Case Study: Crafting a UX Strategy for Compelling Messaging

In the world of web development, even the most friendly and elegant design won’t work if the product’s message is convoluted.

A website, at its core, is a medium for communication. It tells a story, conveys an idea, and, most importantly, establishes a connection between the brand and its audience. No matter how refined, a site's aesthetics are just one piece of this giant puzzle. Without a clear, consistent, and compelling message guided by a dedicated UX strategy, even the most sophisticated design elements can fall flat, leaving users confused, unengaged, or even frustrated.

The Case

Today we will walk through one of our recent cases, Discovermarket. The company operates in a particularly nuanced field: the insurance industry. Our client’s goal is to create an online marketplace where they would act as an intermediary, connecting insurance market participants with potential or current policyholders. The range of insurance types that would be provided by affiliated companies is supposed to be very diverse, from B2B travel insurance to custom-tailored contracts that safeguard businesses from breaches of obligations.

Initially, the client approached us with a request to design the website’s diagrams only. But upon receiving the design prototype, we realized that it lacked clarity and would not be effective if left as is. The client had clear insights into their market but was struggling to articulate how that should translate into their online presence. After short negotiations, we agreed on a complete overhaul of the website and started working on the UX design strategy.

The Challenge

The ambition of Discovermarket was grand and inherently complex. The insurance sector is not only regulated and dense with legalese, but it also has its own terminology, policies, and structures. Combine this with the complexity of the platform, and the challenge was clear: How do you create an informative website for a platform that is user-friendly and accessible while also providing in-depth information on a multitude of insurance products?

The Website Strategy

Creating a Clear Message

The primary goal of our UX strategy was to distill the complex nature of Discovermarket’s services down to their essence and create a message that is direct and easy to understand yet encapsulates the depth of their specialized services.
Cultivating Client Self-identification

Upon landing on the website, both insurance companies and potential policyholder businesses need to be able to instantly discern that Discovermarket was crafted precisely for their requirements. For visitors to identify themselves as potential clients, the platform had to reflect a deep understanding of both ends of the spectrum: insurers seeking a broader audience and businesses aiming for tailor-made insurance solutions. We created a storyline throughout the website that reinforces the idea: "This platform was built for you."
Using Professional Language while Maintaining Clarity of the Message

When communicating with professionals, the language becomes a mirror of credibility. Adopting the same language as potential buyers and affiliates ensures that the platform not only talks 'to' them but 'with' them. With the help of industry-specific terminology and precision in its delivery, the website asserts its expertise and speaks directly to those in the know without overcomplicating or convoluting the message.
Leveraging Inspiring Visuals

A picture is worth a thousand words, especially in digital communication. We aimed to use visuals not just as a design’s element, but also as a tool for intuitively conveying complex ideas. As a part of our user experience strategy, we crafted an immersive environment where visuals and content work in harmony, simplifying complex concepts and enhancing user engagement.

The Approach

We conducted a series of interviews with Discovermarket’s IT department, business managers, and marketing director, during which we gathered their expertise and deepened our understanding of their goals.

We recognized the client's depth of understanding of their market and decided to act as interpreters. We incorporated their profound insights regarding the market's complexities into the website strategy and translated them into a visual and interactive language that would resonate with their audience.

The Solution

With the information gathered from our client, we worked on creating a succinct yet impactful tagline. Our goal was to encapsulate the innovation and transformation they were bringing to the insurance industry. With this in mind, we crafted a tagline that would both create a strong impression and reflect their mission: “Discover the Evolution of Insurance Ecosystems”.

We improved upon the client’s idea of using zoomed-in patterns of the logo for creating visual design patterns. Modeled in 3D, we recreated the logo in glass, giving it a high-tech and high-end feel.

We presented the components of the insurance market that can provide their services through Discovermarket and broke them down into categories, ranging from consultants to insurance providers.

We adhered to the design direction established with the logo, which aimed to convey a technological and premium feel, and created an interactive animation for the market segment breakdown in the same style.

The original technical and complex diagram, which the client initially approached us with, was transformed into a captivating and easy-to-digest outline of the insurance market, showing all the participants and Discovermarket’s place in it.

We recreated the diagram in 3D to fit the style of the website. Now rich in its presentation and more visually appealing, it still conveys the client’s understanding of the market in a way that is easy to understand.

After an in-depth analysis of the client's product, we distilled the value proposition of Discovermarket into a list of benefits that are both compelling and relevant to their target audience. Our team worked closely with Discovermarket to thoroughly understand their business model, services, and unique selling points. We analyzed their market segment, identified their core customer base, and recognized their target audience's specific needs and desires.

Instead of presenting the benefits of Discovermarket as an uninspiring list, we created interactive cards, each adorned with a unique icon. This not only brought a visual appeal to the section but also ensured that the information was more engaging and easily digestible.

To further articulate the unique value that Discovermarket offers, we designed a diagram that visually represents their proposition. This simple but impactful illustration was a key component of our strategy to clarify the complex elements of their business. We showcased the interconnectedness of their core offerings — technology, products, and services — and how they come together to create an innovative insurance ecosystem.

The diagram is interactive. Users can engage with it by hovering over the sections. This triggers popup windows to appear, providing detailed information about each component that makes up Discovermarket's solution. This interactive feature adds an extra layer of engagement to the website, making it more dynamic and informative.

The inclusion of a map highlighting Discovermarket's offices worldwide serves to underscore their global reach and operational scale. When potential clients can see the company's international presence, it implies a strong understanding of insurance needs, regulations, and market dynamics on a global scale. Alongside the map, the inclusion of a statement that solidifies DiscoverMarket's vision is an effective way to convey the alignment of the company's global operations with their mission to make insurance more affordable, accessible, and relevant.

When creating the map, we decided to design it in 3D to add depth and richness to the presentation. This further immerses users in the company's storytelling.

The addition of a section featuring photos of the team not only provides a more personal touch to the website but also builds trust. When potential clients can see the faces behind a company, it humanizes the brand and makes it more relatable. Moreover, including position titles helps to affirm the team's qualifications and establish credibility.

In the photo section, we went with an interactive slider as a way to showcase the images to allow users to navigate through the photos easily while adding an extra element of engagement.

We wanted to provide easy access to Discovermarket's platform for potential users. To achieve this, we created straightforward, accessible cards that detailed the steps to get started. These cards not only laid out the process but also outlined the value proposition of the platform.

These cards were designed with unique icons, just like the cards in the "benefits” section. To ensure that the cards are easily understood, we kept the background of the cards simple, letting the icons and text stand out.

The section on how to get started was laid out in a simple four-step card format with brief instructions, making the process straightforward to follow. Also presented in a card format with a clear and simple design, we added a subtle animation that causes the cards to collapse upon scrolling.

In Conclusion

This case study demonstrates that even when faced with a complex and nuanced industry, it is possible to develop a clear and engaging online presence. By working closely with our client, and carefully considering the unique needs and goals of their target audience, we were able to create a digital platform that successfully bridges the gap between technical complexity and user-friendly design. The end result is a platform that resonates with the intended audience and clearly highlights the unique value proposition of the business. This strategic approach to web design, with an emphasis on clear messaging and user-centric design, can be adapted to serve any brand or industry.