
College graduates or near graduation
People early in their careers
People who have already considered insurance.
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User Research Methodologies
Card sorting
One-on-one interviews
Creating personas
Needs
The research helped to better understand the needs of the users as well as their wants and frustrations when shopping for insurance. Business needs were determined through the proposal documents.
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Business Needs
Research the needs and pain points of their potential customers (young adults).
A newly designed logo for the new market.
Maintain their branding throughout the website.
Design a website that is easy to navigate.
Make it easy for their customers to quickly get quotes and easily enroll in an insurance offering.
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User Needs
It is key to simplify the information and make it easy to find what they need to make their decision.
Price is a huge factor in making decisions, but consumers are willing to pay a little more for quality products.
Social input and feedback are essential when making decisions.
Being able to contact insurance agents when they need more detailed information.
Task and User Flows
Since I am creating a new design from scratch, I need to define the goals of the design and think through how users can accomplish their goals. I also used this to prioritize features to include in the design. I received feedback on the initial task and user flows and revised them to find ways to simplify the user’s journey and make it more efficient.
User Goal
Purchase insurance
Task Flow
Purchasing insurance through Kaus
User Flow
Two possible scenarios for reaching the goal of purchasing insurance.
UI Patterns
After defining the goal and mapping out the user’s journey, I determined what features and patterns are needed to help the user achieve the goal in the simplest and most efficient way.
Designing the Product
I started creating designs based on the research early on in the process, keeping in mind the end goal of the user and the business. UI patterns were integrated into the design to help users reach the goal of purchasing insurance. I started with sketches, then moved to low- and high-fidelity mock-ups. When designing the high-fidelity mock-up, I followed the style guide I created for the insurance company to ensure a consistent feel throughout the design.
Drawn wireframes - possible starting designs for the homepage
Style guide
Wireframe - desktop version
Wireframe - including mobile version
Mockup
Testing and Iteration
To test the design, I created a prototype for users to go through. I used the data gathered from the tests to iterate on my original design.
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Research Goal
Determine if users can purchase insurance in a simple way.
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Conducting the Test
Three participants that fit the demographics of the chosen market.
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Participant’s Task
Purchase insurance through the Kaus website.
Selecting Participants
Participants were chosen with the following criteria:
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Age 20-29
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Graduated or is nearing graduation from college.
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Considering, or in the process of getting insurance
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Entry-level to mid-level in their careers
Step 1
Participants were tasked with purchasing insurance through the website.
Step 2
Before letting the users continue, initial first impressions of the look of the website were gathered.
Step 3
Participants proceeded to go through the website to complete the task, and they were also observed.
Step 4
When completed, users were asked for their feedback and about their overall experience.
Testing Process
Participants were given an introduction to the company and shown the homepage of the website.
Gathered Data
I gathered three participants, all in their mid-twenties, who fit the demographics of the users in the chosen market.
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Successes
Logical sequence in the insurance shopping process.
CTA was easy to find; it was a quick way to get started on finding insurance.
Clean and simple, or straightforward design.
Scrolling is kept to a minimum.
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Fixes for the Issues
Resize elements; things looked too big.
Add “Apply” at the bottom of the product page.
Details should also be in bullets.
Add numbers to the progress bar.