Bankit - A Case Study in Digital Payment Solution Systems in India
By: Dhun Patel
What is Bankit?
A fintech brand, Bankit is a UPI enabled hassle-free, assisted payment solution system for money transfers, domestic remittances, recharges, travel bookings and bill payments backed by Aadhaarshila, a company credited with being part of the Aadhaar implementation in India.
The Premise
In the brief, Bankit was conceptualised as a single gateway service for myriad users. The target audience comprised of end users as well as channel partners:
Young urban consumers, familiar with technology and digital wallets
Under-banked consumers predominantly semi-urban / migrant population
Retailers and young entrepreneurs looking for a supplementary income
The Ask
Develop the branding, interface for the digital platform, and marketing communication for the launch of the new brand.
Our Solution
As we began mining data to understand the consumer and competitive environment, our insights revealed that the needs of the two end user target groups differed considerably.
While young urban consumers were well-versed with the concept of digital wallets and used these efficiently to their advantage, the under-banked sector needed help to navigate the world of digital banking services. In effect, we were faced with two diverse groups.
Given that both these groups sought different solutions, we worked with the client to split the bouquet of services to suit the needs of each consumer group, leading to the development of two separate brands:
Cashnow for the tech-savvy urban group with digital remittances and value-added services
Bankit, to address the basic banking needs of the under-banked sector, with its services offered via an assisted model delivered by the channel partners (retailers), through a network of retail stores and kiosks
Once we established the need for two brands, we set about defining the visual strategy for each brand independently.
Building Brand Bankit
During the course of our research we observed that while basic banking facilities and hassle-free daily banking transactions were essential for consumers, top-of-mind for this target group was the factor of security. It was vital for users to instinctively trust the brand, an issue we addressed with the brand name and identity.
Using the word ‘Bank’ in the name of the service enabled us to create instant recognition and understanding for the brand offerings, while leveraging the trust that people have built in banking institutions over the years.
The identity was made using a lock and a finger print. This unit was designed to deliver the subliminal message that the platform is secure, and transactions carried out are safe. It also complemented another vital fact about Bankit, i.e. its services are linked to consumers’ Aadhar cards and biometrics on account of being an Aadhar Enabled Payment System (AEPS). Blue was our choice of colour since it is scientifically known to induce feelings of trust, stability and expertise; all qualities that the banking and financial sector seeks to be associated with.
We adopted a bilingual strategy for the brand identity unit, which comprises of English and one other language, Hindi or regional. The identity for each of these languages has been designed with a lot of thought, where font selection and refinements were made to be in line with the character of the English script.
In order for the brand to be a success and the target audience to be able to identify with it, it was necessary for us to establish a variety of visual touch-points that were relevant to the audience. We created in-store communication for Bankit, where the visual touch-points were carefully planned and designed to communicate the brand benefits and build trust in the minds of the end users. We designed communication that focused on the aspirations of the target group. Working closely with the client’s teams, we also positioned Bankit as a partner to the retailer’s growth. To that end, we developed communication to be used on various digital platforms that would encourage and convince prospective retailers to partner with Bankit.
The interiors and communication within the kiosks or shops were planned in a manner that would instill a sense of pride in the retailers for Bankit, in addition to encouraging customers to walk in and avail the various assisted digital wallet services offered.
The UI and UX was designed to be clean, simple and devoid of unnecessary add-ons. Understanding that the channel partners would need to service numerous clients together, the interface focussed on completing transactions as quickly as possible. We worked towards making the entire online experience (portal and mobile app) a seamless one that would be easy to navigate and use, and at the same time look robust and secure.
The debit card was another key touchpoint we designed. For many users this would be the first debit card they would own, and it was important that they feel proud and empowered using it.
The entire objective of our strategy was to position Bankit as a trust-worthy financial institution, a true partner in peoples’ progress. We successfully achieved this by focussing on ease and over all convenience of user experience at various levels. Implementing positive and empowering messages throughout our offline and online communication.
Therefore Design’s wholistic view of the needs and impact, combined with a systems approach to the brand development has played an integral role in the success of Bankit. Today, it is a case study that other fintech start-ups are looking to emulate.
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