This research was conducted for a student at MIT participating in a business club competition. The challenge: start a business and get it as far as you can in one week. My role during this week long competition was to validate the initial problem statement and determine whether or not the product idea should be pursued.
Tools: Google Forms & Google Sheets
Project Time Frame: 1 week
Initial Brainstorm
This client reached out to me because they knew I had designed surveys for other businesses. During our first meeting, we discussed the current problem they had and what their goals were in having research done. The problem my client wanted to address with their new business had to do with the current design of attachable cell-phone wallets. He personally had a lot of problems with his cell wallet and wanted to see if this was a problem other people had as well.
Survey Design
After identifying what the goal of the research was, and the types of problems my client was looking to address, I designed my survey questions and put them into Google Forms.
Results and Analysis
Participants: Undergraduate Students from MIT
Number of Participants: 108
Summary of Insights:
Of the participants who have used an attachable cell phone wallet, 73% had problems with their case ripping and 60% have had trouble getting their cards out of their wallet. Beyond this, 41% of participants stated that they are not currently using a cell phone wallet, with many participants stating the problems above as reasons (ripping, can’t get cards out). One other issue that came up many times was security, many participants stated that they did not feel the cell phone wallets they have used are secure, fearing that they will lose their cards eventually. 40 out of 65 respondents gave answers either directly or indirectly about the wallet not being secure enough. This is one of the main reasons participants gave for not carrying cash.
Overall, there is a need for a cell phone wallet that allows users to securely store their cards or cash, while still having easy access to them when needed. The wallet will also need to be fairly durable, so that it does not rip with regular use.
Question 1:
65 participants have previously used an attachable cell phone wallet.
Question 2: Types of Wallets
Of the 65 participants, 56 of them have used a rubber stick on wallet.
Question 3: Problems People Have with Cell Phone Wallets
48 participants have problems with their case ripping or becoming worn out.
39 participants have trouble getting their cards out of the wallet.
35 participants are not able to fit all their cards into one wallet.
22 participants have trouble with their cards falling out of the wallet
2 Main Problems: Case ripping or becoming damaged, can’t easily get cards out of wallet
Question 4: Currently Using a Cell Phone Wallet
37 respondents of the 65 are currently using a cp wallet (57%)
27 respondents are not using a cp wallet
Question 5: Reasons for no Longer Using a Wallet
Wallet broke or fell off of phone
Use digital wallet instead
Use a case that has a wallet in it
Previous wallet did not feel secure
Previous wallet did not provide easy access to cards
Doesn’t fit cards
Wallet is too bulky
People want a phone that looks good, or the opportunity to decorate.
Question 6: Reasons for Using a Wallet
Of the 37 participants currently using a cell phone wallet, 29 said they use the wallet for quicker access to their cards, while 27 said they use the wallet so they don’t need to carry anything else around.
Question 7: Do you carry cash in your cell phone wallet?
About a 3rd of participants stated that they carried cash in their cp wallet, for various purposes.
Most people did not feel carrying cash in their wallet was secure, fearing that it would fall out or someone would see them carrying it.
One participant stated they kept cash in their wallet to make sure their cards didn’t fall out.
Of the people who didn’t carry cash in their wallet, some people stated getting cash into their wallet in the first place was too difficult.
Next Steps
The research conducted showed that within the MIT Community, there is a need that is not being met within the current cell phone wallet market. With this in mind, the client decided to continue with producing his prototype. I have also recruited several people for a usability test when the prototype arrives.
