Bluebird Report
by
Sarah Letham
Final Project for the completion of
HF 780 –Field Methods
Professor MeenaKothandaraman
Executive Summary
Research was conducted to investigate who Bluebird users are, what they understand about Bluebird,
whether the Bluebird value proposition is compelling, and how Bluebird can extend its role toward
unbanked and underbanked customers.
From the data four Personas were formed: Bill Burned by Banks, Privacy Paula, Aspirational Alice, and
Functional Frank.
Bill Burned by Banks’ attitude, expectations, and experience have been shaped by his previous negative
experience with banks. He could be happy with Bluebird but he feels he has been mistreated before,
and trust needs to be built before he can accept Bluebird.
Privacy Paula is very concerned about where and how her personal information is shared. She will
forego a service she is otherwise interested in if that service requires her to give up too much personal
information.
Aspirational Alice longs for bigger and better things, and associates American Express with prestige. In
the short term, she wants a card like Bluebird to help her form good financial habits, and in the long
term she wants a prestigious high-limit credit card.
Functional Frank just wants a useful card that is accepted anywhere, a card that isn’t too flashy so it
doesn’t draw attention or suspicion from merchants. He doesn’t want to think about the card, he just
wants to use it without hassle.
Common difficulties discussed in the research included initially locating the Bluebird card, as well as
misconceptions about what the Bluebird card is and what it offers. None of the six participants
obtained the Bluebird card simply by finding it themselves in a Walmart; four were shown the Bluebird
by a Walmart employee, and two ordered the card online. At least one was directed to Bluebird by a
cashier at the point of sale, and had to get out of line to get the card off of the shelf. Users had heard
about Bluebird mainly through word of mouth.
Common misconceptions included the idea that Bluebird is a Walmart-use-only card, that Bluebird is
an American Express credit card, and that Bluebird does not offer online protection. One user initially
believed a prepaid Visa card was the Bluebird card.
The placement of Bluebird in Walmart stores should be changed so that users can easily find the
Bluebird. The Bluebird box and site should also clearly explain what Bluebird is in order to prevent
misconceptions.
Goals
Four primary client goals were provided:
1. Who is getting Bluebird and why?
2. Do consumers understand the Bluebird Value Proposition?
3. Is the Bluebird Value Proposition compelling – and why?
4. How well did we communicate the Bluebird offering/ Value Proposition?
The client added the following generalized goals:
We would like to gain insights in the following three categories:
1. Who are the consumers?
2. What do the consumers/purchasers understand about Bluebird?
3. What do non-users/purchasers understand about Bluebird?
In the Q&A session with our client representative, three more client questions were raised:
1. What do people think they're picking up and taking home? (Lots of boxes go home that never
result in a signup – what's going on there?)
2. Do people pick up the box and take it home without knowing what it is? Why?
3. How can the client extend their role toward unbanked and underbanked customers?
I decided to focus on four main areas. It should be noted that data gathered would cross borders
between questions; for example, in examining what people understand about Bluebird, participants
would also comment about whether they found Bluebird’s value proposition compelling and why.
1. Who is getting Bluebird and why?
2. What do consumers/purchasers understand about Bluebird?
3. Is the Bluebird Value Proposition compelling – and why?
4. How can the client extend their role toward unbanked and underbanked customers?
Initial user definition
Originally users were defined before the study as “the unbanked and the underbanked.” This was the
definition provided and supported by Walmart. The assumption was that Bluebird users would be
primarily low income, and from Walmart we heard that they typically had problems with bank fees,
especially hidden fees, and that the American Express brand was aspirational and prestigious. Our
original user definition page, written at the beginning of the study, is directly below. Our revisited user
definition profiles are found in the Analysis section further in the report.
Based on the goals outlined by Walmart – finding out who are consumers, what do users understand
about Bluebird, what do non-users understand about Bluebird – I believe Personas would be the best
way to define and present the user population (and possibly non-user population). Personas help to
define usage patterns and a deeper understanding of users' motivations.
User profiles may be the most appropriate way to define the Bluebird User population if variations in
behavior patterns and motivations fall along demographic lines (such as income, SES, or age group),
but I hypothesize that correlation will be minimal between variations in demographics and variations in
behavior/motivations. Furthermore, user profiles would not have the depth and breadth of Personas
in description of behavior patterns and motivations, which are key to answering stakeholder questions.
Therefore, for this project personas are the best user definition method to properly answer
stakeholder questions with the necessary depth and detail to provide meaningful results. However, at
this time we do not have the data necessary to create well-founded personas, so we will simply
examine what we know and expect about our users at this time:
Typically banking alternatives such as check-cashing are aimed at lower-income/lower SES consumers.
Bluebird is offered through Wal-Mart, which is more accessible to lower-income/lower SES consumers
because of their low prices and widespread market penetration.
Based on the Bluebird page it seems that Bluebird is aiming for a target of people who do not use
banks because of hurdles such as account minimums and overdraft fees, but who want to use the
services that a bank provides.
This target may be too narrow – How big is the group of potential users? Are there many people who
want bank services but do not find it feasible through a bank?
• According to the FDIC, the unbanked population of America is roughly 8.2% of adult population,
or roughly 10 million adults
• The Bluebird also targets people who use banks, but who want different features in their debit
card – let's look at those users too and what they want because it's a much larger potential
pool of people:
http://thecitywire.com/node/25648#.UQNuPmd18jZ
"Other prepaid cards, including Wal-Mart’s own branded product, have targeted the
unbanked, which according to the FDIC is roughly 8.2% of the adult population or 10
million adults.
Ben Jackson, senior analyst with Mercator Advisory Group, says Bluebird goes after
another demographic -- the underbanked. The FDIC estimates the underbanked at
20.1% of the population or 24 million adults."
Regardless of target size, we want to examine Bluebird users and potential users and find out what
their usage patterns, motivations, and needs are.
Methods
Six 20-30 minute interviews were conducted over a two-day period to gather the data. Four of the six
were current Bluebird users, one was still waiting for their card to come in the mail, and one did not
use Bluebird but bought it for her daughter (who regularly uses it).
Protocol
Participants arrive at the facility, sign in, then sign a recording consent form. They are then led into the
interviewing room, where the interviewer greets them and invites them to take a seat for the
interview.The interviewer explains that they will be asking some questions about general banking
history before moving on to questions about the Bluebird card.
Opening questions – general bank account
1. "Do you have a bank account?"
a. If no (no bank account): "Have you ever had an account?"*
i. If no (no bank account ever): "Why did you chose not to have an account?" /
"Why is that?" "What were the problems?"*
ii. If yes (bank account before, not now): "Why did you close the account?" /
"What led to your decision?" "What were the benefits?" "What were the
difficulties?" "What services did you use most?" "What services would you
have wanted? "*
b. If yes (have a bank account): "What are the benefits?" "What are the difficulties?"
"What services do you use most?" "What other services would you want?"
*I never ended up asking these questions – all participants had bank accounts
2. Which bank do you use?
a. How long have you been with them?
b. Have you ever used any other banks? (If so, for how long?)
3. "Do you have a debit card?"
a. If no (no debit card): "Have you ever had a debit card?"
i. If no (no debit card ever): "Why is that?"
ii. If yes (debit card before, not now): "What led to you not having it any more?"
/ "What led to your decision?" "What were the benefits?" "What were the
difficulties?"
b. If yes (has a debit card): "What are the benefits?" "What are the difficulties?" "How
well does it satisfy your needs?" "What is lacking?"
Bluebird user
1. "Tell me about how you acquired the Bluebird card"
2. "How has your experience with Bluebird compared to your initial expectations?" (Or broken up
– What were your expectations of Bluebird? How has your experience compared to those
expectations?)
3. "What influenced your decision to sign up?"
4. "Tell me what you know about Bluebird." > (When they mention features, probe to see if they
do or don't use those features)
5. "What do you like about Bluebird? / What do you like about using it?"
6. "What do you dislike about Bluebird? / What are your difficulties using it?"
7. (If they mentioned having a debit card – "How does the Bluebird experience compare with your
other debit card experiences?" Similarities? Differences?)
8. "If you could do anything to improve Bluebird, what would it be?"
Bluebird non-adopter
1. "Tell me about how you acquired the card." (Prompt or ask – what were they surprised by?)
2. "What were your initial expectations about Bluebird?" "How has the reality differed from
those expectations?"
3. "What has influenced your decision to not adopt?"
4. "Tell me what you know about Bluebird."
5. "What else have you heard about Bluebird?"
6. "Is there something Bluebird could change that might make you interested in adopting?"
At the end, the interviewer thanks the participant for their time, then leads the participant to to the
waiting area. The participant is given their remuneration and signs out, then departs.
Analysis/findings
Who is getting Bluebird and why?
We interviewed six participants and from data gathered in interviews formulated the following four
personas:
1. Bill Burned by Banks – “It’s all a business, they don’t care about the little guy.”
a. Defining Characteristics
i. Feels he has been mistreated by banks
ii. Dissatisfied with banks but still use services out of feeling of necessity
b. Motivations
i. Feel taken care of by their financial service provider
ii. Have a place to put his funds
c. Barriers
i. Feels that financial institutions don’t care about non-rich people
ii. Suspicious of financial institutions due to negative past experiences
d. Opportunities
i. Bluebird is not a bank, can provide the same services without the downsides
ii. Provide services and customer service that will help him feel valued and taken
care of
iii. Be transparent and trustworthy to alleviate suspicion
2. Aspirational Alice – “Maybe one day I can even have the Black card, but I’m not there yet.”
a. Defining Characteristics
i. Appreciates the American Express brand, associates it with prestige
ii. Uses debit for financial control, but aspires to greater wealth and good credit
b. Motivations
i. Establish financial stability
ii. Prestige
iii. Wishes to teach her children financial responsibility
c. Barriers
i. Prepaid cards look cheap and detract from status and prestige
ii. However not yet financially secure enough to afford a more prestigious card
d. Opportunities
i. Offer rewards for financial responsibility, possibly allow customers to set goals
and reward users for achieving those goals
ii. One possible reward for long-term financial responsibility could be a line of
credit, such as an Amex Green card
iii. Promote Bluebird as a financial teaching tool for children and teens
3. Privacy Paula – “Why do they need my social security number?”
a. Defining Characteristics
i. Reticent to share personal information, especially online
ii. Doesn’t want to provide any more information than absolutely necessary for
the functioning of a service
b. Motivations
i. Keep her account and personal information safe
ii. Reduce anxiety
c. Barriers
i. Worried about identity theft, possibly already a victim in the past
ii. Wary of online services and putting information online
iii. Not computer savvy
d. Opportunities
i. Offer an offline registration alternative (such as signing up with customer
service on the phone)
ii. Do not ask for any more personal details (such as social security number) than
absolutely necessary
iii. Bluebird account not linked to main account, so even if their Bluebird card
information is stolen their main account is safe
4. Functional Frank – “It looks just like a regular credit card.”
a. Defining Characteristics
i. Wants his technology invisible and functional
ii. Wants a card that looks plain and classy like a regular debit or credit card
iii. He wants a card that is accepted anywhere
b. Motivations
i. Use card to make purchases without hassle
ii. Use debit to control spending
c. Barriers
i. American Express isn’t taken everywhere
ii. Has been blacklisted by banks before due to overdraft
iii. Doesn’t want a flashy prepaid card, which he thinks looks suspicious to
vendors
d. Opportunities
i. Increase the amount of places American Express is taken
ii. Offer steady and reliable services
What do consumers/purchasers understand bout Bluebird?
• Numerous misconceptions about Bluebird were revealed during interviews
o Two of six users were under the impression that Bluebird is a card only for use at
Walmart
▪ One of these two later realized that the card was general use after receiving
and using the card; the other still believes Bluebird is a Walmart-use card
o One participant picked up a prepaid Visa card thinking it was the Bluebird card
o One participant thought it was a credit card until her friend (another user) explained
that it was prepaid debit
▪ This participant does, however, appreciate that when colleagues see her use
the card, it looks like she is using an American Express credit card, which
implies a level of prestige
o Three of six participants expressed a desire for buyer protection, particularly online
buyer protection, clearly unaware that Bluebird comes with American Express buyer
protection
o One participant was unsure whether the Bluebird card could be used at a supermarket
Is the Bluebird Value Proposition compelling – and why?
• All users discussed fees during the interview
o This supports the core Bluebird facet that fees should be few, low, and transparent
o All users also discussed overdraft and overdraft fees
o Four of sixparticipants cited bank fees as too high
▪ Complaints were not about the fees being hidden; users were aware of their
bank’s fee structure even if they were not happy with it
o All users said that Bluebird’s fee structure is reasonable
▪ One of six users does not believe that Bluebird will be able to maintain the fee
structure, and that they will eventually raise fees, add hidden fees, or both
• Users typically used a small range of services
o Beyond balance reloading, debit use, and direct deposit, no other Bluebird services
were mentioned by any of the six participants as being used
o This finding, coupled with the above findings about misconceptions, indicates that
many of the additional services offered by Bluebird are either superfluous or unknown
How can Bluebird extend its role toward underbanked and unbanked customers?
• Advertise the product more widely, and educate the public about what Bluebird is
o In 4 of 6 cases participants were pointed toward Bluebird through word of mouth
o That means Bluebird is relying on users to educate other users
▪ While word of mouth is valuable, a company wants a hand in shaping its own
brand
▪ Advertisement that educates about Bluebird may dispel the misconceptions users
and potential users have about Bluebird
• Difficulties
o Issues locating Bluebird in Walmart
▪ 4 of 6 participants were helped by a Walmart employee to find the Bluebird card
in the Walmart store. The other 2 participants ordered their cards online.
• One of the four participants went in looking for a Bluebird, but went to
the Prepaid card area and could not find it
• She almost bought a Visa prepaid card instead, until she spoke to the
Cashier about Bluebird and was directed to the aisle of Bluebird boxes
• This user explained that the Bluebird cards were tucked away in a section
very far away from the prepaid cards, and she never would have found it
on her own
o Online registration
▪ For one participant it was a barrier to her use, especially since she was asked for
her Social Security number and she did not feel comfortable giving it out
▪ She called Customer Service to register over the phone and was dismayed to find
out that she could not do so
• Trust issues – trust and mistrust
o Mistrust of banks and big financial institutions
o Mistrust of card use due to identity theft
▪ Especially online
o Mistrust of people gathering your personal information
• The value of control
o 3 mentioned self-control through Debit use, 2 mentioned control of money when used by
others (in one case his employees, in another case her child)
• Benefits
o Use as a financial teaching tool
o "It’s a great Emergency card"
o Immediate access to funds
o Looks nice, doesn’t look like a prepaid card (which is associated with cheapness and low
class), looks like a regular debit or credit card
• Comparisons with competitors
o Paypal received unanimous compliments from users
▪ Requires minimal personal information
• One user described Paypal’s request for personal information as "just your
e-mail"
▪ Does not flood user with spam
▪ Provides a feeling of security purchasing online
▪ Limits on immediate availability of cash are reasonable and stable so the user can
plan accordingly
o Bank debit cards had advantages and drawbacks
▪ Liability because they are linked to main bank account
• Potential of incurring overdraft
• Identity theft danger
▪ Tend to be issued by Visa or Mastercard, which are more widely accepted than
American Express
o Prepaid cards were not rated as highly as Bluebird
▪ Prepaid cards were seen as cheap and flashy – one user described a gaudy
rainbow design – while Bluebird looks "like a regular debit card"
• Prepaid debit cards are looked on with disdain and/or suspicion by some
vendors, but Bluebird’s simple design doesn’t raise any red flags
▪ Bluebird has only one $5 fee while other prepaid cards have a fee each time they
are releoaded (users estimated this fee at between 2 and 5 dollars)
• Brands
o American Express
▪ Three of six users associated Bluebird with the American Express brand
▪ Of those users, one had a strongly positive association, as that user associates
American Express with prestige and good credit
▪ The other two users had mildly negative views – one due to distrust of corporate
financial institutions, the other due to American Express being accepted at fewer
places than Visa
▪ Two users of six had positive associations with American Express related to Travel
experiences
▪ Associated with luxury and prestige
o Walmart
▪ Two of six users associated Bluebird with the Walmart brand
▪ For both of those users, Walmart was associated primarily with low prices
▪ Associated with functional benefits
Future Research
Future research should address certain points not sufficiently covered in this study. Probe more into
Overdraft experiences, which affected all users and may be an opportunity for Bluebird to service
customers further. Possible questions: “Have you ever gone into overdraft with Bluebird?”“What was
that experience like?”“How does that experience compare with bank overdrafts?”
Further probing into the Paypal consumer experience and brand image may shed light on desires and
expectations that consumers have of banking alternatives.
Research should also examine consumer reactions to suggested changes in displayed information,
locations inWalmart, and consumer services.
References
For Financial demographics:Bluebird card gets mixed reviews by Kim Souza
http://thecitywire.com/node/25648#.USq4O1f3tiO
For finding consulting fee from salary: Consulting fee rates | Consultant fees by Andréa Coutu
http://consultantjournal.com/blog/setting-consulting-fee-rates
User Research salary:Payscale.com metrics
www.payscale.com/research/US/Job=User_Experience_Researcher/Salary
Front page image from: https://bluebird.com/
Inspiration for the info graphic:http://www.informationisbeautiful.net/play/snake-oil-supplements/
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