Venmo

Add a Feature

Project Overview

 

Background

Venmo is a peer-to-peer financial app that allows users to pay or request payment. Venmo has been one of the most popular online financial apps since a lot of users are no longer carrying cash or change everyday. Venmo also has made splitting payment so much easier and more accurate without counting any cash or change. It’s been influenced by other industry apps such as transportation, food delivery, grocery, and more. Specifically, it is popular among younger generations who use mobile phones to do more than just texting and calling. Today, users have used Venmo to pay their bills, split payments among roommates, request money without awkwardness, and more.

Problems:

There are many aspects Venmo can improve. In case of splitting payments, a lot of users use Venmo to pay their monthly bills like utility, electricity, phone, etc. to mostly a family member or friends who are responsible for paying the ultimate bill to a specific companies. Currently, there’s no option for users to set up a recurring payment to make sure they don’t miss those deadlines or upset someone by forgetting.

Scope: Add a new feature

Software: Figma

Role: UX Designer (Research, Visual Design, User Testing)

Design Process

 

Research

Research Goal

  • Learning what users think about this feature

  • Receiving feedback from users how we could create this feature to respond to their needs

  • Meaning/purposes would this bring to users

Research Objectives

  • Determine what demands/encourages users to pay via Venmo

  • Understand the users’ goals in using Venmo to pay for products/services. 

  • Understand the users’ needs for Venmo

 

Competitive Analysis

 

User Persona

 

Primary Research

The primary research was conducted using a survey method. I asked frequent Venmo users to fill out the survey. The users expressed frustrations with Venmo’s limited features as Venmo has become a more common payment option. Many have started using Venmo instead of cash and began splitting their household/entertainment bills with others. The findings confirmed the need for the recurring payment feature as users have evolved their needs for Venmo.

User Interview Summary

  • 5 Participants

  • 10 questions

  • Age: 22-29 years old

Helpful Findings

Problem Statement:

Users are frustrated about forgetting to make/receive payments and need a more convenient way to pay/request in a timely manner

Define

Project Goals

Ideate

Task Flow

 

Sketch Wireframes

 

Mid-Fi Wireframes

 

Hi-Fi Wireframes

 

Test

Usability Testing

Process

I invited participants to test Venmo’s new feature and its usability. Everyone was given a link to the prototype. They gave me feedback on what they think, feel, and experience by filing out a few questions. I followed up with the participants to answer some questions they had.

Objectives

To find out how customers will be using this feature and understand users needs and what this new feature makes them feel.

Findings

Participants feel that the overall design and flow of the UX is functional, user-friendly, and familiar to them. Participants think it is a great idea to add this feature to the app since it doesn’t exist currently and it would be appreciated by many Venmo users. About half of the participants have questions and some due to lack of Figma software knowledge. The questions have been answered in person/via phone call. Overall, this feature will be a good addition and will continue to take the feedback to improve this feature in the future. 

  • John

    “It's very intuitive to use. It is very similar to other financial institutions with a recurring payment feature so it isn't hard to understand what to do. It also still feels like Venmo in terms of UX (color scheme, font, etc.).”

  • Jess

    “I like the different options, especially custom since not all payments are exactly every 2 weeks, etc.”

  • Sharon

    “My first impression is that it's very user-friendly. I think it was very clear which buttons I needed to select to make the recurring payment and which date I wanted to do.”

  • Deborah

    “Really helpful! Actually never thought of using it as a way to make reoccurring payments - but would definitely be a function that I would be happy to use!”

Prototype