The aviation industry has always been an interest of mine. The last time I flew with United Airlines and that got me looking at their web page. This small exercise is just a small peek into my cognitive processes.
FIELD
UX Research
INDUSTRY
Aviation
YEAR
2022
ROLES
- UX Researcher
PROCESS
First thoughts, Approach to issues, Research & Results, Conclusion
Utilizing heuristics to analyze the home page
Approach to Issues
Identified Issues
1. The carousel of images on the backgrount of the main input section may hinder with the focus of the user.
User focus | Carousel of images
A/B Test + eyetracking
Time testing
Design a different background and collect quantitative data for both designs.
2. Users with visual disabilities may not be able to see the menus at the top of the page as well as the text carousel in the middle.
AA Compliance
Contrast checker
Check AA compliance through a contrast checker.
3. The United ClubSM Infinite Card element is percieved as an ad, and is not visually tied with the web page.
The United Club Infinite Card element
User testing
Analyze conversion rates for this element and user test the journey as well as other designs.
4. The booking section of the web page differs in concept with the other 3 tabs (Flight Status, Check-in, and My Trips)
Primary tabs in central feature
Card sorting
Tree testing
Understand the users grouping of the page’s features and elements. Make the more intuitive for the users.
5. The flight booking has the same hierarchy as the other types of bookings even though the web page is of an Airline.
(This is not an issue per se, but would be interesting to look into due to the fact that United is an airline company.)
Booking travel and stays
Survey
User journey
Interview
Data Analysis
Comprehend the thoughts of users when looking to book anything other than a flight in the United page.
Other Thoughts
Research the user journey of people utilizing the web page for other than flights. Interview these people to understand their needs.
Approaches
For this thinking exercise we'll be looking at issue #5.
5. Booking tavel and stays
WHY? (Understand your goal)
The United landing page displays flight booking in the same hierarchy as booking a hotel or renting a car. This must be researched to see if users benefit to have other options than flights in the landing page or dispayed in other parts of the flow. This may lead to more conversions in bookings other than flights.
WHEN & WHERE? (Understand ustomer's context and needs)
Users use the platform when they need to book a flight, stay in a hotel, rent a car, or travel on a cruise. Some users have time to look into options over various days, while others need to book on the same day/time.
WHO? (Define the audience)
Families that are looking to travel for vacations, as well as business people looking to book a flight for work.
WHAT? (List ideas)
- Personalized flow by persona
- Redesign of the landing page
- Add other booking options after completing one depending on the initial booking
Research Approaches
Contrast checker
Interviews
User journey
Data Analysis
SURVEY
A good quantitative and qualitative method to examine the user’s experience with the product and obtain demographic and personal data. This method will help us gather information on our users as well as their sentiment and perceived use of the United web page.
USER JOURNEY
An excellent method to view the flow of users on the web page. This method can gather insights into user actions and emotions when booking a flight.
INTERVIEWS
A good qualitative method to get to know users, their needs, thoughts, feelings, and emotions. This method will help us understand what users think when they want to access the United landing page.
DATA ANALYSIS
An excellent quantitative method to understand users, user actions, types of users, feature use, and more. This method gathers evidence of how many users use certain features of the United landing page as well as the types of users and more.
Preparation
Survey
GOAL OF THE SURVEY:
Gather information on users as well as their booking habits/actions in the United landing page.
ASSUMPTION:
1. Users have used the United web page to buy airplane tickets, cruise tickets, hotel stays, packages, and/or to rent a car in the past.
PRELIMINARY QUESTIONS FOR THE SURVEY:
1. Demographic questions
a. gender, age range, location, ethnicity, etc.
2. What is your predominant type of travel? (leisure, business, other)
3. Which of the next options have you booked through the United web page?
4. Out of the checked boxes on the last question, how many times have you booked each one on the United web page? (estimates are fine)
5. On a scale from 1 to 5, 1 being the least you’ve booked, and 5 being the most you’ve booked, order each type of booking.
Interview
GOAL OF THE INTERVIEW:
Understand what users think about the United landing site, the booking feature and how they use it.
ASSUMPTIONS:
1. We have 2 defined personas:
a. Business people traveling for work.
b. Head of the family traveling for vacation.
2. Users have used the United web page to buy airplane tickets and, cruise tickets, hotel stays, packages, or rent a car in the past.
PRELIMINARY QUESTIONS FOR POTENTIAL USERS:
1. What brings you to the United web page?
2. What do you notice first when landing on the page?
3. Have you used the page to book anything other than a flight? Why?
a. Have you booked 2 different types of travel/stay in the same session, besides packages? Why?
4. What do you think about the booking process?
5. What do you like and dislike about the page?
Conclusion
This thinking exercise displays a little of my thought process and discovery phase "formal" skills. Combining qualitative and quantitative research to update and inform new designs is part of the everyday job.
Feel free to contact me.
Like my thinking?