OVERVIEW
My Role
User research and analysis
Designs & iterations
Usability testing
Team
Product Manager
Lead Developer
Me (Product Designer)
Timeline
Project duration:
July to September 2024
During my time RBC, I had an opportunity to work on various design projects. Feel free to view another design project here.
BACKGROUND
Improving the W-8BEN-E tax form to be easier to understand, quicker to complete, and simpler to use for users.
A W-8BEN-E is an American tax form that is used by foreign entities, such as companies or partnerships based outside of the U.S. The purpose of this tax form is to reduce or eliminate withholding tax on their income from the U.S.
This means that Canadian companies that have American clients or income from the U.S may need to fill out this form. It helps the IRS know to apply the correct tax withholding rates.
SOLUTION
I designed a new digital tax form to create an improved experience for users by breaking down barriers that make taxes seem difficult and confusing.
Improved the structure of the form by ordering questions in a more logical order and implementing progressive disclosure.
Simplified confusing tax terms and added contextual tooltips to provide further clarification for complex jargon.
Updated the user interface by substituting the original PDF form with a new digital form with enhanced usability and visual hierarchy.
PROJECT IMPACT
Who and what does the project impact?
CONSTRAINTS
Before starting the design process, there were four main constraints to consider. We worked with the legal tax team to ensure that we had a good understanding of legal requirements before we created designs.
PROBLEM DISCOVERY
Based on preliminary feedback from users, the tax form has key design issues that make users feel confused and overwhelmed - and that was how this project was born.
DESIGN CHALLENGE
How might we design a tax form that is easy to understand, quick to complete, and simple to use?
USER RESEARCH
To tackle the design challenge, we conducted 5 user interviews to dive deeper into significant frustrations. This revealed major pain points with the tax form’s structure, legal jargon, and user interface aesthetics.
Each round of design iteration was done collaboratively by receiving feedback from the PM and consultations from the legal tax team to decide on the best design direction that provides the most value for users and solves the most pain points.
DESIGN ITERATIONS
Before
After
USABILITY TESTING & USER FEEDBACK
Our goal for usability testing was to gather feedback to understand if users found value in the form’s structure, contextual help, and user interface.
DESIGN ITERATIONS
Using feedback from usability testing, we continued to iterate on the form’s structure, contextual help, and user interface.
PROTOTYPE
RESPONSIVE DESIGNS - MOBILE LAYOUT
Since this is a client-facing form, mobile designs were also created to make the form more accessible for on-the-go mobile users.
After our final iterations, the following prototype wraps up the end of the design phase.
DESIGN IMPACT
Although the tax form is currently being developed, but we were able to get great feedback from users that indicates the potential value that the new design can bring to users.
BUSINESS VALUE
With a newly designed tax form, it is anticipated to bring operational efficiencies, lower compliance risks, and improved digital integration.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
An effective design resulted from cross-functional collaboration.
Balancing details with simplification is key to an improved user experience.
Constraints ensure that we design a viable & feasible product.