Patricia N.
Sr. User Experience Researcher
Strategic Information Architecture
Nationwide Insurance and Financial Services
Impact:
Provided a "winning" information architecture (IA) structure from an A/B tree test directly informing design and content strategy for the redesigned Nationwide.com enterprise site impacting over 20 million visitors.
Three key research findings shaped the design recommendations:
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Chiefly, the research uncovered the IA structure that performed best, overall, for all audience segments. The "winning" structure provided the strategic direction for design and content strategy moving forward in the site redesign
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Users' paths deviated from our expectations–across all seven audience segments–in that they first sought information on product pages before completing the rest of the task (even if they ultimately had to login to see policy information, upload files, or tailor plans for client needs) (Design solution: Ensure personalized cross-links and CTAs to guide users to high-touch areas of the site)
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One term in particular, "Resources" resonated very well in the "losing" structure revealed users' expectation of what kind of information might be found this category (Design solution: Use the term "resources" in the "winning" IA structure for all things related to trainings, resource documents, tools, calculators, etc.)
Framework for evaluation:
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A/B tree test of two proposed Information Architecture structures
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100 participants total, 50 for each structure, representing seven different key user groups of Nationwide customers and professionals
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Research Execution to IA Structure | research informed content and design strategy
The context:
Nationwide.com, the Enterprise site, has over 20 million active annual users. To stay relevant with users' expectations of a website, and as the company focuses more on financial services, nodding to Nationwide being "so much more" than insurance, Nationwide.com sought a redesign.
The high-level research goal:
Evaluate two proposed Information Architecture (IA) and navigation structures, uncovering which performed best for users across multiple audience segments to inform the design and content strategy for the rest of the project.
My role:
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Senior UX Researcher
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12-week research effort within an 20-week engagement
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Jan.–Ap. 2025 (site launch date as yet to be determined)
Industry:
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Insurance and Financial Services