Responsible Life

D2C UX Research

UX Research

Role:

UX Researcher

Project overview:

Responsible Life is a leading equity release provider targeting customers aged 55 and over. I conducted strategic UX Research - map and analyse the direct-to-consumer (D2C) experience across multiple acquisition channels, with the goal of improving the end-to-end journey from awareness through to application.

Through detailed persona and journey mapping, I uncovered pain points and unmet needs across the appointment and application process, ultimately recommending a digital Customer Hub as a strategic solution to improve engagement, trust, and conversion.

Challenges
Process
Results
Tools used

The key challenge was understanding the complex decision-making process of customers aged 55+ considering equity release. The goal was to improve the overall journey and identify opportunities for a more user-centric experience.

  • Customer journey mapping across D2C lead sources: Native advertising, paid search, paid social, organic search, email outreach.
  • Developing four key personas representing the behavioral patterns of 55+ users.
  • Analysing pre-appointment and post-appointment stages, from initial awareness to decision and application.
  • Identifying emotional and functional pain points at each stage.
  • Synthesising findings into opportunity areas and a future-state experience vision.

The research revealed a need for a centralised customer hub. I synthesised findings into actionable recommendations, outlining its long-term value, key benefits, and implementation steps. The project also included competitor analysis to benchmark expectations and guided the marketing and product teams in aligning with real user needs.

User Personas

Customer Hub research outcome

See research board

©2025 - Cosmina Dumitrascu