Disrupted by new digital entrants to the market and heightened customer expectations Halifax knew that the loss of 1 million users a month from the homepage needed to be addressed. Working with us, we looked to transform the customer experience.
I collaborated with the Halifax/Lloyds team to identify customer pain points and devise solutions. Working with the core Somo team, I contributed to concept creation and translated ideas into visual treatments. I integrated the new (work in progress) brand identity into mobile and web design flows and built two animated prototypes. Finally, I presented the designs and prototype to the Halifax/Lloyds Team for feedback.
The primary frustrations with the design of traditional banking websites like Halifax typically revolved around usability issues, a lack of personalisation, and difficulty in quickly finding relevant information. Users were encountering challenges in navigation and locating specific features, leading to frustration.
The challenge for Halifax was to move away from the traditional homepage approach. We needed to research, validate and design a new Halifax homepage that would be user-centric for both new and existing customers, ensuring their visit is as seamless as possible.
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We used a product conception approach to create a vision and roadmap for the Halifax homepage. This began by researching and understanding user pain-points, interrogating data and developing a series of prototypes. We developed new solutions to creatively serve content as a more app-like experience as well as introducing functionality to recognise previous browsing history and tailor content accordingly.
Somo’s work was integral to reimagining the experience of our public website and how we deliver content. It has been key to informing our strategy for the next 18 months. During shaping, testing, design and playback Somo were truly collaborative with our people; the final result was a beautifully designed North Star vision that facilitates taking stakeholders on a journey with us.
Adam Betts-Symonds,
Senior Product Manager - Websites & Content, Halifax
We presented Halifax with a set of web journeys and prototypes that showcased an innovative and daring redesign of their homepage. These journeys were meticulously crafted to meaningfully engage users, representing a departure from conventional banking sites. Through user testing and design iteration, we delivered an experience that demonstrated the potential to enhance user experience and drive meaningful engagement.
While the client responded positively to the conception sprints' outcomes, they were deemed too risky for a mass audience, deviating from Halifax's competitors' approach. Additionally, gaining wider organisational backing was unsuccessful due to concerns about homepage representation of the products. However, had the concepts been further developed, I am confident our findings would have represented a positive step forward for Halifax.
• Translating and evolving the Halifax brand identity.
• Providing design leadership.
• Concept creation with the core Somo team
• Visualising concepts through high level sketches
• Creation of complex animated prototypes.
• Regularly liaising with client stakeholders, presenting concepts that pushed boundaries.
