Send and receive
money between African countries with ease.
Business Goal
The business goal for this App is to enable a user from an African country to send money to another user in a different African country seamlessly
Problem Statement
it is impossible to send money from One African Bank to Another
To do so, the money needs to be converted to USD ( dollars). This has been a problem because it means over usage of the USD which is foreign exchange. For this reason, the African finance Cooperation and African Union came up with the Pan African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS), an infrastructure that can help to facilitate intra-African payment.
About the Project
An Intra Africa payment App
This product is an online payment platform that facilitates payments for individuals and businesses across Africa.
Proposed Solution
Develop a payment application that facilitates seamless money transfers between African countries.
The proposed solution is to come up with a payment application that will enable users to facilitate seamless money transfers between African countries, allowing users to send funds effortlessly. Minimising foreign exchange, transaction rate and slow processes.
By simplifying intra-African payment transfers, our app aims to enhance financial connectivity and convenience across the continent.
Send and receive
money between African countries with ease.
About the Project
An Intra Africa payment App
The UX Design Process
The UX Design Process
In order for us to be able to solve our users’ problem effectively, we incorporated the Design Thinking process.
Empathise
In the first phase of our design process, we empathized with our user through Observation and Immersion. We went online (App store and Play store) to observe the reviews and comments of our competitors. We also downloaded the apps and used it.
Define
After we have analysed our competitors, we proceeded to user persona creation to map out the behaviours and needs of our target audience and we came up with a problem statement
Ideate
After establishing the problem we wanted to solve, we created a story of the user’s problem. To come up with ideas, we launched a brainstorming session. We came up with a flow to solve each idea and created moodboards.
Prototype
In this stage, we created a comprehensive style guide for our designs. We represented our ideas digitally by creating low-fidelity wireframes and high-fidelity designs
Competitive Analysis
In the first phase of our design process, we empathized with our user through Observation and Immersion. We went online (App store and Play store) to observe the reviews and comments of our competitors. We also downloaded the apps and used it.
Weaknesses
Strength
Eversend
Weaknesses
Strength
Payday
Use of dollar card for international purchase
Fast onboarding
Fast transaction
Use of dollar card for international purchase
Fast onboarding
Fast transaction
Longer time to receive OTP
High rates
Card Funding
Only one option for receiving OTP
Uploading Funds (too slow)
Support Team not responsive
High exchange rates
Live chat not responsive
High Minimum Transfer Limit
Using the SWOT Analysis Framework
We analyzed the market and the big players in the market. We came up with a framework to help guide our research process and we used SWOT ANALYSIS to sort through core user pain points.
What are the key differentiators?
Free transfers to an Eversend account
Industry leaders being that they are one of the first Infra-African payment product.
What makes them uniquely valuable?
They offer incentives and reward programs with their “Earn” feature.
Multi-currency payments
How do their user needs overlap or differ from yours?
Faster and seamless transactions
In app conversion using PAPSS (direct conversion to the recipient’s currency)
How do they position themselves?
They offer 3 ranges of products: Money transfer, Multi-currency & currency exchange, A safe wallet account.
What do they say they offer?
They position themselves as transparent, helpful, industry leaders and safe & secure.
Who do they appear to be targeting?
They target independent individuals within the ages of 25-50yrs.
What are they doing well or badly?
No tutorials or blog posts on how money exchange works when using this app to a new user.
Empathise Phase
User Research
In the first phase of our design process, we designed an online survey with Google Forms to observe patterns and similarities in the needs of potential users. A total of 40 people responded to the Survey. Given below is the google form prepared for the User research.
Your age range?
18-28 years
29-38 years
39-48 years
49-58 years
59-68 years
73%
25%
40 responses
What is your country of residence?
Canada
Congo
Ghana
Kenya
Nigeria
Uganda
UK
0
10
20
30
1(2.5%)
1(2.5%)
2(5%)
2(5%)
2(5%)
1(2.5%)
40 responses
29(10%)
No
Yes
Is there any app that allows you to send money in your local currency?
73.7%
28.3%
38 responses
How often do you use the platform?
Very often
Sometimes
Rarely
Never
50%
27%
20%
35 responses
Poor cutomer support
High Transaction Fee
Speed
Others
What challenges do you encounter while using the app?
35 responses
12 (34%)
40%
14 (40%)
11 (31%)
1 (3%)
What is your gender?
Male
40 responses
Female
Prefer not to say
60%
30%
10%
Yes
No
40 responses
Do you send money to other African countries?
57.5%
42.5%
What is your experience with using the app?
Good
Fair
Bad
Nil
65%
19%
12%
34 responses
Good customer support
Secure
Easy to use
Swift transactions
Local currency option
Low transaction fee
What do you like most about the app?
35 responses
10 (44%)
6 (26%)
3 (13%)
2 (9%)
1 (5%)
1 (5%)
If an app was created to help you send money in your local currency to another African country, will you us it?
Yes
38 responses
No
Maybe
68.4%
28.9%
I wish I can get a lower exchange rate.
App could be better.
They should have an awesome customer support and low transaction fees.
I wish I had something that could deliver my money faster.
What does the user
Think?
It’s very easy to use and it explains everything for you.
Some are easy but not fast.
The transaction fees are high.
Speed and exchange rate is important to me while sending money.
What does the user
Say?
Gets super frustrated when payment doesn’t deliver on time.
Feels fulfilled when payment made is successfully delivered.
Gets stressed due to difficult payment process.
Gets annoyed due to poor customer support.
What does the user
Feel?
I use the app every time I need to send money to someone
App could be better.
I send money almost every week.
I send to other African countries.
I send money through mobile transfer.
What does the user
Do?
The UX Design Process
Empathy Map
The empathy map is a collaborative visualisation that maps out user behavours and needs. It consists of four shapes, which shows what the user says, does, thinks, and feels.
The UX Design Process
User Pain points
The empathy map is a collaborative visualisation that maps out user behavours and needs. It consists of four shapes, which shows what the user says, does, thinks, and feels.
I do not get confirmation when my money is been picked up
I could not get a customer support when I needed it.
My money got to the recipient too late and transaction fee was high.
The process of making payment was quite stressful.
User Persona
We proceeded to user persona creation to map out the behaviours and needs of our target audience
Jessica Boateng
Age
Location
Role
Occupation
Education
28
Ghana
General Manager
Real Estate Agent
B.Sc
Goals
Jessica would love to have a live chat on the app for technical support
To find a payment app that is fast, convenient and cost-effective
To be able to receive payments from her clients internationally without high processing fees
Description
Jessica is a dedicated Real Estate Agent that uses the Eversend to transfer funds across African countries.
Problem Statement
Slow onboarding process
The lack of function on the home site
No notification once money has been sent or received
Frustrations
Jessica has tried different payment methods which has its challenges
Those platforms have slow processing times & high transaction fees which affects her business growth
Jessica is not satisfied with the fact, that she cannot add multiple cards to her wallet
Jessica is frustrated with the Customer service department as they are “non existing”
Paul Etim
Age
Location
Role
Occupation
Education
28
Nigeria
General Manager
Real Estate Agent
B.Sc
Goals
Paul would love to have a real person to speak to in customer service and not a chat BOT
To be able to make transfers fast when he’s in these markets
To have an in app tutorial that shows or tells him how to navigate the app.
Description
Paul is a new user of Eversend, he uses the app to transfer funds to his suppliers in South Africa and Ghana .
Problem Statement
Poor customer service
Slow processing time
Too many ID verification
No onboarding tutorial which takes longer to sign up with visible steps
Frustrations
Paul is not satisfied that he can only chat with customer service, why can’t he call them?
Paul is unhappy that there are no tutorials to show him how to navigate the app.
Paul is tired of carrying cash around to these African markets, he just wants to be able to transfer at good rates
How might we simplify Infra-Africa payment transfers.
How might we help users transact at very low transaction fees?
How might we prepare a user for an emergency usage?
How might we create an incentive and rewards program for a user when they make transfers or exchange with 4Pay?
How might we simplify the sign-up & onboarding process of 4Pay?
Ideate Phase
How Might We Questions
Using HWM and jobs to be done framework as our method of ideating for solutions.
User Flow
We created a User Flow to solve each idea and created moodboards from the launch of the application to the homepage where they can carry out the app functionalities.
Pay
TM
Colour
Primary
#28289F
Secondary
#F4A301
Grey
#F4A301
White
#F4A301
Logo and Name Derivation
The name is a fusion of two words - 4 representing team 4 and pay which depicts payment (the main purpose of the app. The outcome is a name that is unique, memorable and captures what the products stands for.
Typography
Aa
Work Sans
Bold
Semibold
Regular
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0
Aa
Inter
Bold
Medium
Regular
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0
Design System
A design system saves time in iteration and changes by utilizing premade UI components and elements. It allowed for consistency in the app design.
Grid System
375px
Columns - 2
Margin - 16 px
Gutter - 24 px
Height - 8 px
Gutter - 8 px
Prototype Phase
Low-Fidelity Design
After creating a design system, we began to represent our ideas digitally while demonstrating design thinking
UI Design
Landing page
Mobile App Design
Key Features
Send money
onboarding screens
Authentication screens
Fund Wallet
More screens
Bill Payment
High-Fidelity Design
After creating lo-fi, we proceeded to high-fidelity design keeping our user interface minimal and simple for ease of use
Prototype Phase
Mark
Proposed Conclusion
Conclusion
In this case study, we embarked on the mission to revolutionise cross-border transactions in Africa. Our goal was to create a user-centric payment app that eliminates the need for currency conversion and simplifies the process.
Through empathetic research, collaboration, and innovative thinking, we identified key pain points, such as the need for flexible OTP delivery, and designed features to address them. Our user personas, like Jessica, guided the efforts to make the app easy and convenient.
While we met our project deadline, further usability testing is essential to ensure user satisfaction. We're excited about the potential of our app to transform cross-border payments, making them seamless and efficient for users across Africa.