A 2023 study by Edward Jones and MIT's AgeLab Next360 found that 80% of young adults aged 18 to 34 are struggling financially. How can we help them track their expenses, set budgets, and understand their spending habits?
A 2023 study by Edward Jones and MIT's AgeLab Next360 found that 80% of young adults aged 18 to 34 are struggling financially. How can we help them track their expenses, set budgets, and understand their spending habits?
“It’s tough to get my finances under control and wish saving money could be a simpler, more fun process. I just get tired of seeing all the numbers from my spending and bills, and I don’t even know where to start.”
03/06-23, Estelle Diego,
Student at Concordia University, US
image: Viktoria Leth
“I want managing my finances to be straightforward and efficient. Simplifying the saving process and focusing only on essential features would make a world of difference.”
03/18-23, Wilma Strom,
Finance Student, Biola University
image: Viktoria Leth
The solution
What if we created a convenient and easy to use system, that simplified the budgeting experience by only focusing on three main features: tracking expenses, setting budgets, and understanding spending habits.
What if we created a convenient and easy to use system, that simplified the budgeting experience by only focusing on three main features: tracking expenses, setting budgets, and understanding spending habits.
The process
Let's explore the various stages of the project, from the initial concept to the final outcome.
Research
Understand user’s needs through research.
Define
Problem statement based on user insights.
Design
The creation of visual designs, including tests improving the system.
Defining the user
The target audience is financially conscious young adults (18-30 years) living in urban areas. They seek a user-friendly budgeting app that fits seamlessly into their busy lives and offers insightful financial guidance tailored to their goals. They are drawn to digital solutions and need educational resources to improve their financials and management skills.
"I want a tool to help me spend money wisely while ensuring I can still afford rent and groceries.”
Name Alice
Age 20
Occupation Student
Status Single
Location San Francisco
Salary 15k
Alice
The Spontaneous
Image
Prefers user-friendly apps for easy money management and values automation for tracking expenses, paying bills, and saving without manual effort.
Too much time is spent on keeping track of money. Having a hard time staying on a budget.
To have more freedom to explore new experiences, she wants to make the most of her money every month.
To have more freedom to explore new experiences, she wants to make the most of her money every month.
Too much time is spent on keeping track of money. Having a hard time staying on a budget.
Key areas to understand
Why do young people want to save money?
Where does most of a young adult's money go?
What are some current tools young adults are using to manage their money?
What are the main problems young adults are facing today that prevent them from managing their money?
Why can’t they stay on a budget?
90% of participants think they can improve their financial management. Top reasons for breaking budgets are:
Emergency expenses (such as medication).
Hard to track expenses during travel.
Research and pain points
Based on the research and discovers, these points were kept in mind when moving on to designing the product.
Study conducted: Spring 2023, 38 participants
Habits
Interviewees spend the most money on entertainment, food, rent, and travel. They do not have a specific way of keeping track of expenses.
Needs
Interviewees want a clear and fun tool where you can see a balance of spent/left to spend, focus on saving, and where you enter fixed sums.
Home page
To make it easy to understand your finances, you should have your budget and balance right on the home page.
Creating budget
Users want to focus on saving. Therefore, this aspect needs to be present during the creation of the budget. Also, users want to enter fixed sums and not percentages.
Budget page
The main categories the users want to see in the budget are food, rent, entertainment, and travel.
Balance page
Want to see a balance between what they have spent, and what they have left to spend. They also want to see overviews from previous transactions.
medium fidelity wireframes
“Important UI should be more easily accessible because that helps me save time.”
03/16-23, Johanna Leth,
Biochemistry student, University of Lund
“I want to get an overview of how much I spend in each category so that I can better understand my spending habits.”
03/16-23, Vera Larsson,
dentist student, University of Umeå
“I don’t understand where to look - there are too many options which makes me even more tired than I was before opening the app.”
03/16-23, Maria Lind,
Interaction and Design student, University of Lund
Component Library
Aa Bb Cc Dd Ee Ff Gg Hh Ii Jj Kk Ll Mm Nn Oo Pp Qq Rr Ss Tt Uu Vv Ww Xx Yy Zz
1234567890-=!@#$%^&*()_+
The colors represents what my brand is all about - simplicity and ease.
The logo represents what my brand is all about - simplicity and balance.
The icons represents what my brand is all about - simplicity and easy to understand.
The typography represents what my brand is all about - simplicity and easy to understand.
The logo represents what my brand is all about - simplicity and balance.
The typography represents what my brand is all about - simplicity and easy to understand.
The colors represents what my brand is all about - simplicity and ease.
The icons represents what my brand is all about - simplicity and easy to understand.
Aa Bb Cc Dd Ee Ff Gg Hh Ii Jj Kk Ll Mm Nn Oo Pp Qq Rr Ss Tt Uu Vv Ww Xx Yy Zz
1234567890-=!@#$%^&*()_+
Montserrat Bold Montserrat Medium
Takeaways
When I created SpendSmart, I knew that simplicity was key. A straightforward design ensures users can navigate the app effortlessly. Clear visuals are crucial too, as they save time by presenting financial information in an easily digestible format. By simplifying complex numbers, SpendSmart transforms budgeting into an enjoyable and convenient experience. It's not just about managing money; it's about empowering individuals to take control of their financial futures and follow their dreams with confidence.
When I created SpendSmart, I knew that simplicity was key. A straightforward design ensures users can navigate the app effortlessly. Clear visuals are crucial too, as they save time by presenting financial information in an easily digestible format. By simplifying complex numbers, SpendSmart transforms budgeting into an enjoyable and convenient experience. It's not just about managing money; it's about empowering individuals to take control of their financial futures and follow their dreams with confidence.
