Background

MTN, one of Africa’s largest telecom providers, commands a dominant 35% market share and has long led Nigeria’s telecom sector in 2G and 3G coverage. But by 2019, mobile usage was rapidly shifting toward 4G. Competitors like Airtel, with superior infrastructure and more engaging app ecosystems, began capturing the attention of younger, tech-savvy users.

To stay competitive in a fast-evolving digital landscape, MTN launched the Next Gen initiative, a company-wide effort to reimagine its digital presence. At the heart of this transformation was the mission to turn the MTN Nigeria app from a basic recharge tool into a lifestyle platform that resonates with the needs and habits of today’s mobile-first users.

Role

As a product designer on this transformation, I contributed to several key user journeys including airtime recharge, data bundles, referrals, and entertainment modules like MTN Play. My role spanned end-to-end design, from stakeholder collaboration and sketching concepts to building high-fidelity prototypes and conducting usability tests to ensure the experience met user expectations.

Challenge

While MTN's existing app functioned reliably for basic tasks like recharges and bill payments, it lacked the emotional and functional appeal of its competitors. Apps from Airtel and others had evolved into lifestyle ecosystems offering music, videos, rewards, and personalized experiences that kept users engaged well beyond basic utility.

To keep up, MTN needed a fundamental shift, not just more features but a total rethinking of how the app fit into users’ lives. After rounds of stakeholder alignment, user interviews, and benchmarking, we outlined the strategic challenges we needed to overcome.

Challenge 1. Keeping It Familiar While Evolving

The redesign couldn’t alienate loyal users. Basic actions like topping up needed to stay intuitive and recognizable.

Challenge 2. Moving Beyond One-Off Transactions

The app had to become part of users’ daily routines, offering value and entertainment even when they weren’t recharging.

Challenge 3. Making Personalization Scalable

With a vast user base and countless offers, the app needed to smartly recommend services that felt tailored to each user’s habits.

Challenge 4. Driving Loyalty Through Meaningful Engagement

To build long-term relationships, MTN needed to motivate continued app use through thoughtful reward-driven experiences.

Solution

To help MTN Nigeria reposition its app as a lifestyle-first platform and better connect with younger, tech-savvy users, we approached the transformation with a combination of strategic design thinking, user insights, and scalable personalization. Our solutions focused not just on adding features but on reimagining how the app could drive long-term engagement, ease of use, and emotional resonance.

1. Easing Existing Users Into a New World

We preserved core actions like recharge and bundle purchase in familiar locations. New features were introduced using progressive disclosure with helpful walkthroughs and contextual nudges that ensured users never felt lost or overwhelmed.

2. Making the App Worth Returning To

We reimagined the homepage as a dynamic content hub, integrating modules for trending news, interactive games, music, and airtime gifting. This shifted the app from task-based utility to a place users could explore daily.

3. Personalization That Feels Effortless

A new content engine now curates what users see based on their location, usage patterns, and service history. Whether you’re a data-heavy user or prefer family plans, the app adapts to your lifestyle.

4. Building Habit Through Rewards

We introduced a tiered loyalty program rewarding users for recharges, feature exploration, and referrals. Points earned could be redeemed for data, exclusive content, or offline experiences, turning app interactions into tangible value.

Outcome

The new MTN app delivers on both user expectations and business goals. By blending essential services with entertainment and personalization, it creates a stickier more delightful experience that feels fresh yet familiar. This transformation wasn’t just cosmetic, it was grounded in usability research, design thinking, and a commitment to long-term user engagement..

Impact

Across the modules I led, our usability testing and post-launch analysis revealed promising outcomes:

• Recharge completion time was reduced by 30%, streamlining one of the most critical user flows.

• 92% of users successfully completed the recharge journey without assistance or confusion during usability testing.

• 84% of users were able to complete the buy bundles journey independently, showing improved clarity and flow.

• Within the first week of launch, 30% of users actively engaged with MTN Play features, signaling early traction for lifestyle-driven content.