Primis – Branding Overview
Primis is a branding and product design concept for a debit card made specifically for children ages 5–9. The goal was to create a brand that helps kids learn financial responsibility in a way that feels simple, safe, and approachable for both children and their parents.
Why This Matters: The Financial Learning Gap
For the Kids:
A Confusing Start: Imagine trying to learn with tools built for grown-ups! Current apps are overwhelmingly complex, turning simple tasks like saving into a chore.
The Digital Blur: Kids can't see or touch digital money, making it hard to grasp its real value. They want to learn, but they need friendly guidance and real-life connections to bring money to life!
For the Parents:
The Balancing Act: Parents passionately want their kids to be financially smart and safe, but they don't want to become constant financial police!
Help, Not Headaches: They need clear support and insight—a system that gives them confidence without adding another mountain of management.
An Opportunity to Make a Difference
This is where we step in! Families deserve something better. We can create a simple, joyful, and genuinely kid-friendly financial experience that empowers children to learn by doing, and gives parents the peace of mind they need to cheer them on.
Research Insights
While exploring how families teach kids about money, I spent time reading real conversations across communities like r/Parenting and r/PersonalFinance. Parents consistently shared that they want their kids to grow up confident with money, but many feel unsure how to teach those skills, especially now that so much spending happens digitally instead of with physical cash.
A pattern that stood out was how much harder digital money is for kids to understand. Without being able to see it, hold it, or watch it leave their hands, the value becomes abstract. Several parents mentioned that their kids did not fully grasp money until they had something visual and hands-on to manage. Kids stayed motivated only when money felt real, connected to their choices, and tied to goals they cared about.
I was also struck by how many parents expressed a quiet sense of guilt. They wanted to help their kids build strong financial habits but felt overwhelmed, unsure, or worried they were not doing enough. At the same time, kids were eager to learn. They simply needed clarity, control, and a way to make progress visible.
Across these stories, families were searching for something simple and supportive. They wanted a tool that does more than track numbers. They wanted something that teaches, guides, and grows with their kids, while still giving parents visibility without constant micromanaging.
These insights revealed a clear opportunity to design a product that makes financial learning intuitive, empowering, and genuinely meaningful for both kids and parents.
The Solution
Key Features & Design Focus
Simplified Navigation: Large icons and readable fonts ensure young users navigate easily and confidently.
Visual Goal Tracking: Tools motivate kids by showing savings progress grow in a tangible, visual way.
Skill-Building Features: Features like the money request tool gently teach communication and reinforce understanding of value.
Integrated Education: Concise, age-appropriate lessons are built-in to quickly establish core money skills.
Engagement Mechanics: Light gamification rewards progress to maintain high user engagement.
Supportive Parent Tools: Clear visibility allows parents to monitor activity without intrusive micromanagement.
This solution successfully delivers a supportive and approachable financial experience, empowering children to build strong, real-world money habits.
Success Metrics
As a theoretical project, these metrics highlight how I would measure impact if this were a live product. This is also where I’m glad I have experience working in programmatic, because I’m able to think not just about design, but also about how performance, engagement, and optimization tie together.
What I Would Measure:
Onboarding completion
I want to see if families can easily create an account and set their first savings goal without running into friction.
Feature engagement
I’d look at what kids naturally interact with most, whether it’s Savings, Request Money, or Learning.
Learning progress
I’d track how often kids complete lessons and whether they return to them, since that shows real understanding is forming.
Parent involvement
I’d monitor how often parents review activity or approve requests to see if the app is actually supporting them, not overwhelming them.
Savings goal momentum
I’d watch how often goals are created and completed to understand whether healthy habits are sticking.
Impact of gamification
I’d measure whether badges and milestones actually motivate kids or just sit in the background.
Family retention
I’d look at whether families keep coming back over time to understand the long-term value of the experience.
