Qrios: Culturally connecting finance
Problem
Making finance more friendly
One of the biggest changes in modern finance has been the convenience of digitally managing our money. Yet the not-so-tech-savvy are still so intimidated by technology that they remain unbanked and left behind.
Qrios Inc. is an innovative Nigerian software solutions company that seeks to revolutionize the mobile financial services landscape. Qrios recognized the importance of digital cultural representation, and aimed to integrate custom emojis and icons into their mobile financial services platform. This allowed their African users to make interpersonal transactions while making the idea of digital finance more accessible and friendly.
Solution
Cultural inclusion in digital finance
Our strategy was to embed cultural richness and familiarity into financial communications through the creation of "Afro Emojis." These custom emojis were designed to make money conversations more approachable and enjoyable.
Cultural Integration: Central to our design was the garden egg, a fruit deeply ingrained in African cuisine and culture, chosen for its recognizability and significance. This element served as a unifying motif across the emoji collection.
Research-Driven Design: As a Jamaican team, we could relate to many of the cultural gestures, references and personalities from various African countries featured in the emojis. But we also recognized some important differences. To deepen our understanding, we researched various African cultures to ensure the animations were authentic and inclusive, overcoming the generic approach often seen in digital platforms. This included studying traditional and contemporary symbols, colors, and expressions unique to different cultures.
Creative Production: Leveraging our findings, we produced over 1,000 custom illustrations and animations, each crafted to seamlessly integrate with Qrios's brand identity and the app's design language. The collection ranged from everyday expressions to culturally specific gestures of greeting, celebration, and empathy.
Design and Development: Our illustrators and animators worked closely with Qrios's development team to ensure smooth integration of the emojis into the mobile platform, enhancing user experience without compromising app performance.
Impact
Engagement through Representation
The Qrios project exemplifies how cultural sensitivity and creative digital solutions can transform user experience in the fintech sector.
By embedding cultural nuances into digital finance, we helped Qrios stand out in the fintech space as a pioneer of culturally inclusive technology.
This project highlights our commitment to delivering innovative and meaningful digital branding solutions that resonate with diverse audiences.
