Problem
CUSTOMER PAIN
Frustrating Experience
New customers faced confusion in completing the online loan application and either dropped off or submitted applications with mistakes that delayed their loan eligibility. Returning customers didn't have a clear path to access their prior application.
BUSINESS IMPACT
Reduced Productivity
While increased conversion in loan applicants was the main goal to attain higher funding rates, because applications submitted with mistakes need to be manually reviewed the business was facing reduced productivity in loan decisions.
EMPLOYEE EXPERIENCE
Heavy Call Volumes
Loan advocates were inundated with calls from customers seeking support because they struggled to complete their loan application and made mistakes with critical questions that determined their loan eligibility and timely access to funds.
How might we...
optimize the loan application flow to better guide and engage customers through increased clarity and transparency?
Dynamic, Mobile-First Application Flow to Engage and Guide Customers
OppLoans is known for its stellar customer service through its call center. By translating this into their digital experience through a guided, transparent, and streamlined loan application, they can more efficiently serve their customers.
New Loan Application
Customers visiting OppLoans' application for the first time need additional guidance through the questions regarding personal, income, and banking information. Leveraging a single-question-per-page format, a conversational tone for questions, and interactive form fields can better engage customers in ensuring each question is answered accurately.
Refinance Application
Current customers with an active loan and eligible to refinance need to submit a refinance loan application. Presenting fewer pre-populated fields based on their last application while offering them the opportunity to update any information that has since changed can streamline their taskflow in submitting the applicaton.
Reloan Application
For customers who've previously applied for a loan and are returning to do so again, presenting a fully pre-populated form with highlighted fields to draw attention to can help customers submit their application faster and with less friction.
Guided
Experience
Conversational Language
Dynamic Application
Questions
Pre-Populated
Fields
New Customer Loan Application
OppLoans
Dynamic Loan Application
Empowering Customers Through Self-Service
OppLoans (now rebranded as OppFi) offers installment loans to the under-served sub-prime financial population that cannot access mainstream financial services. With customers new, existing, and returning all applying for loans through the same online form that doesn't address the different task flows of these varying customers, I was presented with the opportunity to re-evaluate and redesign the online loan application experience.
As the UX Strategist at OppLoans I worked to identify the pain points in the current application flow, meet business goals and constraints for the application funnel, conceptualize alternative designs for the application, and create an optimized experience for each segment of customers we serve.
OppFi, January 2020 - Sept 2021
UX
PROTOTYPING
Taking both mobile and desktop experiences into account while considering the task flows of both new and returning customers, I explored and iterated through different layouts and page formats. I thought through each individual interaction to ensure a seamless experience for customers seeking to access a loan. Design principles, persona behaviors, and helped guide my final design.
STAKEHOLDER
MANAGEMENT
For this project I worked with a variety of stakeholders from Marketing, Credit, Business Operations, Tech, Legal, and Compliance to identify goals and constraints for a redesign of the online loan application. Despite the often conflicting approaches from the different departments, my role granted me the ability to bridge these perspectives to align to a more united, singular focus.
TANGENTIAL
RESEARCH
In addition to looking at direct competitors in financial services, I decided to examine designs of online application forms across different industries such as Human Resources, automotive sales, and insurance. I found that expanding my research to this range allowed me to further and fully explore approaches that might have been overlooked in the financial services industry.
SELF
DIRECTION
Being the first UX role to the organization, I have been largely autonomous in identifying opportunities for change and improvements, in showing the value of prioritizing user experience through research-based insights and effective storytelling, and in making design decisions to set up the future vision for OppLoans' digital customer experience.
Research
Shadowing Customer Calls
I spent upwards of 30 hours listening to customer calls to loan advocates and noting down common concerns and confusions regarding the application flow. Hearing customers live describe their struggles and frustration provided with invaluable insights as to how consumers' perception of the application questions differed from the business' intention of asking the questions.
Strengths
Weaknesses
-
One page application before decision
-
Includes additional validation instructions on key data fields
-
Shows messages about credit score concerns before submit
-
Very long scrolling form on mobile devices, opens possibility to miss or err in fields
Competitive Landscape
Using the mystery shopper model, I studied the online loan application experiences of OppLoans' direct competitor. I used the SWOT framework to identify potential areas for changes and improvement for OppLoans' application. In addition, I also looked at other industries to find unique application flows.
Previous Loan Application Flow
Key Learnings
82% of customers applying for a loan did so on a mobile device.
Most customers who made mistakes on their applications did so as a result of fat-fingering.
Customers were often stumped by the more complex financial terminology in the application that were unclear to the average consumer.
Inflexible input fields that didn't account for different backgrounds forced customers to answer irrelevant questions in order to move their application forward.
Existing and returning customers were forced through the entirety of the same application form as new customers to modify their loan terms.
Personas
New Customer
This person has never before submitted a loan application to OppLoans before.
Relevant Application:
New Loan
Need the most guidance and support through application
Existing Customer
This person has submitted a loan application to OppLoans and has a current loan.
Relevant Application:
Refinance
(Not all fields are editable)
Need the least guidance as the application is relatively fresh on their minds
Returning Customer
This person has submitted a loan application before and was either denied or was approved and paid off their loan.
Relevant Application:
Reloan
(Not all fields are editable)
Need a moderate amount of guidance as more time has passed since they last applied
Design Principles
Empathetic
By meeting customers with dignity and communicating with optimism and respect, we can affirm our commitment to human investment.
Transparent
When it comes to as sensitive a topic as finances, clarity and transparency are vital to inspiring customer confidence and earning their trust.
Control
Structure and clear hierarchies in our design can help customers feel more confident and in control of their options.
Progress
Embodying growth and forward movement can help instill in customers the confidence in both our product and their financial decisions.
Prototyping
Skeletal Wireframe
Through wireframing, I first explored ordering of application questions to best follow a typical customer's conceptual model. I then explored more human, conversational language to ask customers for information.
Early Low-Fidelity Mockup
Moving up in fidelity, I iterated with the use of a mascot agent to guide the customer and make the application flow feel less overwhelming of an experience.
High-Fidelity Mockup
With guidance from marketing, I iterated on the presence of the mascot agent. I also explored incorporating a greater application stage tracker as the form is only the first step of the overall loan application.
Final Design
For the final design, I chose to follow the design principles closely and present a minimal, clean layout to really guide the customer's attention to each field. I drew from the Material UI library for simple, standardized field designs.
Design Characteristics
New Loan Application
New customers need the most guidance through the loan application to ensure they answer questions without mistake so they can be decisioned sooner.
Key Features
Mascot agent presence
Conversational language
Interactive fields
Dynamic questions
Single-question per page
Response options laid out clearly
True progress bar
Equalizing the online lending
experience
