This document summarizes a presentation given by Amy Buckner of AnswerLab to Pamela Walshe of Wells Fargo about conducting mobile user experience research. The presentation discussed AnswerLab's approach of using mobile ethnography over 4-8 weeks with 30 users to understand customer mobile behaviors, needs, and opportunities to improve Wells Fargo's mobile offerings. Key findings included that financial need rather than age drives mobile usage, customers want on-demand access, and the mobile experience needs to support different contexts of use. Recommendations focused on internalizing insights, socializing findings, and taking action to enhance the customer experience.

1. Into the Wild:
Uncovering Holistic
Mobile Insights
Amy Buckner
amy@answerlab.com
Pamela Walshe
pamela.walshe@wellsfargo.com
June 23, 2011
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2. CONFIDENTIAL 2
Introductions
Pamela Walshe
VP, Customer Research
Phone: 415.222.3033
Email: pamela.walshe@wellsfargo.com
Wells Fargo
550 California St., 2nd Floor
San Francisco, CA 94104
Amy Buckner
Managing Partner & Co-Founder
Phone: 415.814.9669
Email: amy@answerlab.com
AnswerLab
160 Spear Street, Suite 700
San Francisco, CA 94105

3. About AnswerLab
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4. Goals for Today’s Presentation
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Goal 1
Learn New
Mobile
Research
Strategy
Goal 2
See It
Applied
Goal 3
Learn Best
Practices

5. The Mobile
Landscape
Today
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6. Source: mobilefuture.org
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7. Introduction to
Wells Fargo
Mobile Channel
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8. Wells Fargo Rapid Mobile Adoption
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5.5 Million
Users in
4 Yrs
It took half as long to
reach 5.5 million mobile
users as it did to enroll the
same number of online
bankers.

9. Wells Fargo Mobile Retail Channel
• Three easy ways to access and bank on mobile devices
– Text Banking
– Mobile optimized website (wf.com)
– Downloadable apps for iPhone, Android, Blackberry and Palm
– Plus…enterprise SMS service provider (SMS alerts, 2FA)
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10. Mobile Strategic Objectives
Ensure
Strategic Fit
with the Bank
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Focus on
Relevant
Content
for Mobile
Deliver on
Top
Customer
Needs

11. Unique Challenges for Mobile
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Targeted &
Relevant
Content for
Mobile
Optimize
Design for
Mobile
Seamless
Customer
Experience

12. Wells Fargo Research Goals
•Deepen understanding
of mobile usage,
behaviors, and context
• Identify unmet customer
needs; innovation
opportunities
•Re-evaluate existing
offerings in context
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13. How Might You
Approach This
Research
Problem?
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14. Mobile Ethnography Benefits
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Opportunity
Gaps
Usability
Improvements
Interaction Modes &
Use Cases
Understanding of
Audience
Mobile
Ethnography

15. How Does It Work?
30 Users over 4-8 Weeks
Mobile Site, Mobile Apps, SMS
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16. CONFIDENTIAL 16
What is he
trying to do?
Where is
he?
What are his
impressions?
Did he
accomplish what
he came to do?
Was he satisfied?
What else does
he need?
What Do We Learn?

17. Group Activity
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18. Group Activity (15 minutes)
1. Get into groups of 3-4 people
2. Brainstorm ideas for keeping research
participants engaged
3.Consider the types of data/artifacts that would
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be valuable

19. How We Did It
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20. Mid-Check
Interview
• 20-minute check-in
phone interview
• Initial feedback
• Q&A
• In-home 2-hour
interview
• Clarify voicemail
reports
• Overall impressions of
the product
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Study Design
Pre-Interview
• Initial 45-minute
interview
• Verify technical
capabilities of phone
• Explain research
program
Ongoing Self-Reporting – 4 Weeks – 30 Users
In-Person
Interview
Voicemails & Pocket Card
• Daily voicemails
• Laminated pocket card with questions
Digital Photos
• Users send photos of themselves or
surroundings in the context of using
online banking

21. Wallet Cards & Voice Mails
…Hey, this is Alden…I think that the mobile
device could help me with my finances if I set it to
get alerts that will let me know if it's a low balance
or something like that. That way I can avoid a
return check or banking fees…[also] I am following
NFL football practically every game of the day. I'm
able to follow it on my cell phone, which is excellent --
on the internet…
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22. Participant Photos
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23. Focus on Participant Engagement
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• Don’t short-change
incentives
• Provide a roadmap
• Build a relationship
• Show you’re listening
• Spice up feedback

24. Business Impact
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25. Understanding Adoption Drivers
Financial Need and Complexity – Not Age or
Tech Savviness – Drive Mobile Use
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26. Challenging Assumptions
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Assumption:
Customers will most
likely use mobile banking
in an emergency/while
traveling
Truth:
Customers want to use
mobile banking any time,
anywhere – even when a
computer is accessible

27. Understanding the Value to the Customer
Mobile Has Redefined “Convenience”
...If I just want to check the
weather or something really
quickly I’m not going to turn my
laptop on just to check it. I’m
going to grab my phone,
because it’s fastest. I’m going
to lookup what ever it is I’m
looking for. I’m just Goggling
something if I want to check the
weather real fast or whatever,
I’m going to use this first…
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28. Identifying Mobile Modes
Modes Influence What Tasks/Activities they Will
Engage In
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...Wouldn’t it be great if I
could tell it that every time
there was a direct deposit
made to my account, I could
go into the app…and just like
on Facebook…there’s a little
red one and it tells me that I’ve
go something to do, or a
message that I can look at?...
10
- Jeff

29. Identifying Key Use Cases
Checking Balances in Real-time Enables Good
Decision-Making
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…I’m checking my
balances. I’m checking to
see if a deposit has
cleared. I’m checking to see
if a payment that either I’ve
scheduled or that’s
automated every month has
gone out…
– Jerry

30. Refining Existing Offerings
The ATM Locator Experience Continues to
Evolve as New Design Patterns Emerge
– Qui
…What I can do is, my Google map actually has me
driving and can pull up ATMs. It shows where I am
relative to the ATM, what direction we’re going in and stuff.
I typically use the Google map for that, because I tried to
use the map in the Wells Fargo app one time, and it
was just too difficult to navigate that map without my
actual GPS location. That would be really cool, that I
would use more often…
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31. Best Practices
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32. Ensure Successful Home Visits
• Teach key stakeholders:
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– Active listening
– How to observe
– Field work etiquette
• Determine visiting team
– Moderator, client, optional videographer (3 max)

33. Creatively Collect and Display Artifacts
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• Encourage variety of
media
• Ping via SMS survey
• Leverage email alias &
Google Voice
• Collect in Evernote

34. Develop Collaborative Analysis Process
• Excel Template
• Participant Profiles
• Topline Readout
• Collaborative Analysis
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35. Ensuring
Success
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36. The Real “Life” of the Research Starts
After the Report is Delivered
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Internalize
What?
Socialize
So
What?
Take Action
Now
What?

37. CONFIDENTIAL 37
Internalize
the Findings
What?
• Really listen to what
customers said
• Re-calibrate
assumptions
• Build shared
understanding by
embedding insights into
User-centered Design
Tools

38. So
What?
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Socialize
• Socialize broadly to
discover opportunities for
the business and
cultivate advocates to
champion the findings

39. Now
What?
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Take Action
• Facilitate strategic
planning sessions to plot
short and long-term
opportunities on your road
map
• Apply user-centered
design tools to ensure
alignment with customer
needs throughout project
life cycle

40. Drive Customer Satisfaction and
Grow Net Promoters
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41. Thank You.
Amy Buckner
amy@answerlab.com
Pamela Walshe
pamela.walshe@wellsfargo.com
CONFIDENTIAL 41