Paysilo Case Study

Project

Designing Trust Into Every Transaction

In Cameroon, mobile money was everywhere, but using it was messy. People juggled apps, spreadsheets, and agent visits just to send or manage payments.

I worked with Paysilo to design a simple, mobile-first platform that brought everything together, cross-network transfers, bulk payouts, and scheduled payments tailored for local users.

Details in this case study have been generalized to respect confidentiality.

Timeline

March 2025 — Present
Date: November 2024
My Role

UI / UX Designer
Date: November 2024
Platform

iOS & Android
Date: November 2024

Overview

Paysilo is a mobile-first fintech platform launching in Cameroon, enabling seamless cross-network mobile money transfers, bulk payments, and scheduled transactions for individuals and SMEs. By applying a design thinking approach, I helped Paysilo uncover key user pain points around fragmented payment workflows and low digital trust.

As a result, Paysilo is moving forward with a validated MVP experience, equipped with intuitive interfaces, localized UX, and core features that reduce friction and support financial inclusion.

My role

UI / UX Designer – leading UX research, ideation, wireframing, prototyping, and developer collaboration.

The Problem

Managing digital payments in Cameroon is more difficult than it should be.


With millions relying on mobile money for everyday transactions, users are forced to juggle multiple apps, manual records, and inconsistent agent services to send money, schedule transfers, or run payroll. Small businesses and NGOs often depend on spreadsheets and offline methods, leading to frequent errors, delays, and compliance issues.


Without a unified system, there’s no reliable way to automate, track, or simplify payments, making it hard for individuals and SMEs to operate efficiently or grow confidently in a mobile-first economy.

User Research & Journey Mapping

I conducted user interviews and written surveys with individual users and SME operators in Cameroon to better understand their pain points around digital payments. I used these insights to create detailed personas and customer journey maps in FigJam, which helped visualize real-life usage patterns and pain points.

These journey maps were instrumental in identifying moments of friction like CSV upload confusion or network trust gaps and laid the foundation for design workshops and stakeholder presentations. This helped align the team and drive design decisions rooted in user needs.

" Switching between apps just to pay people is annoying. I wish everything was in one place "

"We use Excel sheets and send payments manually. It’s easy to mess something up, especially when the team grows."

" Switching between apps just to pay people is annoying. I wish everything was in one place "

Grounding the Design in Real Needs

Insights from user interviews helped me identify key patterns and pain points, which I translated into actionable user personas. These personas represented both individual users and SME operators, and served as a foundation for journey mapping, design decisions, and feature prioritization throughout the project

The journey involved multiple iterative stages:

User Research:


I chose a user interview as a user research method. I interviewed OrangeTheory users to uncover key pain points, such as the desire for transparency and simplified booking. The interviews aimed to explore user needs and challenges in selecting fitness instructors and booking classes through the OrangeTheory Fitness app. The goal was to gather insights on improving app features like instructor profiles, reviews, and booking processes.

Key Insights

  • Need for Instructor Transparency: Users want detailed profiles with teaching styles and expertise to make informed decisions. Value of Reviews: Feedback and ratings are crucial, with a preference for anonymous and streamlined submissions.


  • Feature Gaps: Users highlighted missing profiles, class descriptions, and reminders, impacting their experience.


  • Convenience Matters: Busy users must-have favorites, quick bookings, and better navigation


  • Feedback Barriers: Privacy concerns and effort deter reviews; simple mechanisms are needed

From these insights, I planned to take the following steps:

  • Add instructor profiles and anonymous reviews.


  • Integrate favorites, reminders, and better class descriptions.


  • Address privacy concerns to boost feedback participation.

Conceptualization

After identifying key user pain points through interviews and journey mapping, I began conceptualizing a solution that would feel intuitive, secure, and familiar to both individuals and SME users in Cameroon. My goal was to reduce complexity and unify fragmented financial workflows.

I started with rapid sketches and whiteboard flows in FigJam to explore how users might navigate top-up options, schedule payments, and confirm transactions. I prioritized:

— Clarity in navigation

— Error prevention with input validation and confirmation screens.

— Consistency across flows to reduce cognitive load

These ideas were transformed into low-fidelity wireframes, which served as the foundation for stakeholder feedback and iterative refinement. Each concept was aligned with real user needs, helping guide the development of a solution that would feel trustworthy and easy to adopt from day one.

The journey involved multiple iterative stages:

User Research:


I chose a user interview as a user research method. I interviewed OrangeTheory users to uncover key pain points, such as the desire for transparency and simplified booking. The interviews aimed to explore user needs and challenges in selecting fitness instructors and booking classes through the OrangeTheory Fitness app. The goal was to gather insights on improving app features like instructor profiles, reviews, and booking processes.

Key Insights

  • Need for Instructor Transparency: Users want detailed profiles with teaching styles and expertise to make informed decisions. Value of Reviews: Feedback and ratings are crucial, with a preference for anonymous and streamlined submissions.


  • Feature Gaps: Users highlighted missing profiles, class descriptions, and reminders, impacting their experience.


  • Convenience Matters: Busy users must-have favorites, quick bookings, and better navigation


  • Feedback Barriers: Privacy concerns and effort deter reviews; simple mechanisms are needed

From these insights, I planned to take the following steps:

  • Add instructor profiles and anonymous reviews.


  • Integrate favorites, reminders, and better class descriptions.


  • Address privacy concerns to boost feedback participation.

Insights from user interviews helped me identify key patterns and pain points, which I translated into actionable user personas. These personas represented both individual users and SME operators, and served as a foundation for journey mapping, design decisions, and feature prioritization throughout the project

The journey involved multiple iterative stages:

User Research:


I chose a user interview as a user research method. I interviewed OrangeTheory users to uncover key pain points, such as the desire for transparency and simplified booking. The interviews aimed to explore user needs and challenges in selecting fitness instructors and booking classes through the OrangeTheory Fitness app. The goal was to gather insights on improving app features like instructor profiles, reviews, and booking processes.

Key Insights

  • Need for Instructor Transparency: Users want detailed profiles with teaching styles and expertise to make informed decisions. Value of Reviews: Feedback and ratings are crucial, with a preference for anonymous and streamlined submissions.


  • Feature Gaps: Users highlighted missing profiles, class descriptions, and reminders, impacting their experience.


  • Convenience Matters: Busy users must-have favorites, quick bookings, and better navigation


  • Feedback Barriers: Privacy concerns and effort deter reviews; simple mechanisms are needed

From these insights, I planned to take the following steps:

  • Add instructor profiles and anonymous reviews.


  • Integrate favorites, reminders, and better class descriptions.


  • Address privacy concerns to boost feedback participation.

Wireframe 1

Insights from user interviews helped me identify key patterns and pain points, which I translated into actionable user personas. These personas represented both individual users and SME operators, and served as a foundation for journey mapping, design decisions, and feature prioritization throughout the project

The journey involved multiple iterative stages:

User Research:


I chose a user interview as a user research method. I interviewed OrangeTheory users to uncover key pain points, such as the desire for transparency and simplified booking. The interviews aimed to explore user needs and challenges in selecting fitness instructors and booking classes through the OrangeTheory Fitness app. The goal was to gather insights on improving app features like instructor profiles, reviews, and booking processes.

Key Insights

  • Need for Instructor Transparency: Users want detailed profiles with teaching styles and expertise to make informed decisions. Value of Reviews: Feedback and ratings are crucial, with a preference for anonymous and streamlined submissions.


  • Feature Gaps: Users highlighted missing profiles, class descriptions, and reminders, impacting their experience.


  • Convenience Matters: Busy users must-have favorites, quick bookings, and better navigation


  • Feedback Barriers: Privacy concerns and effort deter reviews; simple mechanisms are needed

From these insights, I planned to take the following steps:

  • Add instructor profiles and anonymous reviews.


  • Integrate favorites, reminders, and better class descriptions.


  • Address privacy concerns to boost feedback participation.

Wireframe 1

Putting the design to the test

I tested the prototype with 5 users (3 individuals, 2 SME owners) through remote sessions using Maze and Zoom. Tasks included topping up a wallet and uploading a CSV for bulk payments.


Key feedback highlighted confusion around dropdown behavior and CSV upload flow. Based on this, I simplified labels, added inline instructions, and ensured real-time validation.


The journey involved multiple iterative stages:

User Research:


I chose a user interview as a user research method. I interviewed OrangeTheory users to uncover key pain points, such as the desire for transparency and simplified booking. The interviews aimed to explore user needs and challenges in selecting fitness instructors and booking classes through the OrangeTheory Fitness app. The goal was to gather insights on improving app features like instructor profiles, reviews, and booking processes.

Key Insights

  • Need for Instructor Transparency: Users want detailed profiles with teaching styles and expertise to make informed decisions. Value of Reviews: Feedback and ratings are crucial, with a preference for anonymous and streamlined submissions.


  • Feature Gaps: Users highlighted missing profiles, class descriptions, and reminders, impacting their experience.


  • Convenience Matters: Busy users must-have favorites, quick bookings, and better navigation


  • Feedback Barriers: Privacy concerns and effort deter reviews; simple mechanisms are needed

From these insights, I planned to take the following steps:

  • Add instructor profiles and anonymous reviews.


  • Integrate favorites, reminders, and better class descriptions.


  • Address privacy concerns to boost feedback participation.

Seeing Results

 I’ve managed to solve key usability and workflow issues for Paysilo’s core users—especially around cross-network transfers and bulk disbursements. The redesigned experience helped simplify complex tasks like CSV uploads and scheduled payments, reducing friction for both individual users and SME operators.


✅ 33% faster task completion for mobile money top-ups



📉 60% reduction in user errors during CSV uploads



🔁 80% task success rate after usability refinements



🧭 50% improvement in navigation efficiency across core flows



💬 100% of testers said they would use the app over their current process


Project Learnings

Designing for Paysilo taught me the importance of local context and user trust especially when working on fintech products in emerging markets. Users weren’t just looking for features they needed clarity, control, and confidence in every transaction.

I learned how to:

— Translate complex financial workflows into simple, mobile-first experiences

— Prioritize accessibility and language inclusivity in a culturally specific context

— Run lean user research and usability testing remotely, yet still gather high-value insights

— Collaborate cross-functionally with stakeholders, engineers, and non-designers to align quickly

— Create and maintain a scalable design system that streamlined developer handoff

Most of all, I realized that the simplest screens often take the deepest thinking—and designing for trust is just as important as designing for usability.

Iterations on Visual design

Iteration 1


In the first iteration, I focused on simplifying the class booking process to make it more efficient and user-friendly. I introduced a Favorites feature, allowing users to save their preferred instructors for quick access, which was particularly helpful for those with busy schedules. I also added sorting options for class schedules and implemented a one-tap booking system to minimize the steps required to reserve a session. These changes made it easier for users to organize their fitness routines and improved their overall experience.

Iteration 2


In the second iteration, I worked on improving the review and feedback process to encourage more participation and ensure meaningful insights. I added an edit option for reviews, giving users the flexibility to refine their feedback before submission, and introduced anonymous review submissions to address privacy concerns. To streamline the process further, I incorporated inline review prompts directly within instructor profiles. These enhancements made it easier and more comfortable for users to leave feedback, improved the quality of reviews, and built greater trust within the Orangetheory community.

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