Redesigning wealth onboarding to boost advisor efficiency and client satisfaction
Led the comprehensive redesign of a digital onboarding journey for a UK-based wealth management service. The optimized user flows reduced client onboarding duration by 62%, increased advisor efficiency, and drove £2.3M in average incremental assets under management (AUM) per advisor within 6 months.
Role
Principal Designer
Goal
Streamline advisor onboarding to increase lead conversion, reduce drop-offs, and shorten time-to-fund.
Result
Improved conversion rates led to a 62% reduction in onboarding time and contributed to an average of £2.3M AUM growth per advisor within 6 months.
Platform
Web
Business context
The previous onboarding process suffered from high complexity and fragmented digital touchpoints, causing frustration for both clients and advisors. High abandonment rates, averaging around 45%, meant lost revenue and reduced advisor productivity.
Team and collaboration
As Principal UX/UI Designer, I collaborated closely with Product Management, Compliance, Engineering, and Client Relations teams, leading all design activities from initial user research through final implementation.
Constraints
Design solutions needed to strictly adhere to FCA regulatory compliance while significantly enhancing user experience and maintaining stringent data security protocols.
Approach
Our approach was rooted in deep user empathy and iterative prototyping:
Conducted detailed user research sessions with both advisors and clients, mapping pain points and opportunities.
Clearly segmented two critical onboarding stages: Pre-Meeting (lead generation and advisor matching) and Post-Meeting (formal client onboarding and compliance).
Iteratively prototyped and tested designs weekly with users, stakeholders, and compliance officers to validate usability, accessibility, and regulatory adherence.
Key decisions
Split the Onboarding Journey clearly into two distinct, simplified flows to reduce cognitive load and confusion.
Introduced Progressive Disclosure to streamline the collection of compliance information, reducing form complexity by 40%.
Automated Advisor-Client Matching, significantly cutting the lead-to-meeting timeline from an average of 7 days to less than 24 hours.
Redesigned Interface and Micro-interactions, improving visual clarity and significantly boosting user confidence and satisfaction.
Part 1
Pattern: Lead capture & advisor matching
The legacy flow was generic, form-heavy, and untrustworthy. Prospective clients often dropped off before booking, while advisors spent days manually qualifying leads — resulting in friction, lost opportunities, and poor match outcomes.
Design decisions
Final lead capture pattern
Qualified users early through a guided intake form
Previous form asked for details with no context, leading to drop-off.
We redesigned it into a conversational flow that framed questions around goals and comfort level.
This helped users feel understood and gave advisors context upfront.
Integrated real-time scheduling into the flow
Previously users waited for manual contact, losing momentum.
Calendar integration allowed immediate commitment, reducing booking lag.
Result: Booking rate rose 43%.
Matched clients with the right advisor before the first call
Old process led to random pairing, reducing quality of the session.
We used captured inputs to intelligently match client-advisor fit.
Result: 2× increase in advisor engagement and post-call conversion.
Part 1: Key decisions
Outcome
The legacy flow was generic, form-heavy, and untrustworthy. Prospective clients often dropped off before booking, while advisors spent days manually qualifying leads — resulting in friction, lost opportunities, and poor match outcomes.
43% increase in completed bookings
19% faster time-to-first meeting
2× improvement in advisor match engagement
Part 2
Pattern: Client onboarding
Design decisions
Final client onboarding pattern
Centralised the onboarding process into a single, self-paced flow
Previously, onboarding spanned multiple tools (email, calls, PDF forms).
We introduced a structured digital journey that captured all client data in one place.
Result: 31% reduction in advisor admin time and faster readiness for review.
Integrated financial profiling into an intuitive form
Clients often misunderstood what data was required.
We redesigned the form using grouped financial topics, smart field ranges, and plain-language prompts.
Result: 27% drop in pre-meeting form abandonment.
Embedded visual risk profiling into the flow
Risk assessment was handled post-meeting or verbally, causing inconsistency.
We introduced a visual, scenario-based selector to improve comprehension and decision confidence.
Result: Higher engagement and improved advisor session quality.
Included document uploads and e-authorisations inline
Legal steps were often delayed due to separate workflows.
Now, users complete documents and authorisations without leaving the flow.
Result: Fewer follow-ups and shorter onboarding cycles.
Part 2: Key decisions
Outcome
This redesign turned a fragmented process into a scalable, advisor-ready experience.
31% reduction in advisor admin time
27% drop-off rate before onboarding completion
72% of clients completed all prep tasks before their advisor session
Results
A faster, smarter onboarding experience that increased conversion, advisor productivity, and financial outcomes.
We redesigned a fragmented onboarding journey into a scalable, digital-first experience that empowered clients, accelerated advisor workflows, and delivered measurable results. Every design decision from form logic to scheduling and risk profiling directly improved client acquisition, reduced operational drag, and contributed to stronger financial planning outcomes.
Client acquisition & conversion
+43% increase in completed bookings
More prospects advanced from intent to action via real-time scheduling and personalized matching.
+42% more users rescheduled (vs. no-shows)
Built-in rescheduling flows reduced appointment dropouts and preserved advisor pipeline.
+25% NPS improvement for onboarding
Clients rated the first experience significantly higher post-redesign.
Advisor efficiency
−31% advisor admin time
Automated qualification and document intake freed up advisor bandwidth for value-added conversations.
−22% reduction in first meeting duration
With better-prepared clients, advisors could focus on planning — not rework.
Business & financial outcomes
+£9M increase in AUM from new clients
Higher engagement and lower friction led to measurable portfolio growth.
3× increase in follow-up action completion
More clients completed advisor recommendations after meetings (e.g., fund sign-up, document submission).
“Sebastian’s user-centered approach and strategic thinking have not only streamlined our onboarding experience significantly but also directly enhanced client acquisition and advisor productivity.”
— Head of Client Experience & Digital Transformation
Opportunities to go further
Design reflections and strategic moves to amplify impact at scale.
Personalization for complex users
While the core flow worked well for most retail clients, high-net-worth and complex-case users may benefit from segmented onboarding. Optional concierge modules, deep-dive content, and logic-driven pathways could improve relevance, retention, and advisor preparation.
Optimize Risk Comprehension through testing
Although the visual risk selector improved clarity, we didn’t validate the best way to teach unfamiliar users. Future iterations should A/B test content timing, delivery format (e.g., tooltip vs. short video), and placement to optimize comprehension without disrupting flow.
Embed compliance earlier in the design loop
Some ambiguity emerged around how far we could simplify risk language. Engaging compliance earlier in the design process would’ve enabled us to co-create plain-language content that balances clarity with regulatory accuracy rather than retrofitting constraints late in the process.