Redefining Regulation Online: Alberta Insurance Council’s High-Speed Website Revamp

Project Details

The Alberta Insurance Council (AIC) is the industry-funded regulator that licenses and oversees insurance agents, brokers, and independent adjusters in Alberta. The project included an initial discovery phase and a full website rebuild for AIC, aimed at enhancing user experience, speed, and functionality.

Problem Statement

AIC needed a modern website with a fresh aesthetic that efficiently presented information about insurance licenses and how AIC protects Alberta consumers. The new website needed to uphold the industry’s reputation and provide both license holders and consumers with excellent service. Key project goals included:

1. Improving site speed – The previous website was notably slow, frustrating users who couldn’t access the information they needed.
2. Creating a user-friendly website – The outdated website’s inefficiencies and disorganized content made it difficult for users to find information, impacting overall user experience. AIC wanted to address the challenges faced by users and ensure they could access essential information.
3. Enhanced navigation – The previous site lacked clear navigation for different user groups. A robust navigation system was needed to help users quickly find the right pages.
4. Improving administrative usability – AIC needed flexible components that allowed their team to customize pages and better organize content across different insurance types.
5. Communicate the AIC brand and regulatory importance – Many applicants didn’t understand the risk of not understanding the regulations and how to be compliant with license requirements. Additionally, the previous AIC brand was undervalued, leading to challenges with maintaining the industry’s reputation.

Additionally, the website rebuild needed to account for new assets and align with AIC’s evolving brand identity.

What We Did

Research

We began by identifying the current pain points of the site and determining where users encountered difficulties. We also conducted interviews with AIC staff to understand their perspectives. To help AIC improve trust in the industry’s reputation and provide quality service, the site needed to be optimized for speed, organization, and clarity to reduce errors in applications and improve understanding of license requirements. 

Design & Build

The design and build process was smooth, and we successfully delivered on the goals identified during research and planning. Key highlights include:

• Updated WordPress aesthetic – We built the site on a clean, modern CMS using Tailwind CSS, which helped reduce the size of site resources and improve site speed.
• Improved information architecture – We formatted content for better readability, simplified language, and integrated navigation (desktop, mobile, and sidebar) to improve user experience.
• Enhanced navigation with flexible menu system – The site now features a mega menu with call-to-action cards and a comprehensive side menu to cover the full content scope.
• Advanced search functionality – Users can search both web and resource content, which is broken down into separate sections for ease of use.
• Resource feature section & archive – We introduced functionality that made finding specific documents and notices easier. A dedicated homepage section links to the resource directory, and administrators have greater flexibility to organize and archive resources as needed.
• Highly customizable page components – We provided administrators with flexible components to customize pages and better organize content based on the requirements for different insurance types.
• Improved site speed – Various enhancements were made throughout the build process to improve the overall site speed. The new website has seen significant improvement, with a site load time averaging under 1.4 seconds.
• Interim brand guidelines – The new site includes an updated aesthetic with new colors and typography. We also developed interim brand guidelines to help AIC align future branding with the web brand.
• Streamlined photography – Leveraging AI, we established a photography style that complemented the brand’s aesthetic.

Outcomes

The client was extremely satisfied with our approach, which began with a thorough discovery phase and led to a predictable, well-executed outcome. The design and development stages were smooth, thanks to careful planning and proactive communication. AIC had opportunities to review and provide feedback throughout the build process, allowing us to fine-tune the site to meet their specific needs. Ultimately, this project delivered a modern, efficient website that not only met all of the client’s goals but also aligned seamlessly with their forward-looking vision, enhancing both functionality and user experience to support future growth for AIC.