USS are a large pension scheme for those employed by Universities in the UK. I joined the project some 9 months after my colleagues in UX/ UR had undertaken months of research and workshops. The Scheme suffered from issues of too much legal speak, not being user friendly and being fragmented over several sites. Working in a series of co-design sessions myself and UX designers worked up user journeys. At this time I was liaising back and forth with USS’s marketing department who were revamping their brand guidelines in preparation for a new site.
My role of this project was to assist UX with co-designing layouts, working closely with USS’s marketing team to advise on best practices regarding accessibility and use of colours and typography for responsive sites. I later developed site visuals based on wireframes produced by UX colleagues for both mobile and desktop. In addition I developed style guides to assist both inhouse Orange Bus developers and external partners working with USS.
Client: USS
Agency: Orange Bus
Role: Senior Creative Designer
Year: 2019
USS style guides were comprehensive in the use of photography for the brand. Whilst USS relied heavily on stock imagery they wanted to avoid clichéd visuals associated with pensions and planning. My aim was to use photography that was warm, and relatable for the users. Photography that would inspire the user to take control of their future and their retirement.
The visual design was very much a mobile first as we knew from user research and testing that users wanted to be able to use the site on mobile devices and tablets rather than having to sign in using work computers on campus.