Basic UX review: airline case study - part 1

Bare Bones UX Review: A Case Study on a Colombian Low-Cost Airline

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The rising demand for User Experience (UX) over the past few years is undeniable. As corporations allocate immense resources for UX, individual contributors often grapple with limited assets and time. Let's delve into a case study that highlights the challenges and strategies of a solo UX review for an existing digital platform.

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Setting the Stage

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Before embarking on this journey, some ground rules need to be established. Our focus will be on a Colombian low-cost airline's website. The scope of our analysis will be narrowed to a specific facet of the site. For user data, we’ll turn to opinion mining from online reviews.

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Identifying the Problem

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The airline follows a typical low-cost strategy: a basic fare with the option to upgrade to multiple service tiers, each offering added amenities. A significant portion of the airline's revenue is derived from these value-added services, like premium seating, express boarding, and insurance. They're grappling with a high drop-out rate during the purchase phase on their website, specifically at the upselling stage. They are keen to revamp this to enhance user experience and consequently, business performance.

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User Flows

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Our analytical framework will assess the current scenario and pinpoint areas of improvement. The existing user interaction model on the website is as follows:

1. Users choose from three ticket tiers: BASE, MEDIUM, and FULL.
2. Users input personal details and can specify if they have special requirements.

Most crucially, our primary focus will be on the upselling stage of the purchase flow. Here, users are presented with additional services and insurance options, which are vital for the airline's revenue.

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Opinion Mining

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While direct user interviews are off the table in this scenario, online reviews offer a goldmine of insights. By mining opinions from platforms like Trip Advisor, we can glean firsthand user experiences. These reviews shed light on users' positive and negative interactions with the product.

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Human-Centered Design

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Delving deeper into these reviews reveals:

• Users invariably seek the best deal but often overlook the specific conditions tied to the ticket tiers.
• There's a palpable lack of clarity about the value proposition of different tiers.
• Users tend to bypass or deselect additional services, primarily because the benefits aren't transparently conveyed.

Adopting a human-centered design approach helps negate biases and subjectivities in our analysis. This methodology emphasizes focusing on the core issue, sidestepping the distractions of specific user or stakeholder feedback. The objective is to pivot from raw feedback to actionable insights, forming the basis for a holistic website review.

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Formulating a Hypothesis

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Having sifted through user data, evaluated user flows, and pondered on insights derived from reviews, a hypothesis emerges. This forms the climax of the initial phase of our UX review.

In the subsequent segments of this case study, expect insights from benchmarking, an expert review, and a synthesis of our findings.

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Written by Juan Diego Franco

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