How we increased conversions for an online annuities broker by 450%.
Humans and Money helped an award-winning online annuities broker reduce user drop-off and guide more customers to the right annuity products through strategic behavioural insights.
Pension Potential
The Challenge
Annuities are one of the most complex areas in personal finance. Most consumers are unfamiliar with how they work, and buying one requires sharing sensitive personal and medical information. Comparing options has historically been far from intuitive.
Pension Potential had already built a robust digital journey – but they knew more could be done to help users progress confidently through it.
They approached Humans and Money to improve the user experience, with a clear goal: to help more users move from interest to quotation – and ultimately to the right annuity product.
Step 1: Strategy
Our first step was to identify which behaviours – and which users – to focus on for the biggest impact. This is what we call the Strategy stage of our five-step SHAPE Method®.
We began with a collaborative workshop involving key members of the Pension Potential team. Together, we explored:
- What the team already knew or suspected about user behaviour
- The main journeys users could take through the platform
- Existing data on drop-off points, traffic sources, and user characteristics
We then ran a deep analysis of the data to identify the priority areas that needed attention.
What we uncovered
By analysing all of this, we uncovered a surprising insight:
The biggest influence on whether users completed the journey wasn't something happening on the Pension Potential site – it was what users saw and felt before they arrived.
In other words, the messaging and information that brought people to the site in the first place was shaping whether they were ready to engage. In behavioural terms, this was about helping users move from pre-contemplation to contemplation – the crucial first shift in any financial behaviour.
What we delivered
Strategy Workshop
To align on goals, explore existing assumptions, and identify key behavioural pain points across the journey.
Data Analysis
A deep analysis of user and journey data to reveal priority areas to focus for maximum commercial impact.
Step 2: Highlight drivers
Be examining the individual stages of users' annuity decisions, we analysed the existing journey and data through a behavioural lens to identify the hidden barriers holding users back from making progress.
What we delivered
Audit Summary
A clear Audit Summary highlighting what was helping or hindering user progress
Step 3: Apply insights
Finally, we prioritised a series of improvements to optimise the structure of the journey and its content - taking into account our earlier work.
This involved a number of improvement recommendations, such as:
Moving where existing educational content was presented to users within the journey (as its current placement was actually hampering user progress)
Framing improvements in how annuity quotes should be presented to reinforce the 'reward' they felt
The need to expand content for a specific segment of users in the 'pre-contemplation' stage
Specific recommendations to reduce ambiguity, increase perceived rewards and optimise how choices are presented at certain decision or action points
What we delivered
Experience Roadmap
A prioritised Experience Roadmap to optimise the journey and communications
Improvement Recommendations
Specific recommendations to enhance user progress through the journey
The Result
By addressing both the visible and hidden drivers of behaviour, we helped Pension Potential move from 15% of visitors requesting an annuity quotation to 85%.
"Humans and Money brought a level of behavioural insight we simply couldn't have uncovered on our own. They helped us see the journey from our users' point of view – not just logically, but emotionally and psychologically. The recommendations were practical, prioritised, and backed by science. We've already seen improved engagement and clearer user intent."
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