Context

There is this group of 4 friends and their dream of going together to Iceland to see the beautiful northern lights and enjoy nature at its best. Everyone is ready to go, but as soon as it comes to "Who will pay," everyone goes silent!

Have you ever experienced this situation (many times), you know how difficult it is to get everyone to agree... Either you will pay for the group and it will take a long time to get reimbursed, or you will have to download a separate app (among your 500 apps) specifically for the trip to share the expenses.

It's a waste of time for users, and it leads us to completely cancel trips!

It's time for a better solution!

User Research

By sending a survey to a panel of over 20 users, I sought to explore how users travel in groups. I asked them what they expected from a payment process in a travel app and how they felt when they had to manage a booking for a group. The results, compiled and analyzed in Dovetail using the taxonomy labeling method, allowed me to understand their motivations, current experiences, and needs (see below).

The affinity map enabled me to determine that users want a simple and quick way to split group expenses within the same app!

Competitor Benchmarking

I researched booking and payment sharing apps to get an overview of existing products. My research led me to Booking.com, which is a direct competitor of Airbnb as a travel app, and to Tricount (indirect competitor), which is designed to split costs with friends or family. I analyzed their strengths, weaknesses, content, design, and opportunities to conclude that neither is practical for easily and conveniently splitting expenses.

Direct Competitor - Booking.com

Indirect Competitor - Tricount

How could we enable the main booker to easily split costs and secure ideal accommodations for groups on Airbnb?

Ideation Phase

This phase was really exciting and with all my ideas in mind, I used a mind map to structure my thoughts. I wondered how I could improve or add features to the Airbnb app. After identifying areas to enhance and add, I used a matrix that allows me to prioritize features that have a significant impact on users with minimal effort in their development.

Mind Map

Impact vs. Effort Matrix

User Flow

I designed tailored user flows to meet the needs of potential users. These flows are simple and straightforward, ensuring users can easily accomplish tasks and achieve successful outcomes in the app.

Graphic Style

Airbnb revamped its visual identity in 2014. Designed by the London studio DesignStudio, Airbnb uses a pink and white color palette to present itself as a friendly company. The color choice reflects the brand as warm, friendly, and caring. The pink and white together in the logo represent love, protection, and feelings of tenderness. The soft colors helped the brand stand out.

Wireframes to High-Fidelity Prototype

I quickly designed the user experience (UX) of the application with an easy-to-use interface, keeping in mind Airbnb's current interface. Just like the current interface, I aimed to maintain the same airy and simple design that is familiar to users. To make it easier for group members to decide who should contribute, I added a friend suggestion area under the group payment section. This interaction is simple and elegant, and you can easily add more friends if you wish. I decided to automatically split expenses among group members for now, thinking that it would be complicated for hosts to manage their payments on time. Furthermore, users can quickly check if everyone in the group has paid on the group card and send them a reminder notification if they forget.

Usability Testing

Usability testing provided me with excellent feedback on my prototype. Users were very pleased to see that I had adopted the same approach as Airbnb in terms of user interface (UI) and user experience (UX), which led to a familiar interface. They also found it easy to organize the group trip with the new features, but I need to improve how users add friends to the trip. Receiving this direct feedback from users was a great way to push us to maintain the best experiences possible.

Key Takeaways

1. We always strive for a perfect product and to improve it... but in the end, it needs to be known to users.

2. People are often interested in trying out new products.

3. Users still prefer a simple and clean design over too many features.