Essent B2B
UX | Redesign Sales Flow | Responsive web app
Project
Easy & quick energy, great service
There are many popular services allowing consumers to sign energy contracts online. B2B customers however are not nearly as willing to use similar services. We wanted to find out why. In a three month project we researched their preferences when it came to signing contracts and designed solutions based on the insights we gathered. At the end we deliverd a new sales flow concept and design, which Essent is implementing at the moment.
UX Challenges
Make energy simple again
Instead of forcing the B2B customers to use online solutions they don't want to use, we set out to understand what they don't like about the current online sales flow and how they sign-up for energy at the moment. In the end this research lead us to a solution combining online and offline in order to meet their needs. We discovered that one of the main reasons they prefer to convert over the phone is because most business customers like to negotiate their price and/or have special conditions for their contract. In the new online sales flow we combined an online onboarding process with a phone support option: regardless of which onboarding route B2B customers choose, they will always be able to track the progress and price for their energy online as well as offline.
UX Solutions
Easy energy & dynamic content
Sign-up flow
Applying for electricity and/or gas required answering a few questions and providing personal information. Though it wasn't often understood why certain questions were asked and what the effect was on price. Also, the displayed prices weren't correct and too high. This scared people away. Together with my team I designed a tool that would show you a relevant price instantly, based on the amount of people in your household and your postcode. If you hadn't given that information before, we didn't show a price. The rational here: only show relevant information or non at all. Other energy characteristics were pre-selected for users to enhance speed in the application process, but which they could easily change of course. All questions were provided with a short explanation saying what the differences were in options and why it was necessary to answer it. When changing answers users could instantly see what the effect was on price.
Content
After user research and multiple workshops with the client, I created a content strategy and website plan that merged product, service and brand copy. Depending on the page one of these three information types were dominant. Based on relevancy the other two would be added or not via subtle cross-link components and animations. As much as short & functionally written copy was desirable so readers would quickly find what they were looking for. An important design principle was "be personal". It related to tone of voice, but also to personalising information. Therefor I also created a dynamic content strategy. This document explained how and when to personalise content for users based on variables measured. The goal to create a valuable and relevant experience for your visitors.
