Trust & Will’s thoughtful and informative approach to document creation

Creating a will can be scary and uncomfortable. Who wants to answer questions about their own death for 15 minutes? But online estate planning platform Trust & Will does its part to help make it a less daunting experience.

Here’s a look at some parts of the platform’s UX that stood out to us.

Before the user gets too deep in the document creation process, Trust & Will gives them a heads-up to let them know that it’s okay to make mistakes. All of the user’s answers are saved, so they can review and edit them if necessary.

As the user goes through the flow of creating their will, Trust & Will includes simple explanations right above the text entry box. There’s also helpful copy beneath the button, offering users guidance as they complete the estate planning process.  

Trust & Will knows some users may not have the exact figures of their assets on-hand. That’s why there’s more supportive copy encouraging users to take their best guess at their assets’ combined value.

When the user gets to the “Arrangements” part of the flow, there’s copy underneath the question that gives them some ideas on how to complete this portion of the questionnaire. They also refer to this event as your “final party”—an unexpected moment of levity for an otherwise gloomy planning experience.

Trust & Will also incorporates educational modal windows into their document creation flow. The image below shows how the platform uses a modal to explain each option, so users can make more informed decisions about their care.

Once the user finishes their will, a checklist with all of the user’s completed sections is displayed before moving on to another part of the estate planning process.

At the bottom left-hand corner of every page, there’s a help button that initiates a virtual chat if the user has more specific questions.

What makes this really good UX:

• Trust & Will’s forms aren’t especially long—each piece of information is collected via one question per page—which encourages completion. For questions that may be difficult for users to answer on the spot (like asset valuation or special requests), there are helpful tips that prompt the user to provide an answer.
• The platform lets the user know upfront that they can switch any of their answers if needed, which gives them the confidence to work through the flow completely and revisit the platform to make corrections later.
• Trust & Will uses the goal gradient effect to keep users motivated and moving along. The progress bar at the top of each page, along with the satisfying checklist at the end of a section, gives the user a sense of accomplishment and encourages them to continue on to the next part of the process.

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