Conversations with Xpress — Unblu chat

Overview

Help, right where members already are.

As a UX designer at Xpress, I wanted to make it easier for members to talk to their credit union inside the app. That meant bringing together our own chat feature and the Unblu chat platform. This case covers the research, the design and the rollout with Synergy.

Introduction — Synergy sign-in screen with chat

The brief

What members and the business needed.

First I needed to understand how members wanted to communicate. They wanted chat that was quick, private, easy to use and worked on any device. The business wanted more engagement in the app, something competitors didn't offer, and members who'd stay.

01 · Research

Choosing the right chat platform.

I compared Unblu with Freshdesk, Genesys Cloud CX and TeamViewer on ease of use, setup, support quality, generative AI, live chat and notifications. Unblu was the only one that did all six, and its real-time collaboration tools set it apart.

02 · Design guidelines

One chat, branded for every credit union.

Xpress serves many credit unions, so the chat had to take on each one's brand without being rebuilt for each. I wrote UI guidelines based on four main colours: primary, secondary, neutral and grey. Each has an extended palette that's generated automatically, and the credit union picks a chat icon from a set.

Unblu UI integration — colour palette and icons

When an agent is available

The chat window shows the credit union's colour, logo and a short tagline, with options to chat, call, or connect with a PIN.

When no one is online

Members aren't left wondering what's happening. The window says the team is offline and invites them to leave a message. Each credit union names its chatbot, picks its picture, and sets the wording used in system messages.

Getting to the right person

Before connecting, members pick a topic like general support, mortgages, loans or credit cards, so the conversation reaches someone who can help.

03 · Rollout

Launching with Synergy Credit Union.

I worked closely with Synergy's team to bring their logo and colours into the chat, so it felt like part of their app rather than a bolt-on.

Implementation with Synergy Credit Union

Synergy Credit Union app with the chat button

Testing & impact

What 10 members told us.

Ten Synergy members tried common tasks using the chat. We watched how long things took and where people got stuck, then followed up with surveys and interviews.

90%started a chat successfully

80%found sending and receiving messages intuitive

75%noticed fast replies from the Synergy team

60%hit a technical issue, though only minor ones

Overall, chat made it much easier for members and staff to reach each other. The technical issues gave us a clear list to fix next.