Do you remember the hassle of visiting a bank to deposit cash or update your address? If you're part of Gen Z, you might not relate to these struggles- long queues, system outages, bank holidays, and other delays. Today, we've transitioned into the era of Fintech, a financial service revolution that offers all the benefits of traditional banking but right at your fingertips.
This shift in financial services has largely been driven by dissatisfaction with the customer experience at physical banks, combined with the rapid technological advancements of the 21st century. Whether it's managing money through trading platforms or making payments at a fruit stall, the integration of technology has transformed the finance industry from its traditional roots into the dynamic world of Fintech.
This growth accelerated significantly during the pandemic in 2019 when banks closed and social distancing became the norm. As everything moved online, the demand for digital money and online banking services skyrocketed.
Still not convinced? Well, that’s what Google has to say about it. Below is a graph showing the surge in search interest for terms related to Fintech, reflecting the growing global attention on this innovative industry.
This popularity has led investments in Fintech to rise even stronger, as one of the fastest-growing industries today, the global fintech market is expected to reach a value of US $936.51 billion by 2030. It’s also predicted to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 26.2% from 2022 to 2030. Isn’t that astonishing!!
Now, you must be wondering how different a Fintech app can be from every other app. Well, if we remove the technical aspect, the evolution in the finance industry has had a single goal from the start: to improve customer experience. And, while talking about experience, 73% of the customers are likely to switch their banks for better financial services. Thus, to succeed in the new and emerging finance market, your app needs a good Fintech UX design.
So, Fintech professional or not, you should read ahead to find out what makes Fintech UX design so unique that it drives the Fintech industry on its wheels.
Fintech UX design is dedicated to providing secure financial services and promoting financial inclusion by making these services accessible to everyone, regardless of their wealth or income.
On the other hand, User Experience (UX) refers to how easy and efficient it is for customers to utilize the products and services offered by businesses. In the finance sector, where sensitivity is paramount, good UX transforms managing, investing, and transferring money into straightforward, stress-free tasks.
Therefore, to achieve this, fintech UX design employs user research techniques, established UX principles, and effective design patterns throughout the product development process. By combining usability, security, clarity, and style, it ensures that users feel confident and safe in managing their finances digitally. But, why does FinTech design matter? Read ahead to find out.
FinTech applications use sensitive user data- like bank account details, transaction history, personal savings, and investments. If the user were to deal with an application with a poor UX design, it would make them anxious and reluctant to trust it. Since the main goal of fintech companies is to increase customer retention, it is important to build an application that gives a good first impression and brings out a positive user experience.
So, here is why you need a good UX design to create an application that checks all the boxes without giving any second thoughts.
A compromised fintech UX design can leave a poor first impression, leading to unsatisfied and doubtful customers, which ultimately damages your brand value. On the other hand, a well-executed UX design serves as a powerful tool for maintaining and increasing customer retention.
Customers tend to prefer fintech services that are easy to understand over those offered by traditional banks. Younger users, in particular, are drawn to brands that exude value and trust, which is a key reason why tech giants like Google Pay and Paytm have larger user bases. To attract and retain customers, it’s essential to invest in top-notch user experience features that build trust and enhance your brand image.
Although trust is a necessary factor when it comes to finance facilities, the security and privacy of user information remain just as important. Why would customers use a Fintech app that doesn’t have a trustable UX design? No, right? They will most likely choose an application that has easy-to-understand security features.
Building trust among customers in an industry that is most prone to cyber-attacks and data breaches takes work. Thus, a thoughtful design would help customers use security practices like strong passwords and two-factor authentication, which will make them feel safer while using your services. Lastly, make sure that you provide more information about where user’s data is being used, this would give them control over their privacy settings and enhance their trust in your app’s credibility.
Turning tedious financial tasks like applying for loans or managing investments would be a major game-changer for boosting profitability for FinTech organizations. You can attract more customers by making the application more fun with a good UX design.
A good fintech UX design app should be integrated with features that reduce the risk of costly errors. This would increase your app’s efficiency and at the same time save time and money for your organization. This would satisfy your users and they will most likely spread the word about it, bringing in new customers.
Financial inclusion means providing financial products and services to all individuals, regardless of their income size. It focuses on providing financial services to even the underprivileged. This process ensures that your services do not discriminate or favor any kind of users, eliminating barriers that hinder people from using fintech services to improve their lives.
If your fintech app design is curated by keeping user-friendly experiences at the center, it would play a significant role in addressing the issue of financial inaccessibility and forming new ways for individuals and organizations to easily access financial services. This would improve your brand image and increase your customer retention. It is a win-win for both sides!
People have varying financial goals and availabilities, and everybody prefers managing their finances according to their own will. A good Fintech UX design would allow its users to make personalized choices and have agency over their finances. From investments and budgeting tools to tailored financial advice and investment recommendations, a user-centric design must align with the diverse objectives of its users.
Designing a fintech application is challenging as it revolves around the complexities of providing financial services. Although letting another commodity manage your hard-earned money is tough, users are still delighted to handle their finances via fintech applications, why do you think that is? Well, the reason lies behind their in-app experience, thus the design of your fintech application must be user-centric.
Now that the importance of a UX design is clear, we can move forward with the guide to design a user-centric fintech app. Designing a financial application that is beneficial and easy to use can be easy by following these steps:
Knowing who the user is, must be step number one in designing a user-friendly application. Features that might not be important for a banker might be of major significance for a user. To achieve user-centric financial solutions, conduct user experience research to understand users' needs, pain points, and expectations. Then, analyze the data obtained and develop design hypotheses supported by a product prototype.
A user-friendly financial digital platform is crucial for new users, as their first interaction is critical for retention. User research can help financial organizations identify the needs and pain points of their users. This method decreases the possibility of errors in your application as it broadens the area for improvements. You can use methods like ethnography, mapping user personas, end-to-end interviews, and card sorting. After the design is complete, you can perform usability testing to ensure your application has everything the user needs.
For the constantly evolving industry of financial technology, it is important to stay in touch with the right ongoing trends and technologies to provide up-to-date, relevant, and secure fintech solutions. Designing a FinTech application takes much more than creating an intuitive ui ux design. It involves creating an app with maximum functionality, scalability, and security. To do so, you will need a tech stack that goes beyond just programming languages, and back-end, or front-end tools.
If you want your application to have a competitive advantage, you should research the new and ongoing trends. Some of them are, machine learning, blockchain, and RPA, you can add gamification, features like biometric identification for ultimate security, and last but not least, integration of AI technology to automate tasks that don’t need human interference.
P.S: You should always keep the development time and cost while choosing a tech stack.
Designing a smooth user flow is essential for a good user experience. A strategically plotted user flow that seamlessly guides the user through the application and allows the customer to complete their desired tasks efficiently, makes up for a healthy and reliable relationship with the users.
This involves designing an easy-to-understand hierarchy of information and actions which makes it easy for users to navigate the app. To design this hierarchy, you need to understand how users interact with the app. To do so, you need extensive user research to identify their needs and expectations. Also, notably, user flow must be adaptable to different user scenarios- experienced or first-time users. The flow should acknowledge different user personas and their specific needs and preferences.
Wireframe design creates a foundation for your app’s design and functionality.
It can be used to get a visual representation for planning out the structure and layout of the features and user interface of the application. It uses digital designs or simple sketches to outline the basic elements of the application, like buttons, navigation, interactivity, etc. It is almost like sketching the architecture of a building before construction.
By assessing the placement of these features, you can easily identify design flaws and make necessary improvements. Wireframing for apps assists developers and designers in figuring out the user experience (UX) before the design process or programming, which can help clients be up-to-date with the design, saving time and cost for re-design.
After a successful wireframe design, it is now important to make a working prototype of your app. The prototype is a working and moving design of how the application would look after the code, this is used to test the functionality of your app and validate it with real users. This way, you can collect feedback and make the required changes before you launch your application into the market. Now that you have made the app perfectly fit for customers, you can release it without hesitation and move on to the next step.
Regular users expect to get monthly updates of the applications they use regularly. Thus, maintaining and supporting your application after its launch is just as important as launching it. Regular updates and bug fixes will keep your users satisfied and your app running smoothly.
Maintenance doesn’t only mean updates, it also includes maintaining security as data breaches and cyberattacks can have severe consequences for both your users and your business. These processes might not sound like a part of design but what goes on after an app launch usually maintains the brand image in the market which is necessary for both the user and the business.
Although there are multiple Fintech applications in the market these days, there are few applications that are at the top of the ladder because of their all-rounder functionality and top-notch UX design. Let’s see a few examples of such applications.
If there is a talk about the best Fintech applications, the ‘Best Fintech App’ award-winning application at the IAMAI 14th India Digital Awards 2024 on February 29, 2024, in Mumbai, Paytm would be the hot topic.
With its top-notch facilities, Paytm rarely misses a feature. Paytm has a unique UX design, where its main navigation menu pretty much sorts all the requirements of a user without confusing them.
Not only that, Paytm has a user-friendly interface that uses a ‘Roboto’ typeface which is easily readable on any kind of device, with an interface that is easy to understand for both rural and urban people. Also, based on customer behavior analysis, the app suggests features and essentials like movie tickets, monthly bills, insurance, and gas cylinder booking.
The gradual addition of gamified and booking features signals toward always updating the UX design of your application as user requirements keep increasing in the modern market.
Groww is a website where you can invest and trade. It lets you invest in US stocks, stocks, FDs, and mutual funds. Investing and trading require a lot of trust since the chances of gaining and losing money are too high, but with Groww, it's really quick and easy to open an account.
Groww has a very easy onboarding process with a clean and clutter-free interface, the navigation is easy, and you can see all your investments in one place. It has strategically positioned its navigation bar and tabs for easy access to important features like stocks, mutual funds, and SIPs.
Groww excels at presenting complex financial information through easy-to-understand visuals. It uses simple graphs, charts, and color-coded visuals to help even non-expert users analyze their portfolios and market trends at a glance. On top of all these benefits, it comes with multi-lingual support.
The update that made Groww shine brighter than its competitors is the addition of UPI payment options in a trading application, making it an all-rounder in its field.
The power of minimalist aesthetics is what makes Google Pay such an attractive application. GPay uses gamified features at their best. Mixed with the vibrant look and easy-to-understand interface of the application, making transactions doesn’t seem like a stressful task with this application.
With its non-existent learning process, performing tasks through this application is a sheer joy for users. The application has icons placed so cleverly that users don't have to look too hard to find information. With its smooth navigation and consistency in design elements such as buttons, icons, and colors this application is a visually harmonious experience throughout.
The superpower of this application is its integration of the cashback and reward system, which makes spending and managing money a little less stressful as the user constantly feels like they are gaining something by spending via GPay.
Design plays a vital role in enhancing user experience and helping users understand complex concepts easily. And, our team of versatile designers at Goldenflitch understands the uniqueness of a Fintech app design.
We believe that financial applications should offer more than just a basic UX design. These applications need to be visually appealing, easy to use, and ensure the customer feels agency over their finances.
To your benefit, our team of designers goes out of their way to deliver a design that is engaging and unique to your brand identity. So, if you’re looking to design a Fintech App that stands out from its competitors, then we are here with you. Contact us right away!
