Leads Navigator - "How It Works" Screens

Project Summary

This project focused on redesigning the "How It Works" screens for Leads Navigator, a Capital One digital iframe embedded on car dealership websites, enabling potential customers to pre-qualify for auto loans and generating leads for dealerships. The primary challenge was a high bounce rate on these initial screens, significantly hindering lead generation. My role as Lead Product Designer involved leading the design strategy, execution, and testing of multiple design variations to optimize user engagement and improve pre-qualification rates.

Problem Statement

The existing "How It Works" page suffered from a high drop-off rate, with 60% of users exiting on the first page and another 40% abandoning the process on the subsequent Personal Information screen. This high bounce rate directly impacted the number of pre-qualification applications, negatively affecting lead generation for our dealer partners. The key metric for success was to increase the pre-qualification rate.

Design Process & Solution

Strategic Approach

Given the limitations in directly contacting users who abandoned the process, we adopted a data-driven approach using multi-armed bandit testing. This methodology allowed us to test multiple design variations simultaneously in a live environment, optimizing for performance based on real-time user behavior. I advocated for supplementing quantitative data from the bandit test with qualitative insights from user testing on UserTesting.com.

Ideation & Prototyping

I initiated the design process by creating ten different "How It Works" page templates based on the existing design. Through collaborative design reviews with the Product Manager and tech partners, we narrowed down the options to three core templates for testing. To maintain experimental control, we focused on varying content elements (headlines, subheaders, and images) while keeping the core structure and CTAs consistent across variations.

Content Strategy

Recognizing the importance of clear and persuasive messaging, I partnered with a Content Strategist to refine the headlines and subheaders. We developed several content sets, but faced challenges with legal approval due to unsubstantiated language. I advocated for testing the content sets in user testing to gather evidence for their effectiveness, which could then justify the effort required to obtain legal approval.

User Testing

I championed user testing to gain qualitative insights before launching the bandit test. I devised the initial testing plan, which was later executed by a colleague due to my involvement in multiple projects. Initial testing focused on comparative analysis of content sets but proved ineffective. However, we gained valuable insights, including the discovery that the sign-in was visually de-emphasized across the new templates. We also validated that users understood the messaging and the purpose of pre-qualification.

High-Fidelity Design & Handoff

I created high-fidelity mockups for all 12 variations across five breakpoints (1840px down to 320px). I delivered detailed design specifications to three developers and collaborated closely with them throughout the implementation process to ensure design fidelity.

Results & Impact

The multi-armed bandit test was launched across 5,000 dealerships nationwide. Within three weeks, a winning variant emerged. The results were significant: 11 out of 12 variants outperformed the original design, and the winning variant achieved a 20.7% relative lift in pre-qualification application submission rates. This improvement directly translated to a 20.7% relative lift in leads generated for our dealer partners.

Key Takeaways & Reflection

This project demonstrated the power of data-driven design and iterative testing. The successful outcome was a result of:

• Strategic Use of Experimentation: Employing multi-armed bandit testing allowed for efficient optimization and reduced the risk of deploying underperforming designs.
• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Effective collaboration with the Product Manager, Content Strategist, and developers was crucial for the project's success.
• User-Centered Approach: While facing constraints in direct user feedback, we leveraged user testing to validate design decisions and identify usability issues.
• Impactful Results: The 20.7% increase in leads directly contributed to the business goals of generating more leads for our dealer partners.