boris bikes report group n
TRANSCRIPT
Group N 0
Group Coursework Submission Form
Specialist Masters Programme Please list all names of group members: (Surname, first name) 1. CHAN, IO WENG 2. EWERT, CHRISTOFER 3. HIRANTIARANAKUL, SUKANAT
4. HU, CHENG-‐I 5. LIN, SHIH-‐YING 6. TLHASELO, SETSHEGO GROUP NUMBER:
MSc in: Marketing Strategy and Innovation Module Code: SMM487 Module Title: Creativity Innovation Design Lecturer: Dr. Chris Storey
Submission Date: 06/11/2014
Declaration: By submitting this work, we declare that this work is entirely our own except those parts duly identified and referenced in my submission. It complies with any specified word limits and the requirements and regulations detailed in the coursework instructions and any other relevant programme and module documentation. In submitting this work we acknowledge that we have read and understood the regulations and code regarding academic misconduct, including that relating to plagiarism, as specified in the Programme Handbook. We also acknowledge that this work will be subject to a variety of checks for academic misconduct. We acknowledge that work submitted late without a granted extension will be subject to penalties, as outlined in the Programme Handbook. Penalties will be applied for a maximum of five days lateness, after which a mark of zero will be awarded. Marker’s Comments (if not being marked on-‐line): Deduction for Late Submission: Final Mark:
%
N
Group N 1
Service design project
Barclays Cycle Hire
Group N
Marketing Strategy and Innovation SMM487: Creativity. Innovation. Design
Sukanat Hirantiaranakul Setshego Tlhaselo
Christofer Ewert Io Weng Chan Shih-Ying Lin
Cheng-I Hu
Group N 2
Table of Contents
Introduction
Ethnographic Research 3 Discrete observation 3
Empathy tool 3
Participant observation: Market research 5
Problem Identification and Objective 8
Idea Generation 8 Personas 9
Internal Ideation Tools 11
Stakeholder Map 13
Role playing 13
A.E.I.O.U 14
SCAMPER 15
External Ideation Tools 15
Ubike from Taipei, Taiwan 16
Idea Selection 17
Concept Development 17 Oyster card payment 17
Contactless payment 18
Mobile payment 21
Proposed Solution 24 Wireless payment through mobile phone application 24
Journey Mapping: Storyboard 27
Prototype : Mock-up application 28
Role Play 32
Evaluation 35
Limitations 36 References 38
Appendices 40
Group N 3
Introduction
Barclays Cycle Hire is a public cycle hire system inspired by the bicycle hire scheme in
Paris. The system was launched in 2010 and is currently operating with 10,000 bikes over
720 docking stations across London. The system has 185,602 members to date and has
become known as ‘Boris Bikes’ due to its introduction to London by the city’s mayor, Boris
Johnson. However, the system is subject to improvement in some areas where users have
expressed dissatisfaction. As a public form of transportation, it is in the interests of
Transport for London to take action and make changes where possible in order to enhance
the consumer experience. This report uses ethnographic research to identify the key
problems with the system, idea generation for potential solutions, and concept development
of a prototype before implementation and evaluation.
Ethnographic Research
Research Objectives: - Explore current and potential users
- Identify problems with current users
- Discover concerns stopping potential users from becoming active users
• Discrete observation
From the observation, the users of Boris bikes can be categorized into three groups:
Figure 1: Categories of users
Group N 4
Potential users, casual users and members yield different frequencies of usage. We can
further sub-categorise them into students as the potentials, tourist as the casuals and
professionals as members.
• Empathy tool
A group member, Jessica, went to try the system herself. She registered at the Barbican dock
station. The dock station provided service in 12 languages, including her native language,
Chinese. She first found it quite easy, but became was confusing when she first received a
docket without the code, only to realise it was a receipt and the code was printed on the
following paper. As a foreign student, she wasn’t so sure about putting her credit card into
the system at first. She entered the code and successfully released the bike. Just as she was
going to start her journey to school, she found it hard to have full control of the bike as it
was too heavy. She rode alongside the traffic and felt concerned about her safety on the
Figure 2: Primary research
Group N 5
road. After docking back at Moorgate station, there was no clear indication that she had
stopped being charged for the ride, however, she was in a rush and didn’t have time to go
and re-scan her credit card in order to print a receipt and confirm the amount charged.
• Participant observation: Market research
A street interview (Appendix 1) informed us more of the behaviours and needs of these three
groups. These were some of their comments:
“I like the Boris bikes. When I’m getting home late with no tube, I can ride them and get
home quicker than waiting ages for night buses.” - Tom, a City University fresher
“I’m from New Zealand and I love cycling. But the process of registering almost puts me off
riding one (Boris bike), it took so long and my card wouldn’t work.” - Ella, a tourist in
London
“The only problem I would say I had is registering for the bike for first use. It was confusing
and took ages to get the code.” - Nik, a professional working in Central London
From this, we decided to expand the survey size to 100 people (Appendix 2). This interview-
based survey aimed to find out more about the problems users have and concerns that
stopped potential users from trying the bike. This survey was carried out across stations
considered to be popular according to Transport for London (TfL) cycle hire statistics
(Appendix 3). These were our main findings.
Figure 3: Form of transport
Of the hundred people asked in the
survey, more than half use the tube as
their main form of transport.
Group N 6
Figure 4: Usage of Boris bike
However, among them only a small 33% have used the
Boris bike. The other 67% said they have never used it
before.
Figure 5: Purpose of usage
Of the 33% who have been on the bikes, a
large majority (74%) of them used it for
leisure and only a small portion (26%) used it
as an alternative transport.
Figure 6: Zones that participants live in. This was
done to ensure the data collected was effective; we
made sure most of the participants lived in the zones
that provide Barclays Cycle Hire (*demographic of
Boris bike service).
An interview-based survey allowed us more time to talk to the participants and get to the
heart of the issues. We noted down some critical comments.
“Sometimes the system charges me for not parking the bike into the dock properly though I
did.” - Justine, professional working in London
“I heard they don’t accept international credit cards.”- Fahim, a tourist
Group N 7
“The bikes are too heavy. Otherwise I think it’s fine.” - Emily, a professional
“The registering process at first was very difficult. I would love to have them simplified and
improved.” - Kale, a tourist
“I don’t feel safe about putting my credit card into the system. I’m a tourist.” - Kelly, a
tourist
“I think paying with an oyster card is a great idea! Saves a lot of hassle.” - Georgiana,
university student
“There isn’t much grip to the bikes. When it rains it gets very slippery and the breaks don’t
work well.”- Dylan, a university student
“I just don’t think cycling in London is safe.” - Barbra, a university student
“The people using the Boris bikes aren’t aware of the cycle routes which makes it very
dangerous for them and for us regular cyclists too” - Pina, university student
The conclusion from all the surveys, which have an estimated size of 168 participants,
revealed three major problems for current users and potential users: Safety, Payment Method
and Bike Design.
• Safety: The safety concerns are about the government-planned city cycling routes that do
not always provide dedicated bike lanes nor are there regulations relating to safety. For
example, the usage of helmets is not mandatory.
• Payment Method: There were many problems in this area; people were charged for
faulty transactions, tourists didn’t trust the system enough to use their cards, and some
fancied the option of paying using their oyster cards.
• Bike Design: Many mentioned the bike was too heavy thus not easy to use for female
users and not ideal for longer rides.
Group N 8
Problem Identification and Objective
Due to a limited budget and feasibility, we decided to tackle issues concerning the payment
method and leave the design and safety concerns to the government to be corrected using
laws or to be planned for with larger budgets and longer term planning. Therefore, our
proposed solution towards payment method would be:
• Enhance the customer experience.
• Make the current payment method easier.
• Reduce the possibility of the payment method being the reason to put potential users
off accessing the bike.
Idea Generation
Following empathetic analysis derived from ethnographic research, we commenced ideation,
sorting and refining of the information gathered. We used Tassoul’s Creative Problem
Solving Process to guide the entire creative journey. Following divergence after compilation
of questions, conducting surveys, performing observations on different days, and
interviewing a wide range of users and non-users we converged the feedback onto one
document. From this, we derived three fundamental stages in the use of Boris Bikes where
consumers expressed concern to varying degrees: hire, ride and return.
Figure 7: Summary of user and non-user concerns regarding Boris bikes
Group N 9
Following problem analysis, we converged the customer complaints using Kipling’s
Questions to form a more focused problem statement:
“The problem is that the Barclays Cycle Hire is not intuitive, thus many people find it
inconvenient. This is because, since the launch of the product in 2010, payments are to be
done at the docks via credit/debit cards, which is time consuming, not an easy process to
follow, and not always trusted due to faulty transactions.”
We entered the ideation phase and used various techniques to generate new service ideas
that could enhance the consumer experience. We divided our creative process into two major
parts; internal and external ideation. This was done to account for ideas coming from within
the group during primary research and those inspired by secondary research. Before
deciding how to solve the problem, we developed personas that reflect for whom we are
solving the problem:
• Personas
Figure 8: Professional personas
Group N 10
Figure 10: Tourist personas
Figure 9: Student personas
Group N 11
• Internal Ideation Tools
We began conducting primary research by utilising the product ourselves and then role-
playing the experience from the perspective of our 3 personas, noting down how we felt they
would experience the bikes. We then crosschecked our beliefs against the feedback obtained
during ethnographic research. This was done to test how different our perspectives were as
service providers to that of users with very little detailed knowledge about the system. The
results heightened our level of awareness about the limitations associated with our methods
due to extrapolation issues and personal biases. Essentially, our opinions and struggles with
the bikes may not be representative of the population nor are the people we interview fully
representative of the population. As such, the creative process became evolutionary in
nature, requiring more techniques to help us decipher the fundamental issue for which we
could provide a new and improved solution.
Initially, we generated a divergent range of options in a brain writing exercise, deferring
judgement in order for ideas to flow freely but also enabling us to build on the ideas of
others. The benefits of this include that it reduced initial anxiety among the group and
inspired fresh thinking, which brought out individuals’ unique ideas and stimulated the
group towards action orientation. The ideas generated were then clustered into the categories
of hire, ride and return and ordered in terms of feasibility. Cost, time and implementation
challenges were some of the key considerations made in measuring feasibility and deciding
how to prioritise our ideas.
Group N 12
Figure 11: Brainstorming session results
Group N 13
• Stakeholder Map
• Role Playing
Drawing up a stakeholder map and engaging in role-playing revealed the different
viewpoints of stakeholders. We considered the stances of direct and indirect parties affected
by the existence of the Boris bikes by wearing different ‘hats’:
• Users: Use bikes for varying reasons and to different degrees depending on the
consumer type (e.g. members, professionals, tourists, students, other casual
users). However, they generally seek low price, convenience, efficiency, a level
of comfort and safety. Dedicated bike lanes in more parts of the city could help
this. Their levels of usage fall in winter months, but only for casual users.
(Appendix 4)
Figure 12: Core, Direct and Indirect Stakeholders
Group N 14
• Maintenance staff: The more faulty and damaged the bikes are, the more work
they are burdened with and the higher the operating costs.
• Drivers: Sharing the roads with cyclists increases traffic congestion, requires
more vigilance and increases the risk of road accidents.
• Pedestrians: Need to co-ordinate with not only drivers, but also cyclists who fail
to comply with road regulations and ride close to or on the pavement.
• Transport for London: Interested in whether the system works effectively, if a
sufficient number of customers use the service, and whether the service covers
operating costs.
• Boris Johnson: To what extent the service improves the quality of life for
Londoners, contributes to the reduction in emissions and improves the city’s
transport links.
• A.E.I.O.U: Activities, Environments, Interactions, Objects, Users
Figure 13: A.E.I.O.U
Group N 15
• SCAMPER
We used the SCAMPER model to expand our concept and test the degree of flexibility
within the system. This enabled the development of an idea that was not only feasible, but
strategically fits into the existing system.
Figure 14: SCAMPER Model
• External Ideation Tools: UBike Taipei
The UBike is a cycle hire system that was launched in 2009 in Taipei, Taiwan. It, too, was
inspired by the Parisian cycle hire system. Initially, the bikes were considered inconvenient
as the service was only provided in the Eastern part of Taipei and it was generally
considered unsafe to ride in Taipei city, therefore, not enough people were using them. The
government faced 3 significant issues. Firstly, there were no dedicated bike links on the
roads. Secondly, the bikes were often damaged, and thirdly, there was no city map for
cyclists to follow. To overcome these issues and become the successful, revenue generating
system it is today, the government planned cycle routes for the bikes on the roads and
clearly marked bicycle lanes on pavements where necessary. Furthermore, they signed a
contract with world-renowned bicycle manufacturer, Giant, for the manufacture of better
quality bikes. They also planned a complementary service with the underground (MRT) so
Group N 16
as to facilitate journeys to parts of Taipei not reached by trains. Lastly, they integrated the
payment system for bike usage with the existing Easy Card payment method, similar to the
Oyster card, but is used across multiple services including supermarkets, convenient stores
and car parks. Despite being a public service, the dramatic increase in users as a result of
these improvements enabled both the Taiwanese government and Giant to turn a profit.
While the British Government might not be prepared to make a huge investment in changing
the entire system, this external reference demonstrates that public service cycle hires can be
profitable and generate income for government.
Figure 14: U bike Cycle Hire of Taipei, Taiwan
Group N 17
Idea Selection
The focus then became on improving the hiring process as our solution can make the most
difference in this area because it can be implemented in a short period of time and at a lower
cost than attempting to address the safety issue. By default, it also overcomes the issue
expressed about returning the bikes. Moving on to concept development and
implementation of the new and improved service marked the end of the idea generation
phase and the beginning of developing a prototype, mapping the journey and obtaining
consumer feedback. We followed the same sequence as that of Attribute Listing and sought
to demonstrate how our feature permits a function, which provides a benefit.
Concept Development
Our concept development looked in detail into various aspects of different solutions in order
to find out the most plausible solution for which to develop a prototype and implement.
There are three main solutions perform research on before selecting the one to be
implemented: 1) oyster payment system, 2) contactless payment and 3) mobile payment.
1) Oyster payment system Benefits
Limitations
The Oyster payment system is a complex technology, so it would be difficult and costly to
integrate with the cycle hire scheme (London.gov.uk, 2011). TfL also claim that the
operation cost of Oyster software is still too expensive (Tfl.gov.uk, 2014). These
viewpoints reflect that if TfL cannot reduce the expense, it would discourage them from
Group N 18
combining the oyster cards with the current cycle scheme. Furthermore, although all
transport data of each customer could be stored on the card, it is still difficult to accurately
record people’s transport information online or via mobile transactions (Tfl.gov.uk,
2014). Consequently, this technologic issue could cause incorrect amounts to be charged
if people use oyster cards to hire bikes. For these reasons, it is important for TfL to do
further research on how to improve cost-efficiency and overcome these potential
technological problems.
Cost analysis
In 2014, TfL signed a ten years contract with Cubic to improve and maintain the ticketing
and fare collection service (Transport for London, 2014). This contract is worth
approximately £660 million, and there are around 14,050 Oyster readers all over London
(ibid). Based on this information, the cost of every card reader is estimated at £4,698 per
year. For 19,000 docking points (Transport for London, 2014), TfL would need to spend
approximately £89 million on installing and maintaining Oyster readers in all docking
stations. Additionally, TfL need to pay commission to Cubic and Oyster Ticket Network at
least £6 million per year (London Assembly, 2011). As a result, the total budget of this
solution would be £95 million.
2) Contactless payment
The contactless payment experience for customers is the same as making oyster card
payments, but it is a little bit more convenient as payment can be made without inputting a
4-digit code to release the bikes, making it easier for tourists to use also.
Benefits
Group N 19
Limitations
There are two main limitations for this solution. Firstly, although TfL allow contactless
cardholders to use their cards to replace oyster cards, this service is still not available for
some people whose cards are issued outside the UK (Transport for London, 2014).
Secondly, the maximum transaction amount via contactless payment is £20 in the UK (UK
Cards Association, n.d.). Consequently, TfL would still need to decide whether to accept all
international contactless cards. Moreover, they have to consider situations where the total
amount charged for hiring a bike is over £20; how then people would pay using contactless
payment.
Brief detail of the next steps and timescale
In terms of the next steps of the contactless payment solution, using the Future Ticketing
Project as a reference, this solution would take approximately two to three years to
implement. Firstly, TfL would need to spend roughly two years integrating contactless
payment software into the current system. After that, TfL would need six months to install
card readers across all docking station.
Cost analysis
It is difficult to access information about the cost of the contactless payment system. One
possible method is using the financial cost of TfL’s Future Ticketing Project (FTP) to
estimate the budget of this solution. The main task of FTP is integrating contactless
payment with the oyster platform, so TfL divided this project into 5 stages and planed to
invest £109 million in FTP (Tfl.gov.uk, 2014) see Appendix 1 and 2. If TfL just adds
contactless payment into the cycle hire scheme without combining it with the oyster
platform, they can avoid the spending from phase 3 to 5, which is £40 million.
Consequently, the total budget of contactless payment would be less than £69 million.
Group N 20
Initial Storyboard
After research and analysis of these two methods of payment, we created a storyboard that
maps the customer journey using the oyster card payment instead of paying at the dock
terminal. From the storyboard we can predict that this method will save customer time
spent paying via credit/debit card at the terminal. The customer experience becomes much
like catching a bus or underground.
Figure 16: Imitation of installation of the card reader for oyster cards and contact less payment
Figure 15: Initial storyboard for oyster payment
Group N 21
3) Mobile payment via application
Mobile payment is another way to make a payment, where every process happens in the
customer’s device without contact with the terminal at the dock. This method differs from
oyster and contactless in terms of its independence. This method is complementary to the
existing system, therefore, does not incur the same level of integration cost but can be
alternative payment method for customers.
Benefits
Limitations
Mobile apps strongly rely on data roaming services; therefore, whether a payment can be
successfully done often depends on the speed, stability and safety of the network. As such,
TfL cannot directly control it. Moreover, the majority of overseas tourists are unable to
access data thus this app may not significantly encourage them to use it more.
Cost analysis
The price of developing a mobile application is dependent upon the complexity of the app.
Basically, It will need to spend approximately £20,000 on developing a simple app, whereas
it is likely to cost over £100,000 to create a complex app (Millar, 2011). However, the
existing application for the cycle hire scheme, Barclays Bike is user-friendly and people are
already familiar with it, so we decided to focus on adding payment feature into the app to
improve its function, instead of developing a brand new app.
Group N 22
In order to further analyse the detailed cost of mobile payment solutions, we chose two US-
based app developers – Otreva and Kinvey and one Ireland-based company - Tus Nua
Design to determine the price range of each app’s feature. In terms of the new functions to
be added to the Barclays Bike app, we would introduce two main features. Firstly, a login
system will be included in the platform, such as logging in via e-mail address to ensure their
information is secure and kept private. This feature may cost approximately £1,800 to
£3,320. Another new feature is an in-app payment system, so the users can directly pay for
their bikes before reaching the docking station. This function would be an expense of around
£3,320 to £7,500. In terms of the back-office activities of the app, the security, payment and
user administration would cost approximately £8,150 to £26,200. However, the data
management, such as data storage or data integration, would need roughly £6,800 to £25,800
to develop.
However, it is difficult to measure the budget accurately for this solution because different
app developers will charge different prices. For this reason, the cost range of this mobile
payment solution would be estimated at £20,000 to £100,000. This budget is includes
making the payment service available for both iOS and Andriod platform.
• Summary for possible solution
After examining all possible solutions, we are decided to select only one method to continue
with in the development process. We compared the main benefits and drawbacks of each
method before choosing the best one.
Solution Usefulness Customer benefit Average Time scale
Approx Cost
Oyster combined with Contactless
High High 2-3 years 100 million
Mobile App Medium High 2-6 months 20-100 thousands
Option 1: Integrating cycle hire to Oyster and contactless payment system
This method delivers convenience for customers in making payments. Customers can easily
access the bike by tapping their card and getting the code to release the bike. Moreover,
Group N 23
most people in London are familiar with this method because they have used it for other
modes of transport. As a result, customer perceptions of the service would change for the
better. Barclays cycle hire would become as easy to access as buses and the tube.
On the other hand, this scheme is requires a significant investment in order to make it
available because it demands reconstructing the existing oyster payment system and requires
installation of card readers at every existing dock in London. There financial commitment is
simply too steep and the timescale too long for TfL to realistically implement this scheme.
Option 2: Creating mobile payment through the existing application.
This method provides an alternative way of payment for customers by saving them the time
it takes registering on the terminal at the dock. The application requires less investment in
comparison with the reconstructing the Oyster payment system and can be developed and
implemented over a shorter period of time.
However, this method does have some limitations. Smartphones and Internet access or 3G
are required in order to process the payments. This would lead to some access limitation for
tourist who might not have Internet access in their phone or individuals who do not own
smartphones.
A comparison of the two schemes is shown in the sorting matrix below.
Feasibility
Cus
tom
er b
enef
it Hig
h Lo
w
Easy Difficult
Oyster and contactless
Mobile payment
Figure 17: Idea Evaluation Diagram
Group N 24
Our team decided that option 1 has very low feasibility and limitations in development
whereas option 2 is more feasible and there are some areas that can be more easily
developed to enhance the customer experience.
Proposed Solution Wireless payment through mobile phone application
After analysing all of the possible solutions, the mobile phone payment system via an
application is the most feasible solution for increasing convenience in the hiring process,
which is our targeted problem. With the payment system installation into the Barclays Bike
app, along with other new features, the consumer will have an enhanced and simpler user
experience, limiting the number of steps and processes. We started designing the app by
considering customer behavior in each step of using this service, created a storyboard and a
prototype of the mobile payment app.
Figure 18: Sketch for application development
Group N 25
• Detailed description of key touch points
1) The usefulness of the feature The functional benefit of the wireless mobile phone payment is mainly to make customers
access the system more efficiently through their devices, eliminating the use of the terminal.
This new easy-to-access hire process will ultimately enhance the user experience of the
service for casual users and attract new customers.
The investment required to develop and improve the existing application is a feasible way
for TfL to improve the service, as there is no new technology needed and the process from
prototype to final product is relatively quick. There is no need to change anything about the
existing TfL system, as payment through an Oyster card, credit card and mobile phone is
apparent today. The only difference between this system and, for example using the tube or
the bus, is that there is no need for the customer to tap their Oyster card/credit card on the
Oyster card reader as payment will have already been performed through the app. Customers
can also have, for example, various credit cards registered in the app, giving them an easy
way to choose and manage their account.
2) The novelty of the feature
The developed application lets the consumer pay through the app’s integrated payment
system using a registered Oyster card or credit card; deductions can be made on either
depending on the customer’s selection. This system eliminates the time-consuming payment
method apparent today. Instead you can easily click on ‘hire in the app’, pay via
credit/debit/registered oyster, receive the release code and be ready to ride within 10
seconds. Due to the sophistication of smartphones, they can automatically reserve a bike for
a maximum of 10 minutes at the nearest docking station to you at the time of payment.
Therefore, you have your bike ready to ride in fewer steps, increasing the efficiency of the
Barclays Bike service.
3) The customer experience
Customers will experience a new, innovative and efficient way to travel with smoother
transition between different modes of transport in London. Whether its for leisure or
commuting, the system easily lets the customer choose the most suitable payment method
Group N 26
with the choice of registering an Oyster card, credit card or both. The app is also interactive,
displaying how long a person has used the bike and available docking spaces nearby.
1) Hire Customers will find the app useful as it eliminates the steps that people find annoying, time-
consuming, and inefficient as well as unreliable. When approaching a docking station, the
customer will no longer need to interact with the payment terminal on the dock. To use the
service, a user only needs to register a payment method in the application the first time they
use it. Once an account is created, the can simply log on to the application, select payment
method, click ‘request a release code’, release the bike at the dock and they go. The hiring
process is thus no longer a problem.
2) Ride
The app offers interactive software, informing the rider of how many minutes have been
used within the 30 minutes slot. If the 30 minutes slot pass, customers can know the current
amount charged in real-time. In this way, users can easily see exactly for how long they
have been riding as well as the cost and can, therefore, better plan and budget for their
journey. There is a further function letting people see available docking spaces nearby. In
addition, their riding and purchasing history can easily be checked and monitored at anytime
through the app.
3) Return When a bike is returned, users will receive confirmation through the app that the docking
has been successful as well as the amount charged for the journey. Customers can further
check their payment in the application and also be able to verify payments against their
riding history at anytime. The app also features a loyalty scheme, which rewards users for
extended use. For example, as the confirmation notice of a successful docking appears on
the screen via the app, there will also be a message stating the loyalty level of the user as
well as how many rides there are left until a free ride reward.
The storyboard below shows the process by which the application easily lets you hire, ride
and return your Barclays Bike.
Group N 27
Figure 19: The final storyboard
Group N 28
Creating the Prototype : Mock-up Application We have created a prototype of the wireless mobile phone payment system, which will be
integrated into the existing application, Barclays Bike. The illustrations below show the
prototypes initial phase, including the registration process to start using the payment feature
in the application.
Figure 20: Application for mobile payment
Group N 29
• First time user
Step 1: The Welcome Page
a) User logs onto the system with their email address/username and password for the
Barclays Bike application. They register if this is their first encounter with the
system.
Step 2: The Register Page
a) Input personal information: such as name, gender, age, address, and mobile number
to gain registration approval.
b) User then inserts their credit/debit card details into the app in order to allow wireless
payment for future hires of the bike.
c) If a customer prefers registering with their Oyster card, the Oyster card can also be
registered, filling in the Oyster card number detailed their Oyster card of the card.
Figure 21: Application screen step 1-3 for first time user
Group N 30
Step 3: The Account Page
a) Customers can hire a bike or log out to let a friend log on to his or her account to hire
one.
b) By clicking on your name, as in this example, T Smith, the user can easily access
their account details and payment details.
• Registered Users
Step 1 & 2: The Welcome Page and Log In Page
a) Log-in page lets a user log on using email/username or has automatic log on turned on.
Step 3: The Bike Access Payment
a) User pays for accessing a bike as well as the payment method suitable.
b) User has the choice of using whatever payment method they want, i.e. credit, debit or
oyster card.
Figure 22: Application screen step 1-3 for registered users
Group N 31
c) If you have signed up for monthly access, the remaining days of access will be
shown on the page instead.
After completing registration and payment, the customer can hire a bike through
their mobile phone.
Step 4: The Release Page
a) Release page appears after the payment has been authorized and cleared
b) Customer chooses a dock and releases a bike to start riding. The release code will
appear for 10 minutes before being automatically deleted.
Step 5: The Riding Page
a) Displays the accumulated time spent riding and the cost. For example in the time slot
of 30 minutes, the app shows two pounds. However if you have ridden for 35
minutes, the app will show three pounds.
Figure 23: Application screen step 4-7
Group N 32
b) Interactive: the app also has a built in system where a user can see available docking
spaces nearby. This eliminates any extra time spent riding and its easier for the user
to stay within a timeslot in terms of cost.
Step 6: The Return Page
a) Return page shows a brief summary of the journey e.g. time spent and the page
confirms successful docking, so no further charge.
Step 7: The Summary Page
a) Shows all the details of your journey; amount charged, time spent and docks used.
Also lets user access the loyalty scheme discussed earlier.
• Role playing
The role-play illustrates how this application works in real situations. One of our group
members, Bikk, acted as a user and timed every step starting from the customer thinking
about using cycle hire until they complete their journey. Our role-play also compares with
the existing situation in order to point out the differences in the customer journey map.
Figure 24: Application screen for loyalty program
Group N 33
• Customer using mobile payment in cycle hire service
Bikk is thinking about using Cycle hire to school after getting off the Tube. One station before the destination, he clicks on Barclays Bike and click hire a bike, pays online and gets the release code.
He inputs the release code from his phone to release the bike at the dock.
While he is riding, he can check time and price estimate for his journey.
After he returns the bike, he can check how much he was charged
for his journey.
15 Sec.
He can check his balance and top up the bike access at anytime and also redeem rewards from loyalty
program through the app.
Figure 25: The role play of hiring a bike via mobile payment
Group N 34
• Role play Evaluation
It can be seen that when customers have a need to use the service, they are served in a
shorter time with the mobile app compared to the existing payment method. This decreased
time increases efficiency, convenience and enhances customer experience. This results in
positive perceptions overall about the service. Greater satisfaction with the service will tend
to cause customers to use the service more frequently. We think that this application will be
have a big impact on the BCH service in terms of increasing the number of users by
encourage non-user to become a user. As for existing users, this application will enhance
their willingness to use the service more often.
Figure 26: Comparison diagram between existing payment method and new mobile payment
Group N 35
Evaluation: Over and above evaluations within the report
After creating the storyboard, the prototype of mobile payment app and performing tests
through role-play, we found that the solution of the app was feasible and would generate
positive results. However, to further measure the effectiveness and benefits associated with
the app, we sought feedback from consumers through street interviews. These interviews
revealed that users would indeed welcome our proposed system.
• Customer interviews
This street interview was carried out between the 1st-2nd November near popular stations as
shown in TfL statistics (Appendix 3). We asked about their thoughts regarding the app using
a mock application, making record of their feedback and opinions. Below are some of the
critical statements:
“I like the idea of the app, will it be combined with my (membership) key?”- Harry, Professional
“So the app will allow me to get a code for the bike few minutes before I get there? That sounds good! ” - Bronte, Professional
“I would prefer giving my card details through the website than putting it into the machine.” - Eunice, Tourist
“It would be so convenient if I can access the payment record through my phone.” - Ella, professional
Figure 27: Customer interview
Group N 36
“Getting coeds without printing paper is such a green idea.”- Lore, University student
“When I’m rushing to work I really don’t have time to check if I have properly returned the bikes or not. So, yeah, the idea of receiving a message (confirming the return) would work great for me.”- Kale, Professional
Overall, the results of this interview confirmed most of our assumptions. Since Internet
service is required for the app to work, we expected professionals and students to find
improving the payment method most beneficial in terms of less time and effort. However,
the decision not to target tourists, as they would not have Internet access, actually turned out
to be inconsistent with our primary assumption. In the street interviews many of the tourists
favoured the idea of a mobile app and said Internet access was quite broadly available
through short-term mobile contracts.
Another surprising discovery revealed in this interview was regarding the membership key.
Members own a special key to access the bike at the dock without the need of the access
code. In this sense, they would not necessarily need the app to provide them with codes, but
would still welcome it in order to reserve a bike (for a maximum of 10 minutes), check their
records, and receive an update confirming the successful docking of the bikes upon return.
While this would require further integration of the app with membership keys, it would not
be difficult to implement, creates value, and thus enhances the consumer experience.
From this interview, it can be seen that the increasing convenience of payment using the
mobile application would have a positive impact on users and would be well-received.
Those interviewed showed a greater willingness to start using the bikes or use the bikes
more frequently with the increased convenience brought by the app.
Limitations
After working through the overall process of our project, we found some limitations in each
step, which would need to be considered for the further development.
o Ethnographic Research
- Age determination: people were not always willing to share their age and the
Group N 37
question tended to put them off.
- Number of participants: Survey numbers were not significantly high (126 in street
interviews).
- Time frame: It was difficult to determine the best time frame for interviews at
different locations.
- Insufficient empathy tools: no customer diaries, focus groups, or sending text
messages out to get customers talking about the service.
o Idea generation
- Extrapolation issues: location, time, people’s willingness to give feedback
- Personal biases: our opinions and struggles with the bikes may not be
representative of the population
o Final solution (the application)
- The Internet connection on the mobile phone.
There are some limitations associated with Internet connection on mobile phones
especially tourists who do not have a sim cards provided by UK networks. This
might discourage tourists from using this feature.
Enabling use of the mobile when offline
- Further information of payment through the application.
The application needs to collect more information about how to verify the most
effective way to integrate the payment system via the mobile application and also the
security online payment.
- The loyalty scheme on the app.
TfL need to do further study in the below areas:
- How best to structure the loyalty program?
-Who will provide sponsorship for the scheme etc?
Group N 38
References
Changingminds.org (n.d.), Kipling Questions, available at:
http://changingminds.org/techniques/questioning/kipling_questions.htm (accessed 17
October 2014).
London.gov.uk (2011), Mayor Answer to London, available at:
http://mqt.london.gov.uk/mqt/public/question.do?id=36878 (accessed 20 October 2014).
London Assembly (2011), The Future of Ticketing, available at:
http://www.london.gov.uk/moderngov/documents/s7401/The%20Future%20of%20Ticketin
g%20-%20Appendix%201.pdf (accessed 19 October 2014).
Kinvey (n.d.), App Cost Estimator, available at: http://www.kinvey.com/app-cost-estimator
(accessed 16 October 2014).
Millar, M (2011), Does Your Firm Need Its Own Mobile App?, available at:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-13000883 (accessed 20 October 2014).
Otreva (n.d.), How Much Does It Cost to Build an App?,
https://www.otreva.com/calculator/# (accessed 26 October 2014).
Sorensen, C. and Sweeney, J. (2014), a-e-I-o-u: An Inclusive Framework for Evaluation,
available at: http://www.cedu.niu.edu/~sorensen/634/handout_D.html (accessed 16 October
2014).
Souza, K. H. (2011), Stakeholders Map, available at:
https://wiki.library.ucsf.edu/display/EdTechStrategic/1.+Stakeholders+Map (accessed 10
October 2014).
Storey, C. (2014), Creativity Problem Solving Ideation, Sorting and Refining, Creativity
Innovation Design at Cass Business School on 10 October 2014.
Group N 39
Tfl.gov.uk (2014), Project Monitoring – Project Approvals, available at:
http://www.tfl.gov.uk/cdn/static/cms/documents/ppp-20140109-item05-project-
monitoring.pdf (accessed 28 October 2014).
Transport for London (2014), What is a Contactless Payment Card?, available at:
http://www.tfl.gov.uk/fares-and-payments/contactless/what-is-contactless?intcmp=8610#on-
this-page-1 (accessed 21 October 2014).
Transport for London (2014), Three New Barclays Cycle Hire Docking Stations for SW
London, available at: https://www.tfl.gov.uk/info-for/media/press-releases/2014/july/three-
new-barclays-cycle-hire-docking-stations-for-sw-london (accessed 26 October 2014).
Transport for London (2014), TfL and Cubic Continue Partnership, available at:
https://www.tfl.gov.uk/info-for/media/press-releases/2014/july/tfl-and-cubic-continue-
partnership (accessed 26 October 2014).
Tus Nua Design (n.d.), How Much to Make an App?, available at:
http://appestimator.tusnuadesigns.net/# (accessed 26 October 2014).
UK Cards Association (n.d), Contactless Limit, available at:
http://www.theukcardsassociation.org.uk/contactless_merchant/contactless_limit.asp
(accessed 20 October 2014).
Wikipedia (n.d.), Barclays Cycle Hire, available at:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barclays_Cycle_Hire (accessed 23 October 2014).
Wansink, B. (2000), “New Techniques to Generate Key Marketing Insights,” Marketing
Research, vol. 12, issue 2, pp. 28-36.
Group N 40
APPENDICES
Appendix 1
Street interview: This was carried out for 2 days, 14th-15th October, near Waterloo, Angel
and Barbican tube station. This interview ended in a size of 26 people asked.
Appendix 2
Details of interview-based survey: This was carried out over a four days period between
20th-23rd October across popular stations with focus on Waterloo.
Question 1: Which form of transport do you normally take?
Question 2: Have you ever used the Barclays bike?
Group N 41
Question 3: The purpose of usage?
Question 4: What were the problems you had with the bike?
Question 5: What is your main concern with the bike?
Group N 42
Question 6: What is the possible reason for not trying the bikes before?
Question 7: Which feature can encourage you to use the Barclays bike?
Question 8: If you did ride the bike, for what purpose would that be?
Group N 43
Question 9: Would you welcome royalty programmes?
Question 10: What rewards from the loyalty programme would you most favour?
Question 11: Gender?
Question 12: In which zone do you live in?
Group N 44
*Demographic of Boris bike service from TFL:
Appendix 3
TFL cycle hire statistic graph 5:
5. Most popular journeys by origin/destination for most recent 6 weeks
Waterloo is our busiest station with 41,084 hires and docks made over this 6 week period,
with an average of 1200 hires and docks every weekday.
Group N 45
Appendix 4
Group N 46
Appendix 5: Proposed Five Phases of the Future Ticketing Project (London Assembly, 2011)
Appendix 6: Forward Schedule of Project Approvals (Tfl.gov.uk, 2014)
Group N 47
Appendix 7: Price Comparison (Otreva, Tus Nua Design and Kinvey, n.d.)