Overview

This design challenge was based on a realistic employee benefits scenario.

An employee at a mid-sized company receives an email during open enrollment inviting them to enroll in voluntary life insurance. They have seven days left before enrollment closes, have never purchased insurance independently, and need to complete eligibility questions, choose coverage, and submit their application.

The experience also needed to account for users who may leave midway and continue later on another device.

The Challenge

Insurance enrollment is often associated with:

• Complex terminology

• Long forms

• Decision fatigue

• High abandonment rates

• Low confidence among first-time users

The goal wasn't simply to design six screens.

The challenge was to make an unfamiliar financial decision feel approachable, while reducing friction and encouraging completion.

Goals

The experience should enable users to:

• Understand what they're enrolling in.

• Complete enrollment quickly on mobile.

• Add spouse coverage if needed.

• Resume the process if interrupted.

• Feel confident before submitting.

  
  

Design Principles

I established five principles before designing.

1. Reduce Anxiety

Assume the user has little to no insurance knowledge.

Replace jargon with plain language and provide context before asking for information.

2. Progressive Disclosure

Instead of presenting long forms, reveal information one step at a time.

This reduces cognitive load and keeps users focused on a single decision.

3. Mobile First

Every interaction was designed around thumb-friendly navigation, large touch targets, and minimal scrolling.

4. Confidence Over Speed

Users should feel certain about their choices before submitting.

This influenced the review screen and simplified coverage selection.

5. Design for Interruption

Because the brief stated users may abandon the journey, the flow prioritizes progress saving and simple re-entry.

User Flow

The enrollment journey was intentionally kept linear. To address interruptions, I introduced a secondary flow where users returning after leaving the application are taken directly to the last completed step rather than restarting the process. This reduces frustration and improves completion rates.

Key UX Decisions

1. Landing Screen

Instead of immediately asking users to begin filling forms, the first screen explains:

• what life insurance is

• estimated completion time

• enrollment deadline

• ability to save progress

This sets expectations before requesting action.

2. One Eligibility Question Per Screen

Rather than displaying multiple questions simultaneously, I limited the experience to one primary question.

Benefits:

• lower cognitive load

• easier interaction on mobile

• better completion rates

• clearer progress

3. Optional Spouse Coverage

Instead of asking every user for spouse information, I introduced a Yes/No decision.

Only users selecting "Yes" see additional fields.

This keeps the primary flow shorter while supporting users with dependents.

4. Simplified Coverage Selection

Insurance products often use technical terminology.

Instead, I grouped coverage into clear tiers using plain language and monthly premiums.

Example:

Basic Protection

Standard Protection (Recommended)

Enhanced Protection

This helps users compare options without needing insurance expertise.

5. Review Before Submission

Before confirming enrollment, users see a complete summary of:

• eligibility

• spouse selection

• coverage amount

• monthly premium

Each section includes an Edit option, reducing anxiety around making mistakes.

6. Confirmation

The final screen doesn't simply display success.

It explains what happens next:

• confirmation email

• application review

• expected next steps

Providing closure helps users feel confident that their enrollment was completed successfully.

Trade-off

The biggest design trade-off was choosing multiple small steps instead of a single long form.

While this introduces more taps, it significantly reduces cognitive load and makes the experience feel shorter.

Given that purchasing insurance is a high-consideration decision, I prioritized confidence and completion over minimizing clicks.

Re-entry Experience

The brief specifically mentioned that users may return later on another device.

To support this, I designed a secondary flow where:

• progress is automatically saved

• users receive a resume link

• they continue from their last completed step

This removes the frustration of restarting lengthy forms.

Outcome

The final solution delivers:

• A guided six-step enrollment experience

• Reduced cognitive load through progressive disclosure

• Optional branching for spouse coverage

• Simplified coverage comparison

• Clear review and confirmation

• Seamless re-entry for interrupted sessions

The experience balances business requirements with user confidence, creating a flow that feels approachable despite the complexity of insurance enrollment.

What I'd Improve Next

With more time, I would validate the design through usability testing.

Specifically, I would measure:

• where users hesitate during enrollment

• whether the coverage options are easily understood

• if the review screen increases confidence before submission

• whether the resume flow effectively reduces abandonment

Those insights would guide future iterations and help optimize both completion rates and user satisfaction.