What happens when you ask Young People to design their own bank?
They create an amazing set of apps that allow them to see what their friends are purchasing, change currency, ask for help from a personal bank manager, minimise risk, and get tips for smart spending through price comparisons.
We teamed up with Mumsnet to host a workshop with 10 Mums and their 18 children. We asked them, “when you think about money what comes to mind?”
Responsibility, Bills, Earnings, Keeping it safe, GDP, Spending, Saving, Investment, Risks, Charity, Tax, Credit cards, LORD SUGAR AND SWEETS!
Pretty grown up for a group of 8 to 13 year olds! When it came to building their own Apps the level of awareness and maturity continued.
Interestingly the one theme that resonated throughout all the groups regardless of age was that of lifestyle. When the children were jotting down ideas they were thinking about their lives, so for example one group came up with a currency exchange feature. This would help them when they went on holiday — they would instantly know how much value their pounds and pence would have in the US, Asia, or Europe.
Another was a built-in comparison feature — when shopping for items young people want to know where they can get the best deal.
It was fascinating to watch these young people talk about their lives and then design matching features in their apps.
At Osper we know that “people don’t want to talk about banking, they want to talk about their lives”
That sentiment couldn’t resonate more profoundly than when dealing with these young people and what they need when it comes to dealing with money.
To find out more about Osper, visit our website or follow us on twitter. You can email me at sabinak@osper.com if you want to get involved in future Osper Workshops or join our Innovation team.
