Fairie

Project Overview

Young people face financial challenges, from managing limited budgets to finding discounts and the best deals. Many existing banking apps fail to address these specific needs. Fairie aims to fill this gap by combining essential banking features with tools to help users save money, including a built-in price comparison engine and exclusive student discounts.

I was responsible for the end-to-end design and branding of the project. This included conducting user research, developing the brand identity, designing the app and landing page, and creating comprehensive brand guidelines.

Research

1. User Research: Banking & App Usage Survey

To gather perceptions, I designed a concise, easy-to-complete survey focusing on user experiences with banks and their mobile apps. By using a mix of multiple-choice questions and open-ended fields, I was able to collect both quantitative data and qualitative insights. This helped identify common user pain points and preferences.

2. Competitive Analysis: Insights from Banking App Reviews

Following the survey data collection, I conducted an analysis on existing banking apps, interpreting their reviews and user feedback:

Low Ratings for Traditional Banking Apps: Traditional banking apps were often rated poorly compared to newer, digital-only banking solutions. Users cited outdated interfaces and a lack of intuitive features.
Predominant Use of Blue in Colour Schemes: Most banking apps utilised blue as their primary colour, likely due to its association with trust and security. However, this colour psychology theory feels more like a strategic attempt to convey trust than a genuine design choice, prompting thoughts on how alternative design approaches could stand out.

3. Personal Case Study: Bank of Ireland Mobile Apps

Drawing from my own experience, I explored a specific case with Bank of Ireland:

Confusion Between Two Apps: When opening an account, I encountered confusion due to the presence of two separate Bank of Ireland apps, leading to a frustrating experience. This fragmentation could be a significant barrier for new customers.
Discrepancy in App Ratings & Functionality: The Bank of Ireland UK app was highly rated and offered modern features like Face ID login, while the regular app was poorly reviewed and relied on outdated code-based login. This inconsistency in functionality and user experience highlights a need for a more cohesive digital strategy.