Investia IAdvisor: Empowering First-Time Investors — When AI meets UX
Read how by integrating AI-powered recommendations, interactive financial education, and intuitive dashboards, the platform saw a 35% increase in first-time users and a 40% reduction in reliance on agents.
The Big Idea: Making Investing Accessible to Everyone
Investia faced a critical challenge: the investment process was not only intimidating for beginners but also inefficient for financial advisors. Data shows that advisors spend 65.6% of their time on client-facing tasks like meetings and servicing, leaving little room for strategic planning or professional development. For new users, the reliance on agents created friction and limited autonomy.
My mission: To lead the design of a platform that used artificial intelligence to create an intuitive, educational, and empowering experience for first-time investors—while also streamlining workflows for advisors.
The Problem: Breaking Down Barriers to Financial Freedom
For many, investing feels like an exclusive club—complex, confusing, and reserved for the financially savvy. Investia’s existing process required beginners to go through agents, which added unnecessary steps and made the experience feel impersonal.
At the same time, financial advisors were bogged down by repetitive tasks. They spent 19.9% of their time on back-office tasks like meeting prep and financial analysis, leaving less time for high-value activities like building client relationships or developing new business.
The goal was clear: design a platform that would democratize investing for beginners while freeing up advisors to focus on what they do best—providing personalized guidance and strategic insights.
The Users: Who Were We Designing For?
To create a truly user-centric solution, we focused on two key groups:
First-Time Investors: Beginners who needed guidance, education, and a simple way to start investing.
Bank Agents: The intermediaries who often acted as the bridge between users and the investment process.
By understanding both perspectives, we designed a platform that empowered users while supporting agents in their roles.
The Process: Lean UX in Action, Collaborating for Impact
As the Senior UX Designer, I led the project with a Lean UX approach, focusing on rapid iteration, user feedback, and close collaboration with the product manager (PM) and cross-functional teams. Here’s how we made it happen:
In-Depth Research:
The research team conducted interviews with first-time investors to uncover pain points and expectations.
I gathered insights from bank agents to identify common patterns in user needs.
Shared findings with the Product Manager and stakeholders to align on priorities and build empathy for users.
Defining Success Together:
Collaborated closely with the PM to establish clear objectives and success metrics, such as increasing registered users and reducing reliance on agents.
Used Lean UX principles to break down the project into small, iterative cycles, ensuring we could test and learn quickly.
User-Centric Design:
Designed interactive flows that integrated AI-powered portfolio recommendations, tailored to each user’s financial goals and risk tolerance.
Worked hand-in-hand with the PM to prioritize features, balancing user needs with business goals.
Iteration & Testing:
Conducted usability tests with real users, refining the design based on feedback. For example, we simplified visual options and enhanced educational guides to make the platform more intuitive.
Held weekly syncs with the PM and dev team to review progress, address blockers, and ensure alignment
The Solution: An AI-Powered Platform That Empowers Users
The result was a platform packed with innovative features designed to make investing accessible and enjoyable:
Personalized Recommendations: AI algorithms suggested investment strategies based on the user’s financial goals and risk tolerance.
Financial Education: Interactive modules explained basic and advanced investment concepts in a way that was easy to understand.
Clear Tracking: A dashboard with visualizations showed investment progress and performance in a simple, digestible format.
The Impact: Transforming the Investment Experience
The new Investia IAdvisor platform didn’t just meet expectations—it exceeded them:
35% Increase in Registered First-Time Users: The intuitive design and educational features made investing approachable for beginners.
40% Reduction in Dependence on Agents: Users found the tools they needed to make confident financial decisions on their own.
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