Creating a pet insurance’s digital platforms from scratch (pun intended)
People love their pets, it’s a universal truth. What they don’t always love is pet insurance. Not because of the cost – after all who could deny their best friends the care they really need? But the products are complicated, the exclusions are tricky, and insurance’s digital experiences often fall flat.
Dogs and cats wouldn’t care for insurance jargon, complicated visual interfaces or difficult user interactions. So, we thought, why should TrustedPals fall in line with the rest? We wanted to create an experience with as much personality as the pets the insurance offering looks after.
The project in a nutshell…
THE OBJECTIVE
Putting together a website, an app and portal (or ‘Pawtal’ as we called it) which put users’ needs first, making it easy for them to buy, manage, and find out more about their plans, while also delivering unique experiences. If insurance takes less time, they have more time to look after their pets.
THE APPROACH
After carefully reviewing the user data we were provided with, we soon found out that ideation sessions would be key. Keeping everyone involved during the ideation process, letting stakeholders participate on the wireframing stage and carrying out visual refinement sessions proofed to be just what we needed.
MY ROLE
My role on this project was conducting and participating on the ideation sessions, as well as creating wireframes and visuals for all the platforms in scope. I also was the providing support and guidance to the two junior designers that were assigned to work with me on the project.
“TrustedPals has to let cats and dogs take the lead, to show the humans how it’s done”
– Setting the tone of voice for TrustedPals’ digital communications.
01. The initial strategic sitemap
02. Over the course of the project we created more than 500 wireframes screens across all digital platforms. Above are some screens from the mobile app.
Always keeping things simple.
One of the keys to TrustedPals’ success was knowing how to keep things simple. Dealing with insurance services can be a daunting experience, but with a friendly and clear tone of voice and simple to-the-point interfaces we could make any user feel confident around all the jargon and data.
Designing the experiences from a mobile-first perspective allowed us to focus on the functionality above all, and make sure that the features we included in the digital platforms were truly needed and simple to use.
03. A sample of some of the finished prototypes.
Once all the basics were down and we had a functional experience, we built upon it, creating all the features that have now become the TrustedPals’ signature. An example of that could be the Pet fitness section, an increasingly popular addition to the app that takes interaction to a whole new level, allowing users to keep their pets healthy through exercise sessions and challenges.
Multi-platform design to cover everyone’s needs.
Initially, the business was only contemplating designing and developing a mobile app. After carefully reviewing the data provided by the user researchers, we learnt that a big group of users still prefers dealing with their insurance cover through their laptop or desktop computers. Dealing with insurance is still tied to situational behaviours and users usually see this more as a job than anything else.
Thanks to the ground work, we managed to design all digital experience for multiple platforms, making sure that all types of users would benefit from the experience in the whichever way they prefer, not just the one we’re providing them with.
04. An example of the same screen designed for both 'the ‘Pawtal’ and the app.
The result
After the digital platforms were launched, TrustedPals saw a 30% increase in successful product enrolment in a single day. And with the launch of the app customer loyalty had improved massively.
KEY LEARNING
Keeping things simple is king, especially in a field like insurance. Making sure that the core features are smooth and flawless will enhance the users’ relationship with the platform. Once that is done, building upon these will help receive the customer’s loyalty.
TOOLS & SOFTWARE USED
Sketch
Adobe CC (AI, IND, PSD)
Invision
Salesforce Marketing Cloud