The Challenge

A new joint venture led to fragmented and confusing communication for customers. The increased complexity eroded the customer experience, with interactions feeling disjointed and inconsistent across digital channels. Recognizing the need for a unified approach, leaders set a goal to streamline interactions and create a seamless digital experience. I was brought in to lead the research and design efforts, and was teamed up with college interns.

Our Process

To start, we organized a discovery and ideation workshop, bringing together a diverse group of stakeholders from both organizations. Through this collaborative session, we created a journey map of the current customer communication experience, highlighting areas of friction, inefficiencies, and missed opportunities. This map became a crucial foundation as we envisioned a streamlined, customer-first journey, ensuring alignment across all stakeholders on a unified future vision.

To validate our ideas with real-world insights, we facilitated interactive focus groups to hear directly from customers. By combining these insights with our ideal journey vision, we identified six high-impact concepts that addressed the most significant pain points and promised the greatest value.

The Design Phase

We then defined each concept in detail, illustrating their benefits through storyboards and diverse customer personas. These visuals became powerful storytelling tools, allowing stakeholders to see not only what each solution could achieve but also why it would be impactful from the customer’s perspective.

The Results

Our work led to a breakthrough: a $1 million investment in IT enhancements to implement a more cohesive, streamlined communication system. This project delivered a clear roadmap for achieving a truly seamless digital experience, reinforcing the importance of user-centered design in guiding executive decision-making. By aligning stakeholders and presenting customer-centered solutions, we paved the way for a lasting, co-branded experience that puts the customer first.