{"id":5209,"date":"2021-05-20T12:25:13","date_gmt":"2021-05-20T11:25:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cowrywise.com\/blog\/?p=5209"},"modified":"2023-09-20T09:48:48","modified_gmt":"2023-09-20T08:48:48","slug":"built-money-duo","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cowrywise.com\/blog\/built-money-duo\/","title":{"rendered":"How We Built Money Duo \u2764\ufe0f – A Savings Product for Lovers"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

>> Go to the updated version of Money Duo<\/strong>: Money Duo 2.0<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

It was the beginning of 2021, and people had already begun singing \u201cValentine is coming\u201d in low tones. The mood sparked up an idea in my mind to create a feature centred on love and money. What goes together better than love and money? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This was a rough piece of glass that I tossed onto the Cowrywise beach. Like sea glass<\/a> in its initial stages; the beauty of the naturally frosted glass takes a while to emerge after the weathering processes of the beach must have smoothened out its rough edges. So too does a budding idea need time for it to be properly polished. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, Cowrywrise is a startup, so rather than in several years, in a matter of weeks, we had brainstormed, gotten contributions from team members and smoothened out the idea into the jewel we now call the \u2018Money Duo\u2019 circle. The team pushed the idea beyond what I had initially dreamt. The process resulted in a product that provides value as a private joint savings plan for partners and couples. For me, this is a perfect example of design-led growth. Here\u2019s how we went through the stages of design thinking<\/a>;<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"product<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Idea flash<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

This is the initial inkling to create something. It is usually one of the most underrated stages and it is a difficult one to define since inspiration could come from anywhere. What\u2019s important at this stage is to note down what flashes you have, and validate them with some research and brainstorming with trusted individuals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Research<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

We had a fairly good idea of the sort of feature we were looking to put out, but we knew it had to be in line with what users were expecting, or we would have a fancy product that no one could relate to. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

So we conducted an informal focus group research to find out if the feature would resonate with our target audience. We outlined some stories gotten from conversations on the topic in this article; \u2018How five Nigerians manage joint savings and investment<\/a>\u2019. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The consensus was that it was a feature that our core users would love. With some validation as wind at our backs, we forged on to define the specifics of the Money Duo circle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Definition<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

At this stage, we outlined what problems we sought to address with the Money Duo Circle. A key consideration was to grow financial intimacy with couples and partners in a way that was fun and engaging. We also picked a strategic launch date of the day before Valentine\u2019s Day to tap into the buzz and frenzy of love in the air. With a couple of brainstorming<\/a> sessions, we defined ideal user personas to guide our thinking and came up with a user flow for the product. We also defined our metrics here, what targets we aimed to meet with this product and a specific time frame. Next up was the ideation and development stage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ideation & development<\/strong> – How we built Money Duo Circle<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

We brainstormed on several approaches to the implementation and eventually went with the one best engineered for usability and conversions. The diagram below depicts the user flow we adopted on launch day and the current flow we adopted after the launch phase. On the launch day, we made sure the new feature was easily visible by placing a prompting card on the home screen, linking to the Duo page within the app.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"User<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Our lead product designer, Feyisayo Sonubi<\/a>, started off with the interface design for the product. We also tested the logic cases for the feature engineering, led by David Obi<\/a>, our senior software engineer.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Logic<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Prototyping and testing<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The feature was ready to be deployed a week to the launch date. All team members helped to test out the new feature; identifying and resolving bugs and other usability issues. It was a feature we were all excited about.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"design<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Any issues we discovered were resolved and the product feature was tested further.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Launch and marketing<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

A week before the launch, we had begun to build up hype for the new feature by promoting content around love and money through our channels and using the hashtag #MoneyDuo<\/a>. The questions had trickled in. What is Money Duo? Our response: Anticipate!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Hey there, what\u2019s your date-worth??
Take a screenshot and share using #MoneyDuo<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/AIdXqENpc5<\/a><\/p>— Cowrywise (@cowrywise) February 9, 2021<\/a><\/blockquote>