Overview
Sparkasse users could search, buy and sell properties, but there were no pages for searching real estate agents. To close this gap, we created new features and pages including an agent search, agent profile page, company profile page and teasers. The goal was to increase the visibility of Sparkasse's real estate services and create a scalable solution that the Sparkasse banks across Germany can use.
Challenge
User Needs
- Find real estate agents
- Evaluate an agent’s expertise, experience, and local market knowledge
- Contact an agent easily
Business Goals
- Increase visibility of the agent network
- Improve customer retention
- Create cross-selling opportunities
- Increase conversion rate
My Role & Responsibilities
Competitive Benchmarking & Strategy
Benchmarked competitor platforms and mapped the current journey. Worked with the strategy team to define and align on the right design direction before creating the concepts.
End-to-End concept development
Iterated ideas and created low to high-fidelity prototypes for desktop and mobile.
Usability Testing
Defined hypotheses and scenarios with the research team, built interactive prototypes for the moderated usability testing
Stakeholder Alignment & Handoff
Presented solutions to stakeholders. Aligned on business goals with stakeholders, strategy, content and SEO teams.
Approach
Throughout the project, I worked in close collaboration with stakeholders, strategy team, SEO team, and developers in weekly syncs to ensure both feasibility and strategic alignment.
Benchmarking and Analysis
Conducted competitive benchmarking and analyzed the current-state user journey. Used SEO data and Google Analytics to understand how users find and interact with agent-related content.
Expert Workshops
Workshops with real estate agent companies to understand their workflow and business needs.
SEO & Content Analysis
Meetings with key stakeholders and the strategy team to align on business goals, priorities, and success metrics.
Stakeholder & Team Alignment
Meetings with key stakeholders and the strategy team to align on business goals, priorities, and success metrics.
Together with stakeholders and the product team, we synthesized the discovery findings, aligned on the scope of the solution, and prioritized the content and information users need to evaluate and contact real estate agents.
Ideation & Prototyping
Based on the defined requirements, I explored multiple design ideas. I sketched and created different prototypes and reviewed them with the product team.
Usability Test
To validate the concepts, we conducted moderated usability tests with 8 participants. I supported the research team in defining hypotheses, research goals, and test scenarios, and created interactive prototypes in Figma for testing.
The findings helped us prioritize the most relevant information for users and identify content gaps, leading to several improvements before final delivery.
Final Designs
Key Screens
Scroll to explore each screen
Key Takeaways
This project highlighted the importance of early alignment, iterative design, and validation throughout the design process.