Bank of the West: Online Account Opening
Opening a bank account online is one of the most complex flows in digital banking.
Regulatory requirements, identity verification and funding all need to be handled in a sequence that customers can understand and complete without frustration.
I worked with product owners, usability researchers and our platform vendor to improve the Bank of the West online account opening experience, focusing on a more mobile-friendly interaction model.
Snapshot
Role: Interaction Designer
Scope: Online account opening flow
Focus areas:
-
Mobile-first interaction patterns
-
Form input design and validation
-
End-to-end flow prototype
-
Vendor platform guidance
Tools: Axure
Outcome:
-
Improved mobile interaction patterns for account opening
-
Prototype used to guide vendor platform improvements
-
Design patterns adopted in the upgraded platform
The problem
Opening an account online requires customers to complete a long sequence of tasks, including identity verification, regulatory disclosures and account funding.
The existing experience had evolved over time and did not translate well to smaller mobile screens.
Key challenges included:
-
Lengthy forms requiring careful data entry
-
Inconsistent input formatting
-
Controls designed for desktop interaction patterns
At the same time, our account opening system was hosted by an external vendor that was planning an upgrade to their responsive platform.
This created an opportunity to clarify the desired interaction model and influence the next generation of the platform.
Understanding the journey
Before proposing interface changes, I created a user journey map to capture the current account opening experience and identify points of friction.
This artifact helped align product owners and usability researchers on where the experience was breaking down.
The journey map revealed three recurring issues:
-
Data entry errors caused by unclear formatting expectations
-
Input controls that required excessive tapping and scrolling on mobile
-
Lack of visual structure across the long sequence of steps
These insights shaped the interaction patterns used throughout the redesigned flow.
User Journey Map captured issues with the current experience
Design priorities
Based on the journey map, the redesign focused on three priorities:
-
Reduce data entry errors
-
Improve mobile input controls
-
Provide clearer structure across the onboarding steps
These priorities shaped the interaction patterns used throughout the redesigned flow.
Interaction design for mobile
A major focus of the redesign was improving how customers entered information on mobile devices.
Field formatting
Field formatting helped reduce errors and speed up completion.
Placeholder text guided users on what information to enter, while automatic formatting reduced the need to switch keyboards or add separators manually.
For example:
-
Dates automatically inserted slashes
-
Account numbers grouped digits appropriately
These small improvements significantly reduced friction during data entry.
Segmented controls
Where possible, segmented controls replaced radio buttons and dropdown menus.
Segmented controls provide:
-
Clearer labels
-
Larger tap targets
-
Faster selection
They also allow users to quickly compare options without opening additional menus.
This pattern worked well for selecting funding amounts and account options.
Selecting a funding amount
Prototype as an alignment tool
To communicate the proposed interaction patterns, I built a high-fidelity prototype in Axure.
The prototype illustrated the entire account opening journey from start to completion.
This served several purposes:
-
Demonstrating the mobile interaction model
-
Validating the flow with usability researchers
-
Providing a concrete reference for our vendor
Rather than describing individual design changes, the prototype allowed stakeholders to experience the proposed flow directly.
Outcome
The prototype influenced improvements to the vendor’s upgraded account opening platform.
Our collaboration also strengthened the relationship with the vendor, allowing us to request additional features and refinements.
The redesign introduced clearer organization across the account opening steps, mobile-friendly input controls, and interaction patterns that reduced friction across the onboarding flow.
Together these changes modernized the experience and established a stronger foundation for future improvements.
Video of live site
