Re-designing the Opay app. (A design Challenge) | Enhancing the user experience.
Opay is a multifunctional platform that brings together Mobile money, ride hailing/transportation, food delivery and logistics. This ‘disruptive’ technology made its payment platform debut (Opay) into the Nigerian market in 2017 and later launched its ride hailing service in 2019. The Oride service got a lot of buzz shortly after its launch and it’s really not a wonder why. Oride launched with a ₦200 promo for every trip taken. With the hustle and bustle of getting around in my city, Lagos, it was no surprise that the best way to commute was taking advantage of the service which came at an affordable cost too. The other ride services (Ocar and Otrike) were launched later in the year, 2019.
Introduction
As a budding designer, challenges are a necessity to learn and improve upon existing skills. For whatever little time i have to spare, I try to challenge myself by either reading design books and articles or listening to design podcasts; all in the bid to implement whatever it is I have learnt. The need to gain industry experience is what brought about this design challenge. The task was to choose an existing product that I interact with really often, identify the pain points from a user perspective and come up with a design solution for it. Opay being a multifunctional app, I majorly use the ride hailing service and could relate to the frustrations so I decided to come up with a design solution that could provide a better experience for the users. The decision to take on the challenge stems from the need to create a balance between the business needs and user needs, improve upon/declutter the interface while improving the overall user experience.
What are the Shortcomings?
The very first time I used the Opay app was to make a ride request. I wanted to have a feel of what the experience was like. From the ease of selecting a ride to the ease of getting a driver. It was important to define ease, success and perfecting the ride request process. Before I began designing, I decided to ask a few friends who use the app what challenges they encountered to be sure I had something tangible to work with asides my own personal experience. These were the few notes I was able to gather:
- It lacked biometric authentication for devices optimized for such. I was required to enter my pin each time I left the app. Taking into consideration that it is also a payments/savings platform and as such requires strict security, I felt that at least the Log-in experience could be improved for biometric-optimized devices.
- A cluttered home screen which felt like noise to me. Most icons on the home screen basically serve the same function. For example, the ride hailing services which are Oride, Ocar and Otrike (all seperated on the home screen) basically take you to the same screen where you still have to select individually from the ride options.
- The tab bar contains some menu items that users do not interact with often.
- Some of the vocabulary used throughout the app does not inspire trust and confidence for the users.
- Inability to save places/frequent destinations to enable the ease of entering a destination.
- The payment setup: The current interface does not show payment options to choose from prior to requesting to a ride.
- Inability to add stops prior to requesting a ride.
These questions informed my design approach:
- What problem is the user facing?
- How can this product be user-friendly?
- What are the contexts that should be considered?
- How do I make sure the business goals are also aligned with the users needs?
Putting the pieces together
The first bit I decided to tackle was designing a Log in experience that caters to biometric authentication. This personalizes the experience while providing more security. Also, having a consistent sign in experience inspires trust and the convenience of not having to remember passwords. This, in turn minimizes data entry.
The second task was to declutter the Home screen. On launching the app, the first glaring thing is how cluttered the home screen is. I decided to look for an easy way to keep this organized while still keeping the business needs in mind and also that of the user.
- The first line of thought was to group the items that offer very similar services instead of having them exist individually on the screen. A typical example is the ‘deposits and withdrawals’ service which already exist individually. Like I stated earlier, the ride hailing services which are seperated but lead you to the same page were also grouped together and termed ‘Oride’. With this grouping, all 3 ride hailing services can be accessed by a single tap on the tab bar via the menu item, (Oride). I created a new menu item called ‘Actions’ that will be reserved for the other services that are currently shown on the home screen. (Airtime & data payments, Bill payments etc. One of the thoughts that informed this decision was due to the fact that the business adds new services occasionally and they end up cluttering the home screen. All these should be accessed via the ‘Actions’ screen instead. Adding these menu items (Oride & Actions) to the tab bar would allow for easy accessibility as the bottom navigation should be used for frequent destinations of similar importance. This way, they are easily accessed with one-thumb interaction (thumb-driven design).
- My second line of thought was to have the home screen display the recent activities carried out by the user. Seeing the multiple services Opay has to offer and the amount of transactions a user might decide to carry out via the app. Activity feeds are perfect for handling and presenting dynamic and constantly changing information. A major reason for doing this was also to personalize the user experience.
The next task I worked on was accessibility to saved places instead of typing in the address. Who doesn’t love a shortcut?. This action allows users get to their favorite destinations by saving them on the app. This also reduces ‘memory jogging’. Once the address has been saved, it makes it easier for whenever you need to go somewhere. There wouldn’t be a need to recall the name or address of the place.
Another issue that was addressed was the inability to add stops while requesting a ride. There have been times where I’ve had to share a ride with a friend that needed to be dropped off at a different destination than mine. When I made it known to the driver, he got a little agitated, saying that taking detours aren’t accounted for in the trip fare, hence a disservice to him. Currently, on the Opay app, riders need to update the destination every time they have to make stops or drop offs. To ease this process, a feature could be added to let the user add multiple destinations at once. This eliminates the hassle and eases the process for both the drivers and riders.
The next task was to provide suitable payment methods prior to requesting a ride. The current design does not provide that option until the trip has ended. If the rider isn’t paying with cash, payment by wallet still has to be done manually and even more tedious when the wallet has not been funded. The direct payment options currently available are via wallet and cash. With the redesign, I provided payment methods such as card, cash and wallet payments prior to booking a ride so users can select their preferred method of payment instead of having to wait till the trip ends to choose a preferred option.
Requesting a ride and perfecting the pick-up
On the current interface, the pick-up location can’t be confirmed or edited before proceeding to request a ride. This does not give the user control over their pick-up experience. One of the things that upset me a tad when requesting a ride was the way it scanned for a driver. It was as though a virus was being scanned and then detected, which scared me a bit. Also, the system status wasn’t even the least bit encouraging; A count-up that lasted for over 10 minutes while still stating that “the drivers are responding enthusiastically’’. When a driver eventually accepted my request, I didn’t get an ETA status. These inconveniences can make a user abandon the request. With the re-designed solution, after a user clicks to confirm a ride, that action leads to a “confirm pick-up screen”. When the pick-up location is confirmed, and the driver accepts the request, an ETA for the driver is also displayed in-app. The destination address can also be changed/edited mid-trip request. (When the driver is already on the way). I also included an option to share the status of a trip with a trusted contact. This gives the trusted contact(s) access to the driver’s name, vehicle details, live location and ETA of the rider.
Summary and take-away
User experience goes beyond visual aesthetics. It means creating products that provide meaningful and relevant experiences to users. The goal of UX is to help users achieve a task seamlessly while interacting with a product. Communicating the current state appropriately gives the user a sense of control, leading them to take appropriate actions to reach their goal. This in turn, fosters trust and credibility. A product should elicit joy and provide ease to its users. Creating a product that inspires trust and confidence leaves a positive impression in the mind of the user. If a user feels safe and comfortable while using your product, it’s likely that there will be consistent use. The goal of every design should aim at being functional and usable. Asides the need to solve problems, the design process also involves being thoughtful. Only by doing so are you able to immerse yourself in the users shoes. An experience that makes the user feel like you were really thinking about them and exploring all the use cases while creating the product is what every business should strive for.
Thank you for reading this far! My first story and more to come. Stay with me. :)
