Trip overview

The "Trip overview" page functions similarly to a shopping cart, displaying all the services selected by the user throughout their journey on the platform. It also allows them to perform various actions, such as adding, editing, or deleting selected services.

Context

Neo, as a reservation platform, is a complex tool burdened with significant technical debt. Due to this, each functional improvement requires a deep evaluation of the technical impact and maintenance needs.

The current "Trip overview" page relies on outdated technology and presents several challenges: the UI lacks visual appeal, the content is not fully accessible, and the information is poorly organized. The goal of this migration was to enhance the user experience by offering a more streamlined interface, accessible content, and improved consistency with the rest of Neo.

This page is critical, as it is often at this point in the booking process that users may abandon the platform if the interface feels too complex. Therefore, the information must be easy to find, the process seamless, and the cognitive load kept to a minimum.

CHALLENGE

This project presented several challenges.

The first challenge was the diversity of personas using the "Trip overview" page. Currently, this page is accessed by multiple user types: the traveler, the travel arranger, and the trip approver. Understanding the specific needs of each persona was crucial to ensuring the design met their requirements effectively.

The second challenge was managing the large amount of information on the page and its varying levels of importance. A key focus was establishing a clear information hierarchy. The trip verification stage is critical, as users need to feel confident about details such as dates, prices, and schedules without being overwhelmed by too much information.

The final challenge was designing a layout that would work seamlessly, regardless of the number of services included in the trip. Given Neo’s ability to book complex trips with multiple services (flights, hotels, car rentals, etc.) across different dates, it was essential to create a flexible layout that could accommodate all possible configurations without compromising clarity or usability.

The legacy trip overview page.

discovery

The initial step in the project was to simplify the task by thoroughly understanding the current situation:

Identify the different personas using the page: list all the distinct user types interacting with the "Trip Overview" page
Inventory of possible views according to persona: document the variations in the page’s layout and content that correspond to each persona’s needs
Engage with customer-facing teams: gather feedback to understand the current challenges and issues clients encountered with the existing page.

User research

The second step was focused on user research.

At Amex GBT, we established the Neo Community, a group of real Neo users who volunteer for user research initiatives.

From there, I recruited 5 users, including travelers and arrangers, for user interviews.

The interviews were conducted in two parts:

a traditional interview to understand the current issues users face with the "Trip overview" page
I presented a very simplified version of the prototype to evaluate the usability of the proposed layout and gather feedback on its effectiveness

Client interviews

Once the user interviews were complete, I designed the first version of the new "Trip overview" page. To gather further feedback, we organized a series of customer interviews with Amex GBT's largest clients.

We conducted 3 interviews and, after each iteration, we used usertesting.com to test the new version with users. Each test was structured with a detailed plan, user scenarios, and questions aimed at assessing the product's usability.

Handover to scrum team

During the research phase, I held weekly meetings with the Product Manager and Tech Lead to ensure alignment and technical feasibility. These sessions allowed us to share progress and ensure our proposals were technically sound.

We are currently still iterating and refining the final version of the "Trip overview" page. In collaboration with the Scrum team, we have already begun breaking down the user stories, as we have a clear understanding of the elements to be migrated. Once the stories are written, I will provide the developers with detailed specifications for front-end development.

After each development iteration, I am assigned a task within the story to review the implemented design and ensure it meets the required standards.