Can a credit union simultaneously appeal to Gen X, Y, and Z?

Can a credit union simultaneously appeal to Gen X, Y, and Z?

Client

TDECU

Industry

Banking

Type

Website Redesign

Timeline

June 2023 - December 2024

Tools

Figma, Jira, Confluence, Slickplan, Alchemer

Role

Client Discovery, UX Research, UX Design

Problem

The majority of TDECU’s audience is Gen X and Baby Boomers. However, it wants to expand outside of Texas and attract a Gen Y and Z audience.

Note: Details included in this project are snippets of the case study. Please reach out to me for the full details.

Goal

Reimagine TDECU's website so that it can retain the current customer base while attracting a younger audience and becoming a nationally recognized brand.

Deliverables

Client survey, competitor research deck, SEO content audit, sitemap, content strategy outline, wireframes, UI design

Understanding the Client

TDECU is a credit union founded in 1955. It has a long history of serving older folks, such as Gen X and Baby Boomers. Over the years, it expanded and became the largest credit union in Houston and the fourth largest in Texas.

Even with all this growth, there was still a problem. Gen Z and Gen Y weren't doing a lot of business with them. Younger folks went elsewhere for their financial needs. TDECU wanted to attract more Gen Z and Y customers, but they didn't want to lose their current customer base of older folks who had billions of dollars deposited at their credit union.

The goal was to redesign the website to find a happy medium that would work for an older and younger audience.

Strategic Insights

The following insights formed the backbone of the design strategy that impacted the information architecture, wireframes, and final UI designs.

Stakeholder Research

Using surveys and Interviews, we learned a lot from various stakeholders who had very high expectations for the new website.

Learning from the Competition

We looked at 30 of the best financial institutions to see how they provided a world-class user experience.

Messy Information Architecture

The site navigation was very messy, with lots of hidden pages and hero products being buried. We implemented a 6-part solution to redesign it.

SEO Analysis

Our SEO Analysis revealed that TDECU was not ranking high enough on Google's Search Engine Results Page due to the right keywords not being used.

Wireframes

Wireframes

Here are a couple of mockups that were created based on competitor research, stakeholders' feedback, business strategy, and general UI/UX best practices. Please scroll through the screens to see the entire wireframe.

Impact

In the end, we were able to redesign the site so that it was engaging enough for a younger tech-savvy audience while being easy enough to use for an older audience. The redesign also helped meet various business goals, such as increasing cross-selling of products, boosting user engagement, and reducing phone calls to customer service centers.

Takeaways

By using a streamlined information architecture and fancy features that enhance usability, a credit union can attract more Gen Y and Z customers while being simple enough for less tech-savvy Gen X users.

This project taught me the value of personalization. Financial institutions have tons of products. However, people often feel overwhelmed when looking at lots of financial products. Personalization offers a win-win solution by quickly showing users the product they want, which creates a good user experience that helps the business grow and attract more customers.

I craft digital experiences that feel effortless to users and meaningful to businesses—where usability meets impact.

I craft digital experiences that feel effortless to users and meaningful to businesses—where usability meets impact.

I craft digital experiences that feel effortless to users and meaningful to businesses—where usability meets impact.