Cashflo
Project summary 🗒️
OBJECTIVE
To create a solution where users can transform physical cash into digital currency at any physical store.
ROLE
Product Designer
RESPONSIBILITIES
I worked with a team of five designers, led by our project lead, to design Cashflo, a fintech app for unbanked individuals. My responsibilities included conducting user interviews, participating in weekly design sprints, developing 0-1 features and a cohesive visual identity.
IMPACT
Our team delivered a user-centered, mobile solution that allows users to convert physical cash into digital currency at stores. The final high-fidelity prototype and visual identity equipped the founders with the tools needed to advance Cashflo to the next steps and address a key gap in financial accessibility.
Understanding Our Clients' Mission 🌟
The first step was to understand the problem ourselves. We researched underbanked and unbanked communities to learn about their needs. We found that many people mistrust traditional banks, live far from them, or prefer managing finances on their own.
The founders wanted to create an easy way for people to convert cash to digital money at any location, like a convenience store. As the world becomes more tech-reliant, they hoped this digital money could be used for e-commerce, investing, and more.
THE PROBLEM
Many underbanked and unbanked individuals face barriers to traditional banking, such as mistrust, distance, or a preference for self-managed finances.
"In an economy that runs on the assumption that individuals have full access to traditional banking, living without that access has a number of costs."
- Forbes ↗
Discovery Workshops to Uncover the Brand 🧭
By going through a series of workshops both internally and with our clients, we were able to understand Cashflo's brand personality, target audience, mission, and goals. These workshops helped us to clarify key product features and benefits, aligning them with user needs and expectations.
Everyone initially came up with their own statements, but after some discussion we settled on the above problem statement to guide us through the rest of the project.
Another workshop that we took part in was continuums. This helped us align with the founders to understand more of the product experience and brand.
User Interviews and Competitive Research 🔭
We also conducted user interviews with potential users, industry experts and the clients' themselves. This gave us further understanding on the product, and the potential this app could have on a large demographic.
We also conducted research on other apps that had similar features to what were brainstorming for our app, like transferring money. Looking at their pros and cons, we were able to pull inspiration for features and flows. We used all the information that we gathered to develop user stories and a features backlog to help us prioritize the must haves, nice to haves, and the things that were just out of scope.
We did a quick market analysis, examining products that also have similar flows of transferring money. We looked at what they did well, and what could be improved and what features we could possibly implement in our own solution.
Findings from Market Research 🧐
Avoid overly trendy elements but maintain a youthful aesthetic
Users should feel like the app is reliable, but also simple enough for them to understand the process
Focus on creating a personal and user-centric brand name (We started with DigiPay and landed on Cashflo!)
Coming up with a Brand 🖼️
When brainstorming the initial visual brand for Cashflo, we were drawn towards visual identities that were approachable and trustworthy, yet steered away from a predictable financial look and feel. The final result took on a more modern look through high contrasts, simple UI and playful illustrations, all in which encompass what Cashflo was.
Direction 1
Direction 2
Direction 3, the one we ended up going with.
More About the Logo 👀
Cashflo’s logo and lockup features ligatures that represent the ideas of flowing and transfering. Customized uniquely on the typeface Nimbus Sans, the logo is able to stand on its own while potraying both a contemporary and playful feel.
Sitemap and Lo-fi Wireframes 🗺️
While some team members worked more on the brand side, establishing Cashflo's look & feel, others worked more on the product side. We developed a sitemap to walk through the screens a user would go through when they were to enter a convert cash into digital money.
Our final sitemap reflects a refined scope, concentrating on two key flows: the sign-in/sign-up process and the primary objective of the app, which is to convert cash into digital money.
Usability Testing 📲
We assigned users some tasks to complete and observed them to take notes on successful and unsuccessful elements.
User testing the sign-up flow
Feels lengthy, combine name, email, and password fields on one page
Consider splitting profile setup and account setup to reduce steps
Ensure clickable language text
Add a description explaining how the app obtains account information
User testing the upload funds flow
Provide clear instruction screens
Allow users to tap through success screens; consider combining success screen with the choose account page
Inform users that the QR code is on the next screen
Clarify that multiple transactions can be performed via pop-ups
Option to show instructions screen every time or have each instruction on a separate page with an option to skip future views
The Final Product ✨
The initial rounds of user testing were incredibly beneficial, providing us with valuable insights to move on to our high-fidelity designs. We spent the final weeks iterating on wireframes, getting feedback and learning as we went.
I helped to create the illustrations that our users would go through in order to understand the purpose of Cashflo.
The final sign-up flow guides you through creating a Cashflo account and connecting additional accounts to the app.
The final upload flow demonstrates how users can upload cash into any account once they enter any point-of-sales location.
Other screens such as locations allowed you to look up information about nearby stores that carry the Cashflo service.
Learnings & Reflections🪞
This project marked one of the first times I was on a team that was responsible for shipping a product to clients. I had the least experience on the team, but that motivated me to learn quickly and contribute effectively.
🔍 Ask questions, but also take the time to observe.
I learned the value of asking questions and observing to better understand user needs, team dynamics, and where I can contribute. Watching experienced teammates in action also taught me a lot, helping me create better designs and collaborate more effectively.
🖼️ It's all in the details.
As a designer, I've realized that the smallest details can make the biggest difference. Attention to typography, color choices, spacing, and alignment can transform a good design into a great one.
Impact & Looking Ahead 🔮
After a semester together with Cashflo, we were able to handoff a comprehensive brand book that would enable them to further develop the brand with a strong visual identity. In addition, we were also able to handoff a high fidelity prototype that would enable Cashflo to begin the development process and pitch to investors an idea that would help the underbanked and unbanked populations.
