As part of a student project in the module Field Work within the UX Design Upskill program at Hyper Island, I was assigned to do user research in order to come up with a new concept focused on delivering financial wellness for young professionals.
The first part of the assignment was individual and entailed mainly user research, and the second part was team work and brainstorming to come up with the best solution out of our individual findings.
My approach concentrated on user research and ideation to uncover key insights into user needs, behaviors, and financial pain points. The first step was to create a questionnaire for my screener survey to be able to gather crucial information and find users for my user interviews. I was able to receive 76 responses, and interviewed 5 people out of these.
The second step was creating questions for the interviews, and as part of the assignment we were also supposed to get to know ChatGPT a bit more, and how to use AI-tools in User Research work and writing.
To design a banking experience that promotes financial wellness, the initial step involved formulating key assumptions about our users’ core needs and challenges. These assumptions provided a foundation for understanding potential pain points and areas of opportunity, guiding the direction of our user research and ideation
To gain a deeper understanding of our target audience, young professionals looking for a simple and engaging way to manage their finances, I focused on foundational user research. This began with desk research and a competitive analysis of current banking apps, which helped identify trends and potential gaps in the market.
As part of the assignment, I also created a screening survey to collect insights and identify potential interviewees. The survey, completed by 76 respondents, offered a broad perspective on user needs and preferences.
From these respondents, I selected five participants for online interviews and card sorting exercises, allowing me to gather detailed insights into their financial habits, pain points, and expectations for an ideal banking experience.
In the Define stage, I analyzed survey and interview data to clarify the core needs and challenges young professionals face in managing their finances. These insights informed key areas for improvement in the banking app and highlighted features that could better support user goals.
As part of the assignment, we were tasked with establishing design principles to guide our design decisions. These principles aim to create a banking app that fosters user engagement and promotes financial wellness.
In this phase, I came up with new ideas to solve the identified challenges and wishes from the users. This ideation process was aimed at brainstorming possible features, functionalities, and user experience enhancements that would make financial management not only easy, but also engaging for the target persona..
In the ideation phase, I focused on finding practical, engaging solutions to address the specific challenges and needs we uncovered in user research. I brainstormed ideas like easy-to-use budgeting tools, personalized financial insights, and fun, gamified savings options.
Each concept was considered for how well it could make financial management simpler and more enjoyable, keeping the target user’s needs in mind.
This assignment didn’t involve building an actual prototype or mockup, instead I was assigned to a team with four other students in the UX Designer course. We had collaborative sessions where we shared and compared our individual findings, brainstorming possible solutions with a focus on usability and user engagement.
In this phase, we focused on turning our research into potential design ideas. Working with four other students, we shared our findings and discussed ways to meet user needs in a banking app.
By comparing our insights, we pinpointed common themes and brainstormed features like customizable financial tools and intuitive navigation to make the app functional and engaging.
This collaborative approach abled us to learn from each other and refine ideas for a user-centered solution.
Instead of conventional testing with prototypes, our assignment was to present a storyboard with our idea to five users. This approach would allow us to gather qualitative feedback on the possible usability and desirability of our ideas, this to be able to refine the understanding of our user’s needs.
This step also including presenting our work to our class and course leader, with further feedback from them on our ideas. This was also very insightful.
Moving forward, key steps include deeper research into social features, user testing for customization options, and prototype development to test usability. Additional sessions would assess whether gamification enhances engagement, while expanding the study to a larger, diverse sample could reveal broader user needs. Finally, focused usability testing will help refine the app’s financial tools.
Working on this UX case study has deepened my understanding of UX research and the Design Thinking process, particularly in challenging assumptions.
This experience highlighted the importance of thorough desk research before diving into design. Through interviews, I also realized that some of my questions weren’t as clear as I’d thought, prompting me to revise them, which led to more effective interviews.
Another key takeaway was the value of reassessment and flexibility; when something isn’t working as planned, it’s essential to revisit, iterate, and adapt. Time constraints limited the depth of my desk research, and in future projects, I aim to incorporate more comprehensive research if time allows.
"Susanne, your multi-talent, commitment and enthusiasm have made teaching a joy. I’m grateful for your presence in the class."
Product Designer and Industry Leader (teacher) at Hyper Island, UX Design Upskill program
