Conversational Design for a Virtual Financial Assistant
As an interactive designer at BofA, I worked with UX copywriters, product owners, and analysts to create seamless mobile conversational experiences with Erica using voice and text commands.
I played a key role in the development of two critical features: Small Business Account Details and Search Inquiry. These enhanced Erica's ability to provide specific information for small business accounts, including credit status, cash balances, and payments. Erica's role extended to accurately responding to various user inquiries on topics such as merchant transactions, unauthorized charges, and deposit clarifications.
Project Features
Company: Bank of America
Project Duration: 6 Months
Role: Interaction and Visual Design
UX Design Methodology: Sample Dialogs, User Flows, Wireframes, and High-Fidelity Prototypes
Design Tools: Axure and Sketch
Date: April, 2017
Small Business Account Details
This feature focused on providing real-time account details, including ABA information, and answering common small business questions. Due to time and research constraints, I decided to create user archetypes to diversify the ways account holders could engage with the virtual financial assistant.
Small Business Owner with a Corporate Account
This user type represents an entrepreneurial small business owner. They rely on a critical corporate account for day-to-day operations and need immediate access to critical financial information, such as real-time account balances and transaction details.
Business Owner with a Small Business or Consumer Profile
These are individuals with small business or consumer financial profiles. They are looking for a variety of information such as account balances, transactions, loans, and credit advice.
Employee with a Corporate Card
This archetype represents corporate employees with linked corporate cards who are responsible for controlling business expenses such as travel and supplies. They require transaction visibility, expense categorization, and transaction history.
By developing a comprehensive understanding of each potential user's expectations, I translated these insights into tangible representations using wireframes to depict seamless glass interactions.
Search Inquiry
This function included responding to specific search queries with informative answers and promptly directing customers to expedited assistance in cases of unauthorized or fraudulent transactions. I began using flowcharts to capture the essence of conversations and interactions based on the following user utterances:
Is my canceled purchase still on my account?
Are these unauthorized charges?
Is there fraud on my credit card account?
Is this a duplicate charge?
Did my deposit clear?
Why is the check I sent not clear?
Project Outcome
While I wasn't able to experience the full release of the application, the latest user engagement numbers, as reported in a BofA Newsroom PR, are truly remarkable. Erica has surpassed a significant milestone with more than one billion customer interactions, averaging nearly 1.5 million per day. Since launching in 2018, the virtual assistant has transformed financial management for nearly 32 million Bank of America customers. It empowers them to efficiently manage their financial affairs. This achievement underscores the platform's immense success in providing accessible and convenient financial solutions to a vast user base and solidifies its position as a leading innovation in the banking industry.
