When Tesco Bank set out to launch Clubcard Pay+, their goal was clear: create a best-in-class digital onboarding experience that felt effortless, intuitive, and unmistakably “Tesco.”
The existing onboarding process was long, fragmented, and inconsistent across Tesco Bank’s app and site, and other customer touchpoints. Customers often dropped off mid-application, frustrated by repetitive questions and unclear progress.
The goal was ambitious: design a best-in-class digital onboarding journey that was fast, friendly, and consistent across web and mobile, while meeting strict banking and compliance requirements.
Design a best-in-class digital onboarding journey that was fast, friendly, and consistent across web and mobile
As the lead designer, I was responsible for shaping this experience digital onboarding experience from the ground up, spanning research, information architecture, interaction and visual design, and hands-on collaboration with engineers and stakeholders, and compliance teams to create a smooth, high-converting onboarding flow that worked seamlessly across Tesco’s ecosystem.
I began by diving deep into how people think when signing up for financial products. I co-led a multi-method research program involving over 300 customers, running card sorting exercises and surveys to understand how users grouped information and what they found confusing or unnecessary.
This insight showed that customers didn’t want fewer questions, they wanted better-structured ones that made sense in their context. That understanding became the foundation of our redesign.
Using the “One Question Per Page” (1QPP) model, I designed a step-by-step experience that allowed customers to focus on one decision at a time. This reduced cognitive load, improved clarity, and encouraged steady progress through the journey. To ensure a truly seamless experience, I also:
I validated prototypes with real users via the Tesco Bank Community Forum, gathering feedback that directly shaped final refinements.
Beyond Clubcard Pay+, Tesco needed an onboarding framework that could power future products. I developed a modular design system of reusable components and templates, ensuring consistency and scalability across the entire Tesco Bank ecosystem. This meant future teams could launch new financial products faster and with a consistent, trusted user experience.
When the new Clubcard Pay+ onboarding launched, the impact was immediate:
I transformed a complex, multi-channel onboarding process into a simple, scalable, and customer-friendly experience that helped tens of thousands of new users activate Clubcard Pay+ with confidence.
By turning a once-tedious process into a clear, confidence-building experience, I helped thousands of new customers join Clubcard Pay+ with ease, while laying the groundwork for a scalable, user-centred design system that continues to power future financial products at Tesco Bank.