How might we improve trading experience with reliability, and simplicity at its core in alignment with brand story and vision?

My Role

User Research
Ideation
Wireframing
Screen Flows
Visual Design
Prototyping
Usability Testing 
Interaction Design

Platforms

Web App
iOS App (Co-op)

Team

1x Product Manager
4x Engineers
1x CX Manager

Year

2022

Problem

Inexperienced traders faced confusion and uncertainty during the trading process, which led to potential scams. Dissatisfied traders were more likely to consider leaving the platform.

Outcome

A user-friendly experience for new Bitcoin traders that prioritises immediate actions with systematic evidence gathering to minimise scams and close loopholes.

Paxful is a peer-to-peer platform that lets anyone buy or sell digital currencies with ease using 350+ different payment methods. In just five years, it has become the leading Bitcoin marketplace used by millions around the world.

Paxful’s shared vision of helping the unprivileged people through education and financial empowerment has led people to go full-time trading.

Visit Paxful ↗︎

New: Clear, Simple, delightful

Guided Trade Experience

What did we have before?

App User Onboarding

Upon analysing the existing app, I realised the presence of visual clutter.

Key information is lost in lengthy texts making it hard to follow instructions.

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Discover & Empathise

Observations

In addressing this problem, I employed a comprehensive research approach to understand the landscape.

After analysing user sessions with Smart Look, we discovered specific user behaviours like users skipped over instructions on how to be cautious with their new trades.

Customer Feedback

Through support tickets and Telegram, we gathered product feedback from top traders and peers, which helped us understand user expectations, pain points, and scams.

User Testing

Dogfooding, or internally using the product, allowed for a firsthand understanding of the existing user experience by observing those who never traded on Paxful.

Exploring initial ideas with design workshops

Collaborating on identifying common everyday UX patterns by brainstorming with diverse teams including copywriters, quality engineers, data architects, and customer support managers. Utilizing affinity mapping, I identified and categorized distinct themes.

Defining Problem

Gathering Insights

Two themes surfaced as I converged my research findings.

Visual Clutter

Users encountered lengthy texts characterised by confusing content and critical information being obscured or absent.

Unclear Process

Novice traders found the end-to-end trade journey unclear. Questions like when to pay, when to wait, and concerns about acquiring Bitcoin often left them uncertain.

Design Challenge

How might we create a user-friendly interface, that seamlessly reinforces a secure trade experience, while staying true to the Paxful brand?

Develop

Key Solution Elements

Taking ownership, navigating complex problem space, and synthesising abstract concepts while making them simple for others to understand.

Trade-Offs

Due to the extensive scope of the product, we decided to focus our initial release on a specific payment group. This involved translating a novel conceptual logic into a tangible composite flow.

Market Analysis

I looked into domains other than fintech to get a better understanding of solution space. To my surprise, there was little to no aspect of guidance.

Unified Controls

I decided to tackle the main trade screen with a novel approach for key UX. When users start a trade, they’ll only see what they need to do next and can view their progress right away.

Informed Wait

One strategy the company adopted to improve retention was to introduce a fun element in their product.

However, the app lacked a friendly connection and was unable to communicate the user's current emotional state. To address this issue, I teamed up with illustrators and animators from the brand team to create engaging visuals that could help ease the waiting period.

To ensure scalability, the drawer components were reused while decluttering the interface to display information only when necessary for simplicity.

Evidence Gathering

An approval system was implemented to address traders' insecurity while sending money and uploading receipts in the chat.

This helped in improving team efficiency by providing a reason for the decline and evidence, as it was easier for the team to follow through in the backend.

Prototype

After rigorous testing and iteration, I designed over 80 screens and 140 components in Figma to meet all primary flows and corner cases.

Deliver

Impact

When evaluating the impact of our product design initiatives, we selected specific key metrics.

Success Rate

# of disputed trades
# of cancelled trades

Complexity

Resolution time for disputed trades

Trade Velocity

Time taken to complete a trade

Offer Share

# of guided vs. classic offers

Collectively, some of these success metrics formed the foundation of our assessment, affirming the tangible and qualitative strides achieved through our product design endeavours.

Impact

Native Mobile App

Many of my work findings were inherited by native mobile apps including

Reusable patterns
Simplified copy
Components supporting localisation

Stay Connected to the Streets

Reflections & Learnings

Working on this project was a rewarding experience that underscored the power of storytelling in shaping user experiences. Storytelling fosters a strong connection between the audience and your brand narrative.

Yet, it's crucial to prioritise your audience by understanding their pain points and incorporating their feedback into design decisions.

I look for micro-animations in every app now. From Facebook’s bell icon to Uber's little cars, micro-interactions allow you to connect with your users, elevate product experience to delightfulness and sell your brand story.