Usability Testing

We created a higher fidelity clickable prototype and used it to conduct usability testing with 5 people in a series of 30 minute sessions. Beforehand, we worked with the team’s UX lead to design a research plan and script.

We aimed, at a high level, to determine whether the feature was clear, intuitive, and easy to use. More specifically, the research questions we set out to answer were:

• Would users use this feature?

• Is the feature easy to understand without instruction?

• What do users think about eSign’s in app location and it’s information architecture?

• How do users feel about having to go to Bernstein.com to sign DocuSign documents while they can sign eSign documents on the app?

Users interviewed began their journey to sign an eSign document and then a DocuSign document with a push notification, concluding the test after being redirected to Bernstein.com to sign the latter document. User feedback was both emotive and startling, especially on several screens.

Iterating

Based on the results of the first round of usability testing, clients were confused and frustrated about multiple facets of their signing experience. To address several of the reactions in the images above, we made following corresponding design changes:

DocuSign notification:

• Changed the copy for rerouting users to Bernstein.com to be more succinct & clear to mitigate frustration & confusion

Signing screen:

• Got rid of the two signing options and automatically sent users to their default signing method

• Forced scroll to the bottom of the document to ensure users read the agreement for both legal and personal reasons

Confirmation screen:

• Shortened the copy

• Added ability to see signed docs instead of having to call the advisory team, and changed copy to reflect this

• Got rid of the Done button

Docs to Sign screen:

• Made the visual differences between eSign and DocuSign documents obvious & clear

• Changed the visual design so that it did not look like the notifications screen

• Added a tooltip explaining why DocuSign docs reroute users to Bernstein.com

Usability Testing Round II

After re-designing several screens, we wrote a plan with hopes to mitigate confusion and security concerns. This time, the research questions were:

• Does the DocuSign signing process cause confusion or frustration?

  • We expected a level of slight frustration due to DocuSign’s technical constraints but hypothesized that users would not be confused or feel unsafe/insecure, and would return to the app to sign documents in the future

• Is the eSign signing flow intuitive & easy to use?

• Does the Signed Docs tab make sense to users?

• Does the DocuSign push notification process cause confusion or frustration?

  • Business stakeholders were concerned that clients would be very frustrated having to re-sign in on a Bernstein.com browser immediately after being redirected there from a DocuSign notification detail screen

After testing we again synthesized the learnings, distilling them below:

Revising & Aligning

Afterwards we again revised the designs and collaborated with business, technical, and legal teams to gather final alignment. Throughout the design process, the Docs to Sign screen and the Signed Docs screen had the most significant design changes:

We modified the wireframes to depict the final client journey from every point of entry into the feature:

The Final User Experience

The solution provides our clients with an easier way to sign eSign documents on-the-go and to navigate to DocuSign documents on the web without confusion or security concerns.

While working on this feature I realized how important it is to be adaptable and willing to redesign when requirements or specifications change from any side of the table. For eSign specifically we had to pivot vastly design-wise after learning during the middle of the design process that Touch ID wasn’t legally possible and that signing DocuSign documents on the app wasn’t technically feasible.