Empathy Map - Hargreaves Lansdown

Design Task Overview

Product Name: Hargreaves Lansdown

Device Type: Desktop

Platform: Personal investments account

Target audience

• Self-directed investors
• Aged 30–55
• Financially literate
• Comfortable with digital banking
• Managing long-term financial products like pensions, ISAs, and investments
• Logs in 1-3 times per week
• Utilises trusted online financial advice
• Risk aware but cautious, lacking confidence in choosing funds themselves etc.

Research approach

• User Interviews with between 6 and 8 target audience usersto understand their experiences, preferences, and frustrations.
• Surveys to the general target audience population (expected over 200 responses) to bolster qualitative feedback with quantitative data on usage
• Analytic analysis of real user behaviour (how do users behave, journey funnels etc)
• Social listening on platforms such as reddit
• Observe 5 users as they use their desktop system to uncover usability issues, needs and frustrations.

Key Insights

Users Want Simplicity, Not Overload

• While they value access to financial tools, users feel overwhelmed by excessive data, jargon, and choices.
• They seek clear, actionable guidance — not a firehose of information.

Confidence Is a Barrier

• Many users lack confidence in their investment decisions, especially when choosing funds or interpreting risk levels.
• This leads to hesitation, inaction, or over-reliance on default options.

Communication Needs to Be Friendlier

• Users are frustrated by unclear fees, financial terminology, or overly formal tone.
• They respond better to plain English explanations, examples, and contextual help.

Emotions Play a Big Role

• Financial anxiety (e.g. fear of losing money or missing a tax deadline) is common.
• Users are looking for emotional reassurance as much as financial outcomes.

Conclusion

The empathy mapping exercise for Hargreaves Lansdown reveals that these target investors are motivated by long-term financial growth but often feel overwhelmed, underconfident, and unsupported. While they value the platform’s capabilities, they struggle with complex language, unclear fees, and a lack of proactive guidance. By simplifying communication, surfacing help more effectively, and offering emotionally supportive UX, Hargreaves Lansdown has the opportunity to transform uncertainty into trust — and inaction into confident investment behaviour.