NovaPay Case Study - Pablo Rodriguez

NovaPay: Redesigning the Digital Lending Experience for Higher Conversions

#Fintech

#UX Strategy

#Multi-Channel Design

#Design Systems

#Conversion Optimization

Transformed a complex mortgage application into a conversion-driven journey, reducing drop-off by 68% through end-to-end redesign across web, mobile, email, and paid media.

Project Overview

NovaPay, a digital-first mortgage lender, was struggling with a 73% drop-off rate. I led a complete redesign of their digital presence—from application flow to marketing campaigns.

Reduce friction and anxiety in the application funnel
Build trust through transparency and clear communication
Create cohesive brand presence across all digital touchpoints
Enable marketing team to launch campaigns faster

Team Involved

Solo Designer

Developers

Product Manager

Marketing Team

Executive Stakeholders

+152%

Application completion rate

+242%

Mobile conversion increase

-47%

Cost per lead (paid media)

Before

Problem

The existing mortgage application created anxiety and confusion:

73% drop-off rate with users abandoning mid-application
47 fields across 8 pages with no clear progress indication
67% of users accessed on mobile, but experience was desktop-focused
Inconsistent branding across email, social, and web touchpoints
Users reported feeling "lost" and "anxious" during the process

The fragmented experience eroded trust at every step of the journey.

After

Solution

I designed a comprehensive, trust-building experience:

Restructured 47 fields into 5 conversational steps with progressive disclosure
Mobile-first, responsive design with WCAG AA compliance
Persistent progress bar with time estimates and encouraging microcopy
Unified design system governing web, email, and social media assets
Contextual tooltips explaining financial terms in plain language

The result: a journey that builds confidence instead of creating doubt.

🔍

Research & Discovery

Methodologies

Conducted executive workshops with CEO, Head of Marketing, and VP of Product
Analyzed Hotjar recordings and Google Analytics to identify 5 critical drop-off points
12 remote user interviews with recent mortgage applicants
Competitive audit of 8 fintech lenders (Rocket Mortgage, Better.com, LoanDepot)

Key Insights

Users felt "lost" without clear progress indication
Financial jargon created anxiety and distrust
Mobile users abandoned 3x more than desktop users
Save & continue was the #1 requested feature

👤

Primary Persona

Sarah Chen, 34 — First-Time Homebuyer

"I want to feel confident that I understand every step. Hidden fees and confusing jargon make me want to abandon the whole thing."

Goals

Transparency in fees and process
Quick, mobile-friendly experience
Human support when needed

Frustrations

Complex, jargon-heavy forms
No progress indication
Can't save and return later

Design Process 🪜

📐

Information Architecture

Restructured 47 fields into 5 progressive steps with smart conditional logic
A/B tested "stepper" vs "conversational" patterns
Single-column, card-based layout tested 34% better on mobile

🎨

Visual Design

Evolved brand identity: Deep Teal (#0D7377) for trust, Warm Coral (#FF6B6B) for energy
Plus Jakarta Sans headlines, Inter body copy
WCAG AA compliant accessibility

🧩

Design System

120+ Figma components with variants
Semantic color tokens (primitives → semantics → components)
1:1 mapping to React components

📱

Multi-Channel Design

Beyond the core application, I designed a complete marketing ecosystem:

📧 Email Marketing

Welcome sequence (3 emails)
Abandoned application recovery
Document reminder templates

Result: 3.2x improvement in CTR

📲 Social Media

15 carousel templates
8 Reels storyboards
Interactive Story templates

Result: 47% lower CPL on paid

✨ Motion & Micro-interactions

Progress celebration animations
Branded skeleton screens
Lottie onboarding walkthrough

Result: 28% higher engagement

Final Designs

Landing Page — Clear value prop, trust indicators, single CTA

Application Flow — Progressive disclosure with progress bar

Design System — Scalable, centralized design system

🤖

AI-Enhanced Workflow

I leveraged AI tools throughout the project to optimize efficiency:

Research & Ideation

ChatGPT for interview transcript synthesis
AI-generated copy variations for A/B testing

Design Production

Midjourney for hero imagery exploration
AI-powered background removal

Prototyping

Figma AI plugins for layout suggestions
Generated realistic dummy data

Results & Impact 📊

68%

Completion rate (was 27%)

41%

Mobile conversion (was 12%)

12min

Avg completion time (was 34)

6.7%

Email CTR (was 2.1%)

$67

Cost per lead (was $127)

61

NPS Score (was 23)

💬

"Pablo delivered more than a redesign—he gave us a complete brand transformation that our marketing team can actually execute on."

— CMO, NovaPay

💡

Key Learnings

What Worked

Progressive disclosure dramatically reduced perceived complexity
Mobile-first approach captured majority user segment
Design system investment paid dividends in speed and consistency
Cross-functional collaboration ensured design intent survived implementation

What I'd Do Differently

Involve customer support earlier to anticipate edge cases
Build more comprehensive loading/error states from the start
Create a more robust testing plan for email clients

Building a Dedicated Site for Safeguard Pay

UX Strategy

User Research

Web Optimization

Designed a dedicated site for Safeguard Pay, transitioning from a cluttered global site to a focused platform that improved user engagement.

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