about
the project
State Bank of India (SBI) is India's largest public bank. They took on the task to conceive a flagship Mobile App - Yono. The motive was to promote the idea of Digital Banking for India by providing a mix of Lifestyle and Banking services.
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This case study is an evaluation of the experience and functionality of the app. Further, it proposes some simple solutions with a redesigned UI upholding the idea of a truly Digital India.
but why
but why
Yono?
SBI conceived Yono to be a one-stop solution for every Indian’s banking needs. It was pegged as a revolutionary idea which promised to make everything digital and accessible.
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Basis some research, I was able to understand where the app fails to deliver on the promise. It doesn’t matter if the solution is revolutionary, what matters is whether it’s solving the user’s problem and providing an easier experience.
#KeyAppFeatures
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Yono Pay - Instant transfer solutions.
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Yono Cash - Cardless withdrawal solution
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Exclusive offers and rewards.
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Personal Banking services.
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In-App Marketplace.
The existing app
interface & system
In the existing interface, I focused my attention to the core screens of the app - Onboarding, Home and Payments. At first glance, the existing system definitely felt shorthanded and there wasn’t any clear indication of tasks that I could perform. I used the app for a couple of days only to feel frustrated, and eventually exit.
#KeyFrustrations
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Regressive Design and Functionality
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Unpleasant User Experience
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Confusing Layout and Task Flows
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Unsorted Information Structure
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Insecure and Overwhelming Feeling
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Inconsistent and Dated Interface
Competitor Research
After I noted down the pain-points in using the app, I conducted a market analysis to better understand the Banking market trends in India. The primary intention was to understand how different apps are solving a user’s needs and reducing frustrations and roadblocks in completing similar tasks.
3 banking and payment mobile apps
Axis Bank
The application feels clean and usable. It has an intuitive information architecture and tasks are
sorted and grouped well.
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'Click to view' Balance' feature adds an extra layer of security.
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Payment tasks are grouped together for ease of use.
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Products are grouped to quickly do a task in lesser steps.
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Bottom navigation bar helps with user challenges and makes them feel confident.
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Overall an intuitive and simple UI design.
User Personas
I wanted to illustrate the needs and frustrations of potential users to better understand the users who I’m designing for. Therefore, I created two proto-personas basis my understanding of potential users.
The redesigned app
interface & system
I now had answers to the ‘what?’ and ‘why?’. At this stage with the design, I want to answer the ‘how?’.
Therefore, I broke down the information and created a new hierarchy. I created low-fidelity wireframes and began designing the screens in an agile manner. I even created new Navigation Bars based on task-sorting and key task buckets.
#KeyInsights
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Redistribute information as primary, secondary and tertiary
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Create an intuitive task flow
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Allow users to feel more secure
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Enable users to explore the app and the features
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A complete design overhaul for a better experience
User Interface
Design
I tried to keep the visual design clean, minimal and inspired by the existing branding of SBI. I tweaked the colors and buttons to completely redesign the iconography and make it more intuitive.
