The goal was to investigate how clients interact with the app, identify where they encounter friction, and highlight opportunities to improve the experience in line with UX best practices.

Approach

Independently analyzed 100+ app screens to pinpoint usability issues, conducted 10 user interviews to identify pain points, and translated findings into wireframes or annotated examples that visualized clear solutions.

Impact

My research gave rise to 13+ insights prioritized based on severity, directly influencing an $8M business case to build a native mobile application, moving away from legacy designs.

These insights also aim to reduce expensive contact center calls, strengthen client confidence in digital banking, and guide product teams as they modernize the app experience.

Context

The Problem

Clients and bankers reported that the mobile app experience felt outdated and difficult to use. Instead of enabling independence, the app often pushed clients to rely on bankers or the contact center for support.

At the same time, there wasn’t yet a holistic understanding within the team of the app experience from the client’s perspective, making it difficult to prioritize improvements or align around client needs.

So what?

In an industry where banks are rapidly advancing their digital capabilities, KeyBank’s mobile app fell short of client expectations. This gap was evident in the annual satisfaction survey, where KeyBank ranked lower than competitors that prioritized seamless online experiences.

Poor usability also carried financial costs, as frustrated clients turned to the contact center for support, an expensive and inefficient fallback that further highlighted the need for improvement.

The Aim

My project focused on taking the first step toward identifying key usability challenges clients faced, evaluating their impact, and proposing actionable recommendations to improve client confidence, reduce support dependency, and align with KeyBank’s broader redesign initiative.

Research Method

Current State Analysis [~3 weeks]

Analyzed 100+ screens in existing mobile app to map the end-to-end experience, uncovering areas of friction

User Interviews [~5 weeks]

Conducted ten 30-minute semi-structured interviews with both clients and bankers focusing on app experience. Analyzed data using affinity diagramming on Miro

Problem Statement and Prioritization Framework

Problem statement

Based on the analysis of the research, I created a problem statement as described below that summarizes the exact challenge clients are facing along with its impact for the bank as a whole

Usability Severity Scale

To prioritize each pain point based on the level of challenge it is causing users, I put together a severity scale as described below. This scale also serves as a guidance for designers when deciding which areas of the app to prioritize when redesigning

Key Findings

#1: Critical Usability Issues: Inaccurate error messages and lack of transparency into system status are causing immense confusion among clients

I. Zelle Error Screen

Problem: Current Zelle messaging in the app fails to explain the hold put on clients’ accounts in the first 10 days of opening their account, leading clients to misinterpret it as a technical error and reaching out for support.

Problem: Menus throughout the app offer a long list of options causing overwhelm and increased time spent searching for relevant information

Solution: Adding a tile informing clients that they their external account is under verification prevents confusion and reduces unnecessary contact center calls

Added a status tile with clear, conversational language
Included estimated wait time and account-specific details
Redesigned error messaging to explain why the account can’t be added

II. External Account Status

Problem: There is currently no indication that a client initiated the process of adding an external account while they are waiting the account to get validated. This causes confusion and efforts to re-add account.

#2: Moderate Usability Issue: Overwhelming menus with too many options increase time taken to find information

Solution: Proposed solution reduces the menu options from 11 to 8. Adding icons next to options can also increase scannability

Changed “Tools” to “Financial Tools” for clarity
Changed the term “Doc Hub” to “Statements and Document” since this verbiage is used in the app
Removed “Offers & Products” and “Help Hub” since they are direct pages in the nav bar

#3: Minor Usability Issue: Actions hidden under a drop-down reduce discoverability and efficiency

Solution: Chase’s app uses a horizontal scroll bar at the top of the home screen to display key actions. KeyBank can adopt a similar design by surfacing commonly used features in a scrollable top row replacing the “More” button. This reduces steps and improves task efficiency.

Solution: The redesigned message sets clear expectations, reduces confusion, and prevent unnecessary contact center calls by accurately explaining the 10-day wait period.

Problem: Clients are likely overlooking the “More” button on the home screen which was intended to provide quick access to commonly used features. Instead, clients are navigating to “Pay & Transfer” tab leading to missed opportunity for efficiency. The placement and labeling of the “More” button may be limiting engagement.

Future Feature Integration Recommendations

Increased personalizations and in-app guidance can be integrated in future iterations to enhance app adoption

I. Personalized financial insights

1

Allow clients to set financial goals

“We don’t promote or guide clients enough on how to use the app, so they miss its full potential.”

— Banker_02

3

Provides insights on client’s financial habits

“When clients are guided through features, they gain confidence; without it, they’re less likely to explore app.”

— Banker_03

“The app does what it I need it to do. But it’s not super personalized, which is why it is not exceeding my expectations”

— Client_05

II. In-app guidance for first time users

1

Shift from banker led discovery to app led

2

Categorizes clients' transactions logically

First time app users rely on bankers to navigate the app since they’re unaware of certain features or unfamiliar with how to use them. Introducing in-app guidance can reduce this dependency.

“I know that other apps offer things like budgeting or goal setting tools. These are really nice features that I didn’t expect until I had them”

— Client_01

2

Highlight core features for first time users

Surface essential features through contextual prompts or a guided walkthrough. This helps first-time users quickly understand what they can do in the app and encourages independent usage from the start.

Project Results

My research gave the design team a holistic understanding of the mobile app and how clients interact with key features, while also equipping them with a client-centered roadmap to prioritize usability fixes and identify long-term opportunities. Together, these outcomes reduced reliance on support and set the foundation for a modernized app experience.

Next Steps

Expand User Research
Continue gathering insights from clients, to validate personas and initial findings. Focus on clients early in their financial journey and clients above the age of 55.
Identify Implementation Constraints
Collaborate with tech and product teams to uncover potential constraints (tech limitations, fraud risks, etc) that could affect feasibility of proposed design improvements.
Design key screens
Create designs for revised screens, starting critical usability issues, to visualize potential solutions and gather stakeholder feedback.

Reimagining KeyBank’s Mobile App Experience

Timeline

Skills

Role

Team

At a Glance

Challenge