Project Snapshot

Online Seller Wallet
Role: UX Researcher
Timeline: 1.5 months
Team: Product Manager, UX Designer, Business Owner, Engineering Manager
Methods: Interviews, Survey

This project validated strong user demand for an in-app Seller Wallet and revealed specific friction points around payment visibility and control. Insights from the study informed the product direction and led to a proposed wallet flow that increased user confidence in managing payouts by 35% during concept testing.

The Problem

Sellers were struggling to track and manage their payments within the app. Existing workflows were fragmented, leading to confusion about earnings, delayed payouts, and extra support requests. The team needed to understand whether an in-app Seller Wallet would address these pain points and provide sellers with a clear, simple way to review their payments and move money efficiently.

How might we design an in-app Seller Wallet that lets sellers easily see, understand, and move their earnings without confusion or extra steps?

The Approach

To understand seller needs and validate the concept of an in-app Seller Wallet, I used a two-phase research approach.

Phase 1: User Interviews
I conducted in-depth interviews with 15 active sellers to explore their experiences managing payments. The goal was to uncover pain points, behaviors, and mental models around tracking earnings, understanding payment timing, and moving funds. Interviews were semi-structured, allowing sellers to share both challenges and workarounds they had developed.

Phase 2: Follow-Up Survey
Based on the interview findings, I created a survey to quantify and prioritize the pain points we had heard most frequently. The survey asked sellers to rank their top frustrations and identify which challenges had the biggest impact on their workflow. Over 100 sellers participated, providing both validation and a clear picture of which issues mattered most.

This two-step approach allowed us to combine rich qualitative insights with quantitative validation, ensuring the team understood not just what problems existed, but also how widespread and impactful they were.

Synthesis of the data

Affinity Mapping

I started by reviewing all interview notes and survey responses, grouping observations into themes using affinity mapping. Recurring patterns quickly emerged around three main areas: visibility of payments, control over funds, and workflow friction caused by workarounds.

Journey Map

I charted the typical workflow of a seller managing their payments, starting from receiving a notification of a sale, to tracking pending payments, understanding fees, and finally transferring funds. Each step included the users’ thoughts, feelings, and actions, as captured in interviews.

Key Insights

Payment visibility is a major pain point
Most sellers didn’t have a clear view of pending, completed, or scheduled payments. 72% of survey respondents said they often felt uncertain about when funds would arrive.
Manual workarounds are common
Sellers were creating spreadsheets or personal reminders to track payments, which increased cognitive load and frustration. Interviews revealed that many sellers were duplicating effort just to feel confident about their earnings.
Desire for control over funds
Sellers wanted the ability to move money between accounts or withdraw on demand. 65% of survey respondents ranked “control over transferring funds” as a top priority.
Simplifying the workflow reduces support requests
Interviewees reported contacting support when they were unsure about payment status. Providing a clear, centralized wallet could reduce support tickets and improve user confidence.
Prioritization is key
The survey helped identify which pain points mattered most: visibility of pending payments, ease of transferring funds, and understanding fees were consistently ranked highest.

Impact

The research directly informed the design and prioritization of the in-app Seller Wallet. Key outcomes included:

Validated product direction: Confirmed strong seller demand for a centralized wallet, giving the team confidence to invest in development.

Improved usability: Proposed wallet flows tested with users showed a 35% increase in confidence when managing payments.

Reduced cognitive load: Sellers reported fewer workarounds and less confusion around earnings and payouts.

Team alignment: The journey map and insights became a shared reference point for designers, PMs, and engineers, helping prioritize features based on real user needs.

The research ensured that design decisions were grounded in actual user behavior, reducing risk and improving the likelihood of adoption once the feature launched.

What I Learned

This project reinforced several important lessons as a UX researcher:

Quantitative + qualitative balance matters: Interviews provided depth, while the survey allowed us to prioritize pain points across a larger user base.

Visual synthesis drives alignment: The journey map was instrumental in helping cross-functional teams understand the problem holistically and focus on the most impactful solutions.

Small frustrations have big impact: Even minor friction points in payment workflows caused confusion, extra effort, and support tickets — showing that improving core tasks can have outsized effects on user experience.

Iterative validation is key: Combining early qualitative insights with follow-up quantitative data helped refine hypotheses and build confidence in the recommended design direction.