Budget Buy
Market Place for the students
by the students
Problem Statement
In the realm of higher education, the financial burden on students is undeniable. The soaring costs of textbooks, laptops, and stationery often hinder students' access to essential resources, potentially impacting their educational journey.
My Contribution
In project Budget Buy, my focus revolved around conducting thorough user research to understand user needs. Additionally, I collaborated with Ms. Sejal Vaswani to design the screens for the entire platform. Subsequently, my role extended to translating these designs into code using HTML, CSS, and ReactJS.
Proposed Solution
Budget Buy addresses the financial challenges faced by students by providing a dedicated online marketplace, fostering a community where students can buy and sell educational essentials affordably.
Budget Buy goes beyond affordability, offering a tech-savvy platform that prioritizes efficiency. Students benefit from a streamlined experience, ensuring quick assistance and ease of use, enhancing the overall accessibility of educational essentials.`
Proposed Solution
Budget Buy addresses the financial challenges faced by students by providing a dedicated online marketplace, fostering a community where students can buy and sell educational essentials affordably.
Budget Buy goes beyond affordability, offering a tech-savvy platform that prioritizes efficiency. Students benefit from a streamlined experience, ensuring quick assistance and ease of use, enhancing the overall accessibility of educational essentials.`
Process
Discover
Define
Ideate
Design
Build
Process
Discover
Define
Ideate
Design
Build
Product Users
Budget Buy caters to two main user groups: sellers, comprising students looking to sell unneeded educational items, and buyers, which includes students seeking affordable alternatives for textbooks, laptops, and other essential supplies.
Quantitative Research
We interviewed 10 students ranging from junior college to Phd seniors for user research.
Difficulty in affording new books
80% of students expressed difficulty in affording new books due to high costs
Openness to Selling Used Items
90% of students were highly receptive to the idea of selling their used items, such as textbooks, laptops, stationary, instruments, bags, and sports goods.
Financial Impact of Selling Used Items
75% of interviewed students acknowledged that selling used items on Budget Buy had a positive financial impact on their college expenses, providing them with additional resources for other academic necessities.
Concerns about Item Condition
40% of students expressed concerns about the condition of items listed. This insight suggests the importance of implementing measures to ensure transparency and accurate representation of product conditions.
Preference for Budget-Friendly Alternatives
100% of participants actively sought budget-friendly alternatives for college essentials, emphasizing the importance of cost-effective solutions in meeting their academic needs.
Quantitative Research
We interviewed 10 students ranging from junior college to Phd seniors for user research.
Difficulty in affording new books
80% of students expressed difficulty in affording new books due to high costs
Openness to Selling Used Items
90% of students were highly receptive to the idea of selling their used items, such as textbooks, laptops, stationary, instruments, bags, and sports goods.
Financial Impact of Selling Used Items
75% of interviewed students acknowledged that selling used items on Budget Buy had a positive financial impact on their college expenses, providing them with additional resources for other academic necessities.
Concerns about Item Condition
40% of students expressed concerns about the condition of items listed. This insight suggests the importance of implementing measures to ensure transparency and accurate representation of product conditions.
Preference for Budget-Friendly Alternatives
100% of participants actively sought budget-friendly alternatives for college essentials, emphasizing the importance of cost-effective solutions in meeting their academic needs.
Challenges Faced
Overcoming skepticism in India about online purchases, where potential users may hesitate due to concerns about scams and fraudulent transactions.
Establishing a secure and efficient identity verification process for students, especially when handling sensitive information, to ensure the platform's integrity and user trust.
Challenges Faced
Overcoming skepticism in India about online purchases, where potential users may hesitate due to concerns about scams and fraudulent transactions.
Establishing a secure and efficient identity verification process for students, especially when handling sensitive information, to ensure the platform's integrity and user trust.
Design Rationale
Conducting user interviews, creating user personas, and building empathy maps represent a pivotal design rationale for this project due to their intrinsic alignment with User-Centered principles, crafting a deeply empathetic and user-centric approach. Here's why these methods were chosen:
Design Rationale
Conducting user interviews, creating user personas, and building empathy maps represent a pivotal design rationale for this project due to their intrinsic alignment with User-Centered principles, crafting a deeply empathetic and user-centric approach. Here's why these methods were chosen:
User Needs
Users express a need for enhanced transparency regarding the condition of listed items. Implementing features such as detailed item descriptions, images.
Users desire a built-in communication platform within Budget Buy to facilitate seamless and secure communication between buyers and sellers.
Responding to user feedback, there is a clear need for expanding the range of categories beyond textbooks and laptops. Including additional categories such as dormitory essentials, electronics, and specialized equipment like sports gear or musical instruments would cater to a broader spectrum of student needs, making the platform even more comprehensive.
Features & Functionalities
Dedicated Student Marketplace
Tech-Savvy User Interface
Affordability and Financial Support
Product User Challenges
Students face the challenge of shouldering the full financial burden of purchasing new educational items. The high costs of textbooks, laptops, and other essentials can create a significant strain on students' budgets, potentially limiting their access to necessary resources for their academic journey.
Students encounter challenges when trying to sell their used educational items. The lack of a dedicated marketplace means they may have limited avenues to resell their textbooks, laptops, and other items, leading to unused and valuable resources going to waste or not being utilized by others who may need them.
CompetitorAnalysis
OLX
OLX India is an online classifieds platform where users can buy and sell a wide range of products and services. It is not student centric platform
Features :
OLX allows users to post free advertisements, enabling individuals to list and sell their items without incurring any charges.
It provides a location-based search feature, allowing users to find and connect with buyers or sellers in their specific geographic area, promoting local transactions.
CompetitorAnalysis
OLX
OLX India is an online classifieds platform where users can buy and sell a wide range of products and services. It is not student centric platform
Features :
OLX allows users to post free advertisements, enabling individuals to list and sell their items without incurring any charges.
It provides a location-based search feature, allowing users to find and connect with buyers or sellers in their specific geographic area, promoting local transactions.
User Personas
Riya Vishawanatham
Engineering Student
Description
Riya is a 20-year-old engineering student studying in Mumbai. She is passionate about technology and dreams of becoming a software developer.
A day in their life
Riya's day is packed with lectures, coding assignments, and group study sessions. She juggles part-time work to support herself financially. Evenings are spent at coding clubs and collaborative projects with peers.
Pain Points
• Riya grapples with the financial strain of expensive engineering textbooks and a laptop, impacting her academic progress and overall well-being.
• Riya struggles to find buyers for her used laptop and books, highlighting the absence of a specialized marketplace like Budget Buy, resulting in wasted resources and lost financial opportunities.
• The absence of a platform offering affordable tech resources restricts Riya's ability to attend industry events due to financial constraints, limiting her networking opportunities in the tech community.
Goals
• Riya's primary goal is to excel in her studies and secure a good internship. She aims to leverage Budget Buy to find affordable textbooks and a reasonably priced laptop to ease her financial strain.
Arjun Raghu
Sports Enthusiast
Description
Arjun, a 22-year-old sports management student in Kolhapur, is an avid cricket player. His life revolves around sports, and he aspires to work in the sports industry. Arjun is outgoing, but the costs of sports equipment and academic materials pose challenges.
A day in their life
Arjun starts his day with fitness training and attends classes on sports management. Afternoons are dedicated to practice sessions, and evenings involve doing his college assignments.
Pain Points
• Arjun struggles with the high costs of quality cricket gear, hindering his ability to participate in tournaments and pursue his passion for sports.
• Limited financial resources make it difficult for Arjun to invest in specialized sports management books and materials crucial for his academic success.
Goals
• Arjun's primary goal is to build a successful career in sports management. He hopes to leverage Budget Buy to find affordable sports gear, books, and equipment, enabling him to pursue his passion without financial constraints.
User Personas
Riya Vishawanatham
Engineering Student
Description
Riya is a 20-year-old engineering student studying in Mumbai. She is passionate about technology and dreams of becoming a software developer.
A day in their life
Riya's day is packed with lectures, coding assignments, and group study sessions. She juggles part-time work to support herself financially. Evenings are spent at coding clubs and collaborative projects with peers.
Pain Points
• Riya grapples with the financial strain of expensive engineering textbooks and a laptop, impacting her academic progress and overall well-being.
• Riya struggles to find buyers for her used laptop and books, highlighting the absence of a specialized marketplace like Budget Buy, resulting in wasted resources and lost financial opportunities.
• The absence of a platform offering affordable tech resources restricts Riya's ability to attend industry events due to financial constraints, limiting her networking opportunities in the tech community.
Goals
• Riya's primary goal is to excel in her studies and secure a good internship. She aims to leverage Budget Buy to find affordable textbooks and a reasonably priced laptop to ease her financial strain.
Arjun Raghu
Sports Enthusiast
Description
Arjun, a 22-year-old sports management student in Kolhapur, is an avid cricket player. His life revolves around sports, and he aspires to work in the sports industry. Arjun is outgoing, but the costs of sports equipment and academic materials pose challenges.
A day in their life
Arjun starts his day with fitness training and attends classes on sports management. Afternoons are dedicated to practice sessions, and evenings involve doing his college assignments.
Pain Points
• Arjun struggles with the high costs of quality cricket gear, hindering his ability to participate in tournaments and pursue his passion for sports.
• Limited financial resources make it difficult for Arjun to invest in specialized sports management books and materials crucial for his academic success.
Goals
• Arjun's primary goal is to build a successful career in sports management. He hopes to leverage Budget Buy to find affordable sports gear, books, and equipment, enabling him to pursue his passion without financial constraints.
Note
In the development of Budget Buy, we encountered the challenge of ensuring a secure and authentic user base. To address this, we introduced a robust system where students creating an account for the first time are required to submit a proof of identity, such as an ID card or bonafide certificate. This information undergoes a meticulous verification process by our dedicated admin team within a week, ensuring the legitimacy of each user. To maintain the integrity of our platform, we implemented an annual identity verification process. This additional layer of security ensures that student accounts remain accurate and up-to-date, fostering a trustworthy environment for buying and selling within the Budget Buy community.
Empathy Map
Empathy Map
Design System
Design System
Final Screens
Images are scaled down to fit.
Final Screens
Images are scaled down to fit.
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