Citizens Formative User Testing

Task

I wrote and facilitated a usability test to find issues for a loan rate selection screen during a student loan refinance process. This was a general impression test, but I had some early theories on potential issues with visual implementations on UI affordances.

Objectives and Key Results

Identify any issues in recognizing and finding loan rates to finalize the application process.

Process

Identifying the Goal

My first step was to ask this project's designer and PM what the ultimate goal was for that specific screen. Their core goal was for users to successfully find, select, and submit a chosen loan.

The loan selection screen design used in the testing prototype.

They said this point in the user journey is crucial since they are choosing and committing to a rate plan before submitting. There is a lot of information and numbers on this page, and they are concerned that it could be confusing and hinder the user hitting the crucial ‘submit’ button.

They also told me the target demographic for test participants is that they are US based and must have previously had experience refinancing or having at least $100k in loans.

Reactions to the expand/collapse interaction for selecting loan results

Participant 25

When successfully deselecting a loan, to then expand and  select another.

“Again, I'm hating that these things are all expanded... It should hide it automatically as you select something else.”

Participant 54

When successfully expanding and selecting the loan with the lowest interest rate.

“It was kind of weird that I had to click on show new details and then also click on the select button especially since the 20 year loan did not hide.”

Takeaway

Even though users successfully identified and selected a loan, there is still friction in the current show/hide interaction pattern.

Recommendation

Explore and refine the interaction patterns for loan selection to include better affordances and signifiers (e.g. find alternatives or removing show/hide functionality, refine visual presentation).

Reactions to finding a way to lower the loan rates

Participant 48

Read the bottom discount footnotes but didn’t notice the affordances (toggles, cosigner) to apply it to the current loans.

“Since it doesn't give me an option right here to add my discounts right here for loyalty and autopay, maybe it will ask me to enroll [after this screen”

Participant 43

Did not acknowledge the “Apply Discounts” toggles or the “More ways to save” sidebar. Only selected the recommended loan with the title “Lower your monthly payment”.

“That’s the only place that I see on this website that specifies any information about lowering the monthly payment”

Participant 36

Did not acknowledge the “Apply Discounts” toggles or the “More ways to save” sidebar.

“Honestly, maybe Calculate repayment, I really don’t know. Honestly, I find this a little confusing.”

Takeaway

For some, the ability to apply discounts to the current loans were not apparent.

Recommendation

Make “Apply Discounts” options more prominent via refinement of visual treatment or reworked copy

Citizens Formative User Testing

Adding the users’ voice in the design process