Immigration New Zealand

Moving countries is not a decision made easily, and for any potential immigrant to New Zealand, clear and relevant information is essential to help empower their decision. The accessibility of that information is also vital to helping New Zealand attract immigrants who bring the skills and experience we need to prosper. So an optimal UX was at the heart of DNA’s Purple Pin winning design for the Immigration New Zealand website.

The original brief to DNA was to merge and consolidate four different sites that covered different stages of an immigrant’s journey. However, after user research showed the need for a more comprehensive rebuild. DNA proposed a much bolder approach that would improve the entire immigration challenge, and Immigration New Zealand accepted the challenge.

The Immigration New Zealand website, often the first step in the immigration journey, receives over 12 million unique visitors a year. Over 32,000 unique visitors view the site daily. To meet inbound migration volume, and to support national and regional talent attraction initiatives, Immigration New Zealand needed to simplify visa selection to streamline application, drive self-service to improve customer experience, improve completion rates and reduce call centre and over counter use and costs.

DNA proposed a much bolder approach that would improve the entire immigration challenge, and Immigration New Zealand accepted the challenge.

DNA began the project with extensive user research, finding out what visitors to the Immigration New Zealand site needed and wanted. They focused on user motivations, and were able to set about completely rethinking how people discover information and move through levels of detail.

Design research clarified the opportunity for radically simplified interaction. A thorough design process, including workshops, user research, prototyping and testing led us to a unique content model, and to a natural language search solution for the site.

The objective was to get users sharing their situation and motivations so they could be served with relevant solutions. To achieve this, DNA developed empathy and synthesis tools, including current and future state maps, service level personas and journey maps. These helped establish why a prospective immigrant had chosen New Zealand and what they would require during the immigration process.

DNA developed empathy and synthesis tools, including current and future state maps, service level personas and journey maps.

Once they had started the journey, another objective was to identify, validate and resolve the pain of sorting through visa options and filling out applications, by shifting the complexity away from the user and onto the supporting system.

The design solution was an experience that would allow migrants to more easily explore their options, compare visas and find a visa to apply for that best fitted their situation and motivation. And by simplifying the visa application process, the new site saved many users both money and stress. The positive impact has been wide ranging too, with a significant reduction in cost to serve and increased use of the digital channel by users.

DNA’s comprehensive, deeply thought-through solution for Immigration New Zealand shows how goal directed design and user research at the inception of a project can unlock innovation and compellingly frame up the case for transformation. By challenging Immigration New Zealand’s existing processes and putting forward a solid case for streamlining and rationalising information, DNA were able to help their client reduce the complexity for the user journey with a radically improved user-centred experience.

Easterbrook Words & Ideas
-Mark Easterbrook
www.easterbrook.co.nz