Understanding the DFS User Journey Could Enhance Mobile Money Adoption

While there are numerous debates about the specific strategies for closing our financial inclusion gaps, we are certain that digital technologies (otherwise abbreviated as DFS) have a huge role to play.

With the widespread adoption of mobile phones, mobile money (the more popular DFS) is the ideal vehicle to enhance the access and usage of financial services by everyone, including those resident in remote and rural areas.

In Nigeria, with mobile money adoption rates of 3.3 percent (EFinA, 2018), digitech and financial services are not exactly kindred spirits. The challenge therefore is, how do we improve adoption and use of mobile money among the underserved and excluded?

We believe that to increase mobile money adoption and usage among the underserved and unbanked, it is necessary to understand the various stages of the DFS customer lifecycle through their own lens (a sort of walk in their shoes). This understanding will help identify possible design gaps and provide feedback for a better user experience.

This 5-phased design research process of Discovery — Onboarding — Transactions — Support — Cross Selling forms the basis of this article.

Discovery

This is akin to user awareness of DFS products and services. The access to finance measurement studies conducted by EFInA and Intermedia have frequently identified user awareness as one of the key barriers to DFS adoption.

The low awareness levels question the efficacy and sufficiency of communications strategies deployed for mobile money products and services. This begs the question, how exactly are mobile money services being communicated to consumers?

How are potential consumers meant to discover mobile money? Are the consumers’ literacy constraints and access to media, especially in the rural regions which are offgrid, taken into consideration (especially as literacy is still a major challenge in Nigeria with 60 million Nigerians reportedly unable to read or write basic English)? Many of these potential customers have limited range of media they consume, and so, radio for example, may be a better communication channel than newspaper or social media. Whichever way, marketing campaigns need to be creative, inclusive (multi-lingual), yet simple enough to reach the intended consumers in ways they will understand and appreciate.

Onboarding

Considerations for on-boarding relate to how and where new users sign-up for the DFS products and services. Other relevant considerations include the onboarding requirements such as proof of identity and other documentary evidence. Finally, the actual onboarding process that requires the completion of forms.

New customers are expected to fill and sign registration forms. However, a one-size-fits-all approach to onboarding customers hampers the user journey, since user needs differ across users such as teenagers, the elderly with impaired vision, and those with limited literacy.

To enhance the DFS user journey, we may need to redesign forms with each category of consumer in mind, making provision for diverse literacy, numeracy, language etc capabilities.

How can we leverage technology to eliminate some of these user constraints?

Transactions

How and where are transactions conducted? What types of transactions are available to customers? We have many different payment instruments and channels emerging in the ecosystem — mobile money, USSD and mobile banking, web payment, etc but how many of them are appropriate for the underserved? For instance, USSD. USSD transactions are supposed to be easier and a simpler means to money transfer, especially those with simple feature phones. However, memorising USSD strings is often cumbersome. Furthermore, a lot of mobile phone users possess just a basic utility of their mobile phones, limited to simply making calls and sending SMS.

Is the transaction ecosystem sufficient? i.e. are there enough merchants on the network to keep transactions digital or is there a need for cash?

These are important questions we need to answer to improve the transaction experience for all users, as this is central.

Support

Not every transaction will be hitch free, therefore, how well do the existing complaints resolution mechanisms enable consumers, (with their literacy limitations), to seek redress for failed transactions?

Secondly, in the transition from cash to digital money, new users will have loads of concerns, questions and complaints which the provider has to answer and resolve in a timely and satisfactory manner. FAQs can be helpful, but in what language are they written and what is the delivery model? Does it enable users express their complaints and will they get feedback in a timely and empathetic manner?

Thirdly, banking agents are often saddled with customer support responsibilities along with their other services. It is pertinent we re-evaluate the quality of training agents are receiving, especially in the areas of customer support and onboarding routines.

Cross selling

At this point, users are meant to be comfortable with DFS and use it regularly. Providers can then begin to introduce other financial services including savings, insurance, micro-pensions and loans. With access to further consumer insights, providers can also layer their services on activities which are peculiar to their consumers.

Conclusion

As you can see, the design research DFS lifecycle is very nuanced. We believe that improving DFS adoption and usage requires us to approach these processes with new lens, ready to adjust to market realities, even as we acknowledge the constraints users may face. This will enhance our ability to reach the hitherto unbanked and underserved.