This is a new tool for customers shipping and receiving packages internationally with UPS that allows them to securely submit sensitive information for Customs Clearance without the need for a UPS representative reach out to them by phone or email.
This project was completed in the span of a year with continuous updates and more countries launching in 2024. It was initially launched in November 2023 in France, US, and Canada. The goal was to create a secure portal for customer to submit their sensitive information for customs clearance.
Currently, UPS brokerage attempts to contact 9k customers daily due to holds, via phone or email requesting missing information, often being sensitive personal documents. This costs UPS to staff raters spending hours contacting customers and dealing with fees from Customs for late processing.
Working with the marketing team, 10 users were interviewed about their experience shipping internationally with UPS and what could be done in a new tool that would make their workflow more efficient. The results were compiled into an affinity diagram.
I then created user personas from the data we had gathered from the conducted interviews. I thought of two user personas that encompass the type of customers who would use the information exchange tool. Sara represents the B2B user who would use the tool in business settings and Carlos represents the everyday consumer clearing his personal packages through customs.
By designing a secure portal that offers a user-friendly and efficient experience, we can empower our customer, to easily provide missing information securely by using a one time password to log in and submit information. This will enable the customer to receive their package faster for a more efficient experience.
Working with the go-to-market team, we came up with a feature prioritization matrix. It was critical that this product was a secure platform where customers can upload documents and additional information while also automatically populating it back into UPS clearance systems.
I designed the user flow to be straightforward for the customer. The customer receives a notification to provide missing information. They access the tool by a provided link and generate a One-Time Password. They enter the password and then must agree to a privacy policy to allow UPS to share information with Customs Clearance. Depending if the customer needs to submit a document or a textual answer like a Tax ID, the customer will be presented with an appropriate screen to do so. The customer will then a chance to upload additional information if they want it on file for their shipment. Once the customer reviews what they have entered, they can submit.
In this first iteration, I thought a linear process where the customer would tackle one missing item at time would be optimal, similar to how TurboTax works. The customer is presented with a summary of what is missing and add the information as they go. From our stakeholders, there was a request to add in the ability to upload additional documents in case the customer wanted to add information we haven't asked of them yet.
Through further iteration I added the ability to allow customer to skip information so they can submit other information requested, without roadblocking them from submitting anything. I also added the ability to confirm contact with customer, so the most up to date contact information can be obtained.
In the final prototype for the project, I made the design more high fidelity by implementing UPS brand guidelines and features such as smart grouping and customization.
Initial reception has been great so far. We have recorded that 50% of customers respond with the first few hours of receiving the request. We also received feedback from customers that they want the abiility to reassign the request to multiple contacts in their business. This allows a request to be completed faster since there is more visibility on it.
