Vehicle Authorization: Gaining Secure Access
Through research, prototyping, and collaboration with engineering, I redesigned the modem authorization flow to reduce friction, clarify modem activation, and create a faster, more intuitive experience.
Timeline
September 2022 - May 2024
Tools
Figma, Jira, Miro, UserZoom, Lokalize
Define
What is a modem anyways?
To unlock connected features, FordPass required users to complete more than 30 setup steps—a frustrating experience. So we asked ourselves:
How can we focus only on essential setup activities? Cut out the clutter.
How might we reduce the number of screens and ease cognitive load?
How might we manage user expectations and clearly answer "What's in it for me?"
Do user's even understand what a 'modem' is? Why would a vehicle have one?
When should setup happen?
I partnered with our research team to conduct a series of usability test
Information Architecture Study
Conducted by our research partners, we defined the expected architecture based on rules of belonging, experience modes, and muscle memory behavior.
Key Findings:
Users do not understand why we need to authorize vehicle after already adding the vehicle to FordPass during the Add Vehicle flow.
Phone as a Key is confusing and often unreliable to setup.
Usability Experience Study - Interview
Once we established rules of belonging, we needed to validate some assumptions we had regarding the experience. We performed a moderated usability test with a brand agnostic prototype to avoid any biases.
Key Findings:
Long setup processes are overwhelming and often lead to a drop off around the time of high value feature setup like enabling connectivity, setting up phone as a key.
User's do not understand what a 'Vehicle Modem' is, or why they need to activate it.
Developing a strong working relationship with feature triad partners allowed us to move fast and efficient. I worked hand-in-hand with Engineering and Product partners to design, build, and validate often with our internal Beta program. This allowed us to get real feedback from internal users with the expectation that assumptions need to be validated.
After many iterations, failed assumptions and pivots. We landed on a focused simplified design that guides the user through setup activities organized in a way of value added.
Primary Setup Activities
We considered essential setup tasks like registration, adding a vehicle, and activation as necessary steps that must be completed to use the app. These guided steps help users get into the main app experience.
Secondary Setup Activities
We prioritized secondary setup activities as high value tasks to be completed within the first 10 uses of the app. By making these tasks more passive, users can take breaks between setup steps and avoid feeling overwhelmed.
Tertiary Setup Activities
Tertiary setup activities were organized as "as needed." Features like towing setup in the FordPass app are only configured when the user wants to use them.
Vehicle Activation Success Rates Surge by 25% (2024)
Monthly FordPass Activities: 7.7 Million (YoY Surge of 60.2% in 2024)
Since 2016, FordPass has achieved its best-ever ratings on the iOS and Android app stores (2024)
Active VINs enabling Phone as a Key feature rose by 40%, surpassing the target by an extra 30% (2024)
Triad Partnerships Work
The main reason for the project's success was the strong collaboration with my engineering and product partners. By sharing a common understanding of goals, challenges, and obstacles, we maintained a smooth cycle of design, build, and iteration. This was the reason we were able to build as fast as we did while maintaining an outstanding level of quality.
The Value of Experience Patterns
Previous versions of the app suffered from inconsistent design due to having multiple designers working on different areas, which created a fragmented experience. By collaborating with our Design System team to standardize components and establish consistent patterns, we achieved a more unified and reliable user experience.