Erste Private Banking
Private Banking Website Experience Redesign
A commercial UX project focused on improving the usability, information architecture, and visual consistency of an existing banking website while supporting the company’s rebranding.
1. Overview
The project focused on redesigning the Private Banking section of an existing banking website within the constraints of the existing CMS and Design System.
The objective was to improve information architecture, simplify access to key content, and create a more consistent user experience while supporting the company’s ongoing rebranding.
Project Status
The project was paused before completion. This case study presents both implemented improvements and proposed concepts developed during the redesign process.
2. Research & Evaluation
To better understand users’ expectations, I created personas and empathy maps based on internal customer research reports provided by the bank. I then evaluated the existing website through a heuristic analysis and reviewed Private Banking websites from Polish and international banks to identify best practices.
The research highlighted four key areas for improvement:
- Navigation and information architecture
- Content hierarchy and readability
- Interaction consistency
- Contact experience
Selected research artifacts have been omitted due to confidentiality.
3. Design Improvements
The redesign focused on making the website easier to navigate, improving content discoverability, and creating a more consistent digital experience.
01. Navigation and Information Structure
Outcome
- Improved access to contact information
- Increased visibility of strategically important services
- Expanded visibility of the Private Banking offering
- Improved content organization and service discoverability
Design Decisions
- Added a dedicated „Contact” section to the main navigation
- Added “Family Foundations” section as a key offering to the main navigation
- Introduced a „Request a Call” action in the navigation bar
- Introduced dedicated pages for products that were not previously presented on the website
- Restructured core services under a dedicated „Offer” section
02. Content Hierarchy and Readability
Outcome
- Improved content scanning through clearer heading hierarchy
- Reduced cognitive load by simplifying and restructuring content
- Highlighted the most important information through better content organization
Design Decisions
- Simplified section heading
- Converted bullet list into cards
- Created a dedicated content section with a clearer heading
- Added a missing section heading
- Added banner linking to related content
More examples
03. Contact Experience
Outcome
- Created additional entry points to contact options
- Reduced unnecessary friction in the contact form and made it easier for users to get in touch
Design Decisions
- Removed unnecessary form fields
- Simplified legal information while maintaining compliance requirements
- Updated the form title to clearly communicate the purpose of the conversation and who it would be with
More examples
04. Interaction Patterns and Consistency
Outcome
- Improved interactions clarity, and ease of use across the website
- Created more consistent call-to-action patterns
- Made contact options easier to distinguish through distinct icons while maintaining alignment with the existing design system
Design Decisions
- Converted text links into buttons on selected pages to ensure a consistent call-to-action pattern
- Updated button labels to reflect the action they perform
More examples
05. Contextual navigation and Content discovery
Outcome
- Introduced additional content connections to help users discover related information and navigate between relevant sections more easily
Design Decisions
- Introduced „You may also be interested in” sections to support content discovery
- Added contextual text links leading to relevant internal pages
- Added banners leading to relevant internal pages
06. Visual Experience
Outcome
- Updated the brand identity across the website following the rebranding
- Reflected the premium character of the service
- Ensured a consistent visual experience in line with the Brandbook, Design System, and the technical limitations of the existing CMS
Design Decisions
1 – 2. Selected and adapted imagery to better reflect the premium character of the service
3. Created custom visual assets
4. Final Design
A selection of final screens showcasing the redesigned experience.
5. Measuring Success
The redesign was partially implemented, but the project ended before the proposed changes could be validated with users.
Success would therefore need to be evaluated through usability testing, focusing on how easily users can find key information, navigate between sections, and complete important actions.
Usability testing would also help identify remaining friction points and determine which design decisions require further iteration. Where available, website analytics could provide additional insight.
6. Key Learnings
- UX decisions in financial services involve balancing user needs with business goals and strict regulatory constraints
- Existing design systems and technical limitations significantly influence design decisions
- Small improvements in navigation and content structure can have a meaningful impact on usability