Case study: Project Lighthouse
Redesigning BankVic's Website for Better Banking Experience
Background
Project Lighthouse, a strategic initiative led by me, as the head of digital experience at BankVic, in collaboration with our agency partner Versa, aimed to revolutionise the credit union's website and elevate the digital experience for its customers. The project encompassed a comprehensive website redesign, CMS re-platforming on the headless CMS Dato, and the integration of key elements to drive brand repositioning, elevate the product experience, enable product cloud integration and automation, implement a modularised Lego-like page structure, and establish a powerful campaign builder. The ultimate goal was to create a modern, user-friendly, and personalised online banking platform that would position BankVic as a leader in the competitive financial services market.
Challenges
BankVic faced several challenges with their existing website, including an outdated design, limited customisation options, and a lack of scalability. The brand identity needed a refresh to align with BankVic's evolving vision and values. Additionally, the product experience lacked cohesion, making it difficult for customers to navigate and find relevant information. The integration of product cloud capabilities and automation was crucial to streamline processes and provide real-time updates. Furthermore, BankVic needed a flexible and modular page structure to enable quick content updates and maintain consistency across the website. Lastly, the campaign builder required robust functionality to create targeted and personalised marketing campaigns.
BankVic faced several challenges with their existing website, including an outdated design, limited customisation options, and a lack of scalability. The brand identity needed a refresh to align with BankVic's evolving vision and values. Additionally, the product experience lacked cohesion, making it difficult for customers to navigate and find relevant information. The integration of product cloud capabilities and automation was crucial to streamline processes and provide real-time updates. Furthermore, BankVic needed a flexible and modular page structure to enable quick content updates and maintain consistency across the website. Lastly, the campaign builder required robust functionality to create targeted and personalised marketing campaigns.
The approach
Discovery and Strategy: The project began with a thorough discovery phase, including stakeholder interviews, user research, and competitor analysis. The insights gained from this phase helped define the project's strategic direction and identify key focus areas. Collaborating closely with BankVic's marketing, the brand identity was refined and integrated into the website's redesign strategy.
User Experience and Design: A user-centered design approach was adopted to create an intuitive and visually appealing website. Wireframes and prototypes were developed, allowing for iterative feedback and validation from BankVic's stakeholders and target users. The design team focused on improving information architecture, navigation, and visual aesthetics, ensuring a seamless and engaging user experience across all devices.
Re-platforming and Technology Integration: To address the limitations of the previous technology stack, a decision was made to re-platform the website using a headless CMS, Dato. This provided flexibility, scalability, and enabled efficient content management. Integration with BankVic's backend systems, such as their product cloud and automation tools, was prioritized to ensure seamless data flow and automation of key processes.
Development and Testing: The development phase involved translating the design concepts into a functional website using modern front-end technologies and frameworks. Rigorous testing and quality assurance processes were implemented to ensure the website's performance, security, and compatibility across multiple browsers and devices. User acceptance testing was conducted to validate the website's functionality and gather feedback for further improvements.
Deployment and Optimisation: After thorough testing and refinement, the new website was deployed on a scalable hosting infrastructure. A comprehensive post-launch optimisation plan was executed, including monitoring site performance, analysing user behaviour, and conducting A/B testing to continuously improve the website's conversion rates and user engagement.
Result
Improved User Experience: The redesigned website provided a modern and intuitive user experience, with enhanced navigation, streamlined content, and responsive design. This led to an increase in user engagement from 23% to 50% and a reduction in bounce rates from 45% to 24%.
Enhanced Brand Identity: The website now reflects BankVic's updated brand positioning, aligning with its values, and creating a cohesive brand experience for customers. This resulted in an increase in brand recognition from 12% to 15% and positive customer feedback on the website's visual appeal and consistency.
Seamless Integration and Product Cloud Automation: The integration of the website with the product cloud and automation tools enabled efficient data flow and automated key processes, including interest rate changes and risk mitigation. This streamlined the update of interest rates, resulting in accurate and timely information for customers. It also enhanced risk management capabilities and reduced manual errors. The automation of these processes led to a 36% reduction in manual data entry.
Modularised Lego Page and Campaign Builder: The new website incorporated a modularised Lego page design, allowing BankVic to easily customise and create engaging campaigns tailored to specific customer segments. This resulted in an increase in campaign effectiveness from 20% to 35% and a boost in conversion rates for targeted promotions by 25%.
Increased Customer Engagement: The optimised website experienced a significant increase in user engagement, with improved page load times and reduced bounce rates. This translated into an increase in average session duration from 2 minutes to 3.4 minutes and a growth in repeat visits by 20%.
Conclusion:
Project Lighthouse successfully accomplished its objectives of redesigning and re-platforming BankVic's website, delivering a visually appealing, user-friendly, and integrated digital experience for its customers. Through close collaboration with BankVic's marketing team and the use of a headless CMS, the project achieved remarkable results in terms of user engagement, brand recognition, operational efficiency, targeted campaigns, and customer satisfaction. The website redesign and CMS re-platforming laid a strong foundation for BankVic's digital presence, positioning them as a modern and customer-centric financial institution.
