Intuit: QuickBooks
post-migration Hub
Upgrading QuickBooks migration hub for Payments users, to boost engagement by 10%
Saas
Product Strategist
Product designer
UX Researcher
Revamping existing post-migration hub with Accounting information to accommodate QuickBooks Payments.
About Intuit’s
QuickBooks
Intuit develops financial, accounting, and tax softwares, including QuickBooks, TurboTax, Mint, and MailChimp with 100 million+ customers worldwide.
A glimpse of QuickBooks Online’s dashboard.
QuickBooks is a SaaS accounting software designed for small and medium-sized businesses to manage expenses, track income, and facilitate financial tasks.
What is QuickBooks Online post-migration hub?
The post-migration hub is the first screen customers see after moving from QuickBooks Desktop to QuickBooks Online.
It confirms if the migration worked, shows what data was moved, and provides help for any post-migration issues.
Current state of post-migration hub with only Accounting data migration information.
Current state
/ Shown to all customers migrating from QuickBooks Desktop.
/ Provides only Accounting data; no visibility into Payroll or Payments.
/ Engagement at 28% overall, higher among Payroll (36%) and Payments (35%) customers.
46% re-access it from the setup checklist, proving its importance.
/ Currently designed to be more celebratory than informative.
Business Problem
QuickBooks Desktop customers with Payments attach don't get confirmation or support on whether their payments account migrated successfully to quickbooks online. This gap creates uncertainty and disrupts their ability to invoice seamlessly.
Customer reason
current hub only shows accounting data, leaving payroll and payments customers confused about whether their payments data has transferred. they want clarity on what data migrated and how it looks on quickbooks online.
Business reason
engagement with the hub is particularly high among payroll (23%) and payments (6%) customers. since complex customers are a key focus in fy24, providing clear support is critical to build customer confidence and improve retention in Quickbooks online.
Q1 state: Payments over Payroll?
Despite Payroll having a larger user base, we aligned to focus on Payments for MVP (Q1):
/ Due to time constraints.
/ Unlike Payroll, QuickBooks Online lacks a dedicated section for Payments. Thus, it was crucial to quickly develop a Payments experience.
/ Payroll integration is planned for Q2.
Deep-Dive
Into The Problem
I partnered with my Product Manager to conduct qualitative research with a set of 12 customer interviews to understand customer sentiments.
Value of post-migration hub
customers view the hub as essential for checking data accuracy after migration. it acts as a central resource for reconciling info between quickbooks desktop and quickbooks online, which is why missing payments visibility creates added confusion.
Convenience and ease of use
The hub is valued for its user-friendliness and efficiency, especially when comparing to manual report generation for post-migration checks.
Expectations
customers expect the hub to not only confirm accounting data but also to give clarity on attached services like payroll and payments. they see it as a tool that should ensure a smooth and reliable move to quickbooks online.
️TL;DR gist of my research
The post-migration hub is a point of major reliance for customers to confirm and reconcile data after moving from quickbooks desktop to online.
but since it does not yet give a complete picture for payments, some customers still fall back on alternative methods for reassurance. this gap underlines the need for payments visibility in the hub.
Solution Hypothesis
Approach 1: A new item in setup-checklist
The setup checklist is a post-migration experience that helps customers get familiar with QuickBooks Online through a series of tasks.
Adding a Payments item here, because it’s a trusted part of onboarding, would reinforce the post-migration hub by prompting customers to review and confirm their Payments migration.
Pros
/ Serves as a reminder to resolve Payments setup.
/ Keeps Payments visible during onboarding.
Cons
/ Extra step, not the primary Payments experience.
/ Risks losing focus if not tied back to the hub.
Solution Hypothesis
Approach 2: Use of Intuit Assist in QuickBooks Online for migration support
Intuit Assist is a generative AI-powered assistant embedded in QuickBooks that automates administrative tasks—like generating invoices, reminders, bills, and matching Payments transactions
Pros
/ Provides quick, automated help that makes migration smoother.
/ Handles common tasks intelligently, like reconciling Payments or comparing data.
Cons
/ Might not be able to handle complex or highly customized migration issues that fall outside typical patterns.
/ Requires continuous tuning and updates to handle edge cases effectively.
/ Intuit Assist is currently in its beta version and not quite robust to deal with complex issues.
Approach 3: ai Agent-powered with
natural language and fallback ui
Approach 3: Revamped post-migration hub to accommodate Payments
High level proposed solution
Enhance the post-migration hub in QuickBooks Online to include Payments migration status, clear visibility of what moved, and direct access to help.
This gives customers confidence their Payments data came over correctly and offers guidance to quickly resolve any issues.
Assumptions
Customers will rely on the hub for Payments migration updates and troubleshooting.
/ Built-in resources and support will reduce uncertainty and increase trust in Payments on QuickBooks Online.
/ Customers will actively use these resources to solve migration problems without needing extra help.
Target state
A redesigned hub becomes the single place customers go to confirm both Accounting and Payments migration.
It makes it easy to compare Desktop and Online data, provides real-time guidance for fixing issues, and ensures a smoother transition overall.
Explorations—
Revamped post-migration hub to accommodate Payments
Concern 1: First time user experience
we decided to go with the existing design for MVP, with illustration and header messaging since we had less time to test newer designs.
Additionally, we did not have enough data to back a reason for a newer design.
Pros
/ Has that positive impact of making it onto a new software.
/ Gives confidence to the user that the data has been brought over to QuickBooks Online.
Cons
/ could give customers a false impression that everything is complete, when in fact important steps are still waiting in the next screens.
Concern 2: users felt lost when key
details scrolled out of view in chat
Concern 2: Layout
We chose accordions with status borders—green for success, yellow for mismatches—to give users confidence and clarity.
The accordion design also lets users expand sections as needed, keeping the hub from feeling overwhelming.
Pros
/ Clear visual cues build confidence in migration success.
/ Accordion layout reduces clutter by hiding non-essential details until needed, helping users focus on one section at a time.
Cons
/ Users may overlook unopened sections.
/ Too many accordions could still feel fragmented.
Concern 2: users felt lost when key
details scrolled out of view in chat
Concern 3: Payments use cases
We identified Payments-specific scenarios in migration where customers need clear guidance.
For MVP, we chose lightweight solutions that balance reassurance with usability, while deferring non-critical tasks to later iterations.
Use case 1: Cloning success
Show success messaging only (MVP), with “Close Desktop Payments account” added later in the setup checklist (MVP+1).
Pros
/ Clear and confidence-building.
/ keeps messaging short and avoids overwhelming users.
Cons
/ Customers may assume no further steps are required.
/ lacks an immediate CTA.
Use case 2: Failure due to permission issue
Stepper format with DIY guidance, supported by links to expert help.
Pros
Breaks down steps for clarity; encourages self-resolution, reducing load on support.
Cons
Multiple CTAs may confuse; some steps feel similar to the setup checklist.
Testing
Since time was limited, we conducted a few user interviews and multiple reviews with the Customer Support and Marketing teams, as they interact with customers daily and bring firsthand insights into customer pain points.
Objective
To understand how customers feel about the post-migration hub displaying migrated data with their Payments add-on, and whether it provides enough confirmation, confidence, and support.
This is how the Post-migration hub with payments would look on QuickBooks online.
Insights
/ Customers felt an urgent need to resolve Payments first, highlighting its priority in the migration journey.
/ Too many green ticks on success screens gave a false sense of completion, even though further setup (e.g., closing Desktop Payments or Payroll) was still required.
/ Payments success messaging lacked actionable CTA, leaving customers unsure of what to do next.
/ Customers showed mixed preferences: many leaned toward DIY guidance via the “see how you can do it yourself” link, while others preferred “Contact an expert” to avoid mistakes.
/ Uncertainty around expert support emerged—customers questioned if contacting an expert was free, and accountants were unclear on who the “expert” actually referred to.
/ Navigation challenges: customers often didn’t know how to return to the post-migration hub once they moved ahead, and the ‘Contact expert’ button felt disconnected, needing to be placed closer to the Payments section.
/ Some customers specifically noted that Payroll information was missing, which reduced the hub’s completeness.
“The post-migration hub is good to match and easier than pulling reports.”
Laurel VanderNaald
Tech agency Accountant
7 employees
“This shows what you earned and spent. That’s all I need to see after migrating.”
Kimberly Dykstra
Construction company
3 employees
Next Steps
and Strategy
While designing the post-migration hub, we identified gaps where customer journeys could break, is unclear, or error-prone. Documenting them helped us plan targeted next steps to make the hub more reliable, actionable, and supportive.
Customer clicks ‘Connect’ before completing Step 1
Current state
Current state: We can’t determine if Step 1 is done due to tech constraint.
Next step
Vetting customers maybe through a pop-up asking whether they have completed ‘step 1’.
Payments connection fails due to unknown errors
Current state
After Step 1, customer clicks ‘Connect’ in Step 2 → API triggers → error occurs (cause undetermined).
Next step
Display clear error messaging with guidance on how to resolve.
Payments success message, but unclear next actions
Current state
Customers see confirmation that Payments is connected but don’t know what to do next.
Next step
Add CTAs to Payments details page and allow a dummy payment test for reassurance.
Payroll data missing in post-migration hub
Current state
Hub shows Accounting + Payments data, but no Payroll confirmation. Customers expect Payroll migration.
Next step
Use existing post-migration hub and setup checklist to help Payroll customers with Payroll data.
I can address the elephant in your room
Let’s Connect
HRUDAY KULKARNI©