Case study
Humanising Banking
As the largest bank in Malaysia, Maybank recognised the importance of digital transformation and creating a highly scalable and award-winning website. With this shared vision, I with a small design team at Aleph Labs embarked on the journey to design the most seamless digital banking experience for Maybank's customers across multiple touch-points.
Expertise
User Interface
User-Centered Design
User Research
Prototyping
Information Architecture
Interaction Design
Usability Testing
Quality Assurance
Overview
Role
Aleph labs is a U/UX design agency based in Malaysia and SEA. The aim of this project was to transform the online banking experience for Malaysia's largest bank using innovative design techniques. Our primary objectives were to enhance the lifestyle of customers and establish Maybank as the leading digital bank in the country. The results were a banking platform that is personalised, secure, and intuitive for users.
I was part of a team of 4 designers working on humanising Mayabank's financial services. Throughout the project I designed and set up 18+ different user journeys and conducted multiple usability testing rounds for the pre-login screens and the online applications modules. I coordinated discussions with product managers, legal teams and developers in order to make sure users are getting high quality experience at the end of the process.
I also led the design process of a Design Language System to support scalable and dynamic front-end development, providing a consistent digital experience across different platforms.
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Timeline: 2016 - 2017
Key Insights
Financial Planning
Research has indicated that up to 40% of Malaysians do not plan ahead financially
Consistent Experience
In a world of increasingly multitouch customer journeys, consistency is the key to make users happy
Safety and Security
An average of 8/10 people in Malaysia are worried about online security
Automation & Speed
There is a need improve turnaround time for specific processes through automation & optimisation
Low-fidelity explorations
I developed click dummies and low fidelity prototypes of the user journeys for quicker validation and requirement check before going to high fidelity design. This involved frequent feedback sessions with the teams involved to ship high quality features. I also made it mandatory to get legal approval using wireframes for certain processes before proceeding further to streamline the process.
Design principles
The needs of our users were of utmost importance. I conducted research with the goal of delivering a core banking experience that not only met their needs, but also delighted them at every stage of the journey.
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Simple & natural
Avoid cluttering the screens with content, hide non-essential options and break tasks into small chunks. Teach customers as they go. Refrain using complex terms and jargons.
Personal & relevant
Value the customer and give them a personalised experience. Anticipate their needs before they arise. Present them with just enough content on each screen for a smooth experience.
Consistent
For most parts, color is associated with specific actions: hover states, primary and secondary buttons, etc. Keep components and interactions consistent across all banking platforms.
Design the right thing
The perfect service
that’s right for you
Together with Mayabnk, we co-created a digital banking platform that optimised journeys and simplified interactions for customers. The desktop web app and the companion mobile app streamlined processes, touchpoints, and design consistency, reducing time spent on complicated tasks, and allowing them to spend more time running their business.
Enhanced glanceability and scalability.
A cleaner design that’s responsive and optimised for
mobile, tablet and desktop and offers a great experience no matter the device.
The new Maybank2u comes with a complete change of user interface and enhanced experience focused on simplicity and personalisation. Exploring multiple ways to enhance the product discovery with a personalised touch, I designed an experience that provides quality services and help customers easily access the information they need.
Maybank cards
Creating a user-friendly application process for Maybank cards product was one of my primary tasks in this project. The challenge was matching customers with the most suitable card for their needs and simplify the overall application process. My approach was to focus on key user journeys namely card discovery, research, and comparison tools. The end result was well designed and researched card application experience enhanced with interactive tools such as the card finder.
One of the key aspects of my solution is the reduction of unnecessary steps, eliminating any superfluous information or redundant verifications.
Loan applications
One other primary goal was to expose the gaps in the loan application process and improve the user experience to increase the loan requests rate.
I understood Maybank’s customers’ motivations for choosing a loan over other banks for complexity and delays in assessing applications and the amount of paperwork customers to need to go through.
I streamlined and simplified a solution for loans application involving product insights and processes alignments to deliver a consistent user experience. I added tools and features like the loan calculators providing customers different way to explore and manage their applications.
M2U Planner
Goals Made Fun
Aside from the traditional methods of financial planning, we wanted to help customers plan their goals and visualise their spending through an interactive and engaging experience. I worked on designing M2U planner to provide customers with a user friendly solution to plan and track their goals on both mobile and desktop.
The the "goal savings plan" was successfully launched, with over 4,500 goals created in the first month of the pilot launch. Throughout the process, I worked closely with the engineering team to ensure the delivery of high quality design and meeting usability standards.
Creating banking design system
Through a robust design system, it has been made it easier to implement future changes, delivering consistent and efficient features and products to power the core banking needs of users.
Project takeaways
Speak often with users
Research and user testing helped uncover opportunities to explore and led to quick and informed design decisions.
Good design drive growth
The number of registered users of Maybank2u in Malaysia has been growing steadily and was expected to grow by 20% annually.
Involve project teams early
Involving cross functional teams early ensured that the project was progressing holistically, effectively accounting for content strategy and technical feasibility early.
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