Incremental redesign app's structure

My role: UX researcher, UX designer

Project background

This bank app, one of the oldest on the market. Updates pile up over 8 years, causing the latest features to no longer seamlessly integrate into the app's structure. While users are satisfied with current features, the business aims to grow and showcase new branches through the app.

Objective

Develop a step-by-step roadmap to transition from the old design to the new one, validating each step through user research to avoid significant interface issues.

Small steps

We had a clear picture of how we wanted the app to look in the future. However, we couldn't instantly switch the app to this new version because it wouldn't make our users happy either way.

Instead, we devised small, incremental changes to gradually reach this ideal vision. Our goal was to introduce these changes without disrupting their current user experience or subtly guide them toward a new approach. To ensure these steps were easily understood by users, I employed a variety of methods to test for user clarity.

From this...

...to this*

* Sorry, I know you want to see screenshots. But because of the NDA, I can’t share any images of the innovative and exciting concept we were working on for this roadmap.

Applying methods

Main screen is the most sensible part of the app that is opened 2-3 times a week on average. So we desided to combine qualitative and quantitative researchers to get more reliable results.

First-click

Non-moderated usability testing with a prototype focused on the first click. It measured navigation effectiveness by tracking where users clicked first to complete a specific task.

Prototype is here

Side-by-side

Side-by-side testing of incremental design changes helps ensure that visual design improvements are heading in the right direction. By adding open-ended questions, we tried to get some qualitative feedback about the changes.

Usability testing

A new main screen and product displays were added to all testing prototypes. Researchers were asked to gather feedback on these screens while exploring other scenarios.

Planned and unplanned iterations

After analyzing the results of the unmoderated usability testing, I discovered an error in the screens that impacted the performance of several tasks. To resolve this, I created a new prototype, correcting the error and improving the screens that had performed poorly. We then conducted second rounds of unmoderated testing with the updated prototype, followed by moderated sessions to gather detailed feedback and insights on the revised design.

As a result

By collecting feedback and results from all sources, we initiated initial interface modifications and outlined plans for subsequent testing. This incremental approach enabled us to progressively align with the app's envisioned design, streamlining the integration of new functionalities.

From this...

...to this

...through this...

My insights

1

Even if you have a team of several people who look through the tasks and prototype, there may be mistakes or bugs. But the probability of this is higher if you work alone than in a team.

2

Significant changes should be broken down into small ones to not shock users. The final result could be different from what was planned, but it is also a good point.