93%
Had no pension scheme
Work / APil Me
APil Me
A mobile and web platform bringing insurance, pensions and savings to Nigeria's informal workers: traders, farmers, transport workers and artisans. I was one of four designers on a redesign driven by usability testing.
- Role
- Product designer
- Type
- Mobile app and web admin
- Team
- 4 product designers
- Timeline
- 6 months
APil Me / Screens
The problem
Most of Nigeria's informal workers have no access to insurance, pensions or credit. A 2022 survey found 82% of respondents had no insurance and 93% had no pension.
APil Me already had a prototype. Usability testing with 15 people in Lagos showed it was well thought out but hard to use, so the team set out to redesign it.
The goal
Make a financial tool that feels intuitive, accessible and trustworthy to people who may be new to digital finance, so they understand the services and actually use them.
How might we design the interface so it works for such a varied group of users and keeps them engaged?
How we worked
We started from the usability findings, then redesigned in loops of testing and feedback with stakeholders.
Mapping every flow
- What
- User flows for sign-up, customer verification, top-ups, claims and viewing customers, to find entry points and where people got stuck.
- Then
- An information architecture with a clear hierarchy of services, so users can find the one they need.
Fixing the old screens
- Problem
- Elements were inconsistent from screen to screen, and layouts broke on different phone sizes.
- What I did
- Rebuilt the screens on a single system, with consistent patterns and layouts that hold up on small phones.
Apil Gear, the design system
- What
- With colleague Daniel Joseph, I led the design system: colour, type, components and interaction patterns.
- Why
- Four designers shipping to one app needed a shared base, and it made handoff to developers clean.
Collaboration and handoff
I set up the documentation system and a handoff process that the other designers followed, so work moved from design to development without gaps.
Context and outcome
82%
Of respondents had no insurance (2022 survey)
15
People in usability testing in Lagos
APil Me was still in development when this case study was written. Its aim: more financial inclusion and less vulnerability for informal workers.
What I learned
Know the user deeply
Designing for people new to digital finance means every label and step has to earn trust.
Partnerships drive adoption
The right partners matter as much as the product for getting it into people's hands.
Next project
Deckr
An AI study platform I designed and built on my own.
Deckr / Cover
Have something to build?
I take on product design and build projects for founders and teams anywhere. Tell me what you're making.
adesodun67@gmail.com