How i approached designing a DTC fintech product from the ground up, with no active user base.
The Who
A startup in stealth mode is creating a robo-advisor investment product for the every day consumer to reap the benefits of wall street's playbook.
A design kit built to scale
The Problem
The startup has a small team of two engineers and an MVP to develop in just a few months. The existing team had UI hastily put together in Figma, but not much attention was given to the UX and core usability for mobile devices. Given that this is a consumer product that hopes to leverage influencer marketing, creating components that were optimized for mobile is tantamount.
Process
Phase One: Research & Foundation
Discovery, user flows, and core design system
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1
Understanding core functionality necessary for MVP
2
Competitor research
3
Defining the Information Architecture
4
Craft key user flows for KYC, portfolio selection + management, adding funds, and withdrawing funds based on competitor research
5
Leverage a pre-built design system and customize based on our branding
6
Define the navigation and page structure for all screen sizes to create consistency and ensure proper way-finding for users
7
Establish core UI page by page and hand-off to development
Phase Two: Testing & Optimization
User validation, edge cases, and design refinement
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1
Add in edge case handling for comprehensive user scenarios
2
Improve default error messaging for better user understanding
3
Design for multiple states (loading, empty, error, success)
4
Test and massage all user flows with comprehensive user testing
Phase Three: Growth & Enhancement
Advanced features, research insights, and delightful experiences
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1
User research and interviews to validate assumptions and uncover insights
2
Define key nice-to-have features for enhanced product-market fit
3
Layer in delightful micro-interactions and polish elements
