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PANNA ULLAH
UX Project

Fly UX

Designing a user-centred airline experience
Role

UX/UI Designer (Independent)

Timeframe

December 2020 - June 2021

Tools

Figma, Miro, Loom

Fly UX - All desktop screens
Fly UX Cover Image
Abstract

Fly UX is a conceptual project completed as part of the practical assignment for the Diploma in UX Design with the UX Design Institute, exploring user-centred design principles and processes in an airline industry context. The aim of this project was to design a user-centric airline website for Fly UX, guided by Jakob Nielsen’s Heuristic Usability Guidelines: Visibility of System Status, Flexibility and Efficiency of Use, and Aesthetic and Minimalist Design. A user-centred design approach was adopted, incorporating competitive benchmarking, an online survey, and usability testing to research and explore the flight booking experience. Key user pain points, such as cluttered layouts, unclear pricing, and disrupted navigation flows, were identified and addressed through the project’s core design principles: User-Centric Functionality, Clarity in Communication, and Fluid Navigation.

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Through understanding user needs and behaviours, design goals were established to streamline the booking process, reduce friction, and improve user satisfaction. The homepage was simplified to eliminate clutter and highlight the primary call to action, “Book a flight,” while flight selection was made more transparent with a grid layout and clear pricing. A more intuitive calendar interaction was introduced to reduce confusion during date selection, and progressive disclosure was used to simplify the booking process, enhancing usability. Additionally, the use of smart defaults and clear summary screens was incorporated to improve confidence and reduce errors at the final stages.

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As a result, the project produced an intuitive, efficient online booking experience, designed to ensure smooth navigation, clear communication, and a seamless journey from start to finish.

Introduction

Designing a website for a new entrant into the airline industry is a great opportunity to establish a strong digital presence, however, it does come with unique challenges. The challenge lies in a competitive space where many airline websites lack clear user-focused standards or consistent design conventions (Eksioglu et al. 2013). This makes it difficult to conceptualise and identify usability attributes and common design conventions needed to design an intuitive and delightful user experience.

Navigating the Competitive Landscape

This lack of standardisation and intuitive flow across existing platforms creates uncertainty when defining what an efficient, user-friendly airline website should look and feel like. From inconsistent navigation structures to convoluted booking paths, these gaps offer an opportunity to rethink what modern airline design could be - one that's not only functional but also delightful to use.

Heuristic Framework for Usability

To tackle this challenge I adopted a user-centred design approach using Jakob Nielsen's Heuristic Usability Guidelines as a framework. A heuristic evaluation is an effective method for identifying usability issues in a digital product. This process involves assessing the user interface of an existing/ competitor websites against established usability concepts (known as heuristics) to identify and improve usability (Moran and Gordon 2023).

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Among the various heuristic frameworks, Nielsen’s 10 Usability Heuristics (Nielsen 1994) are the most respected and recognised, but poorly implemented within the airline industry. These principles offer a comprehensive foundation to evaluating and enhancing the usability of digital products.

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For this project, I selected three specific heuristics from Nielsen to guide my design decisions:

  • Visibility of System Status - Users are informed about what's happening as each step, such as showing progress during booking.

  • Flexibility and Efficiency of Use - Caters to both new and experienced users, streamlining processes while maintaining adaptability.

  • Aesthetic and Minimalist Design - Focuses on reducing unnecessary elements, creating a visually appealing, uncluttered interface that enhances user focus.

Objectives

The aim of this project was to design a user-centric airline website that stands out from its competitors. To achieve this, I developed a set of design principles informed by Jakob Nielsen's usability heuristics, tailoring them to suit the specific needs of the flight booking experience. These principles shaped th eoverall direction of the design:

  • User-Centric Functionality - Prioritising features and content that address specific user goals, allowing tasks to be completed with minimal effort.

  • Clarity in Communication - Presenting information in a way that's easy to find, read and understand. Thus, reducing cognitive load and supporting confident decision-making.

  • Fluid Navigation - Designing intuitive task flows that feel natural, reducing unnecessary steps and making key actions, like booking a flight, feel seamless.

Methodology

To design a website for Fly UX, I followed a UX Design Process grounded in user needs. This process was structured around several key phases:

UX Design Process

Please note: Due to the scope of this project, the process concludes at the Prototype stage, with no validation phase included.

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The primary form of data used in this project was qualitative, offering deeper insight into user reasoning, nuanced responses and a comprehensive understanding of their needs. Quantitative data was also used to support comparison and analysis across different user groups.

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As part of the Research phase, I conducted usability testing sessions to observe how users interacted with existing airline websites. This allowed me to gather first-hand insights into user behaviours, pain points and expectations when booking flights. These observations helped inform design decisions and highlight areas of improvement in the Fly UX prototype. It's important to note that usability testing focused solely on competitor platforms and did not extend to the final Fly UX design.

  • Research

  • Analysis

  • Define

  • Design

  • Prototype

  • Validate

1. Research & Findings

This phase initially explored competitor performance within the market. However, the main focus of this phase was to understand users' needs and pain-points during the flight booking process.

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To gain insight the following research methods were utilised:

  • Competitive Benchmarking

  • Online Survey

  • Usability Testing

1.1 Competitive Benchmark

The aim of this benchmarking exercise was to identify design patterns and conventions across airline websites. By reviewing key competitors, I explored how each one approaches the flight booking experience in the following areas:​​

  • Homepage Entry Point

  • Flight Search Form

  • Search Results/ Selections

Key Observations
- Competitive Benchmarking

Some common conventions and patterns identified were:

  • Many airlines present a large volume of content on their homepages, leading to visual clutter and reduced clarity

  • A typical flight search-to-booking process is structured across 7+ steps or not provided at all, adding potential friction.

  • Airlines such as Wizz Air, introduce unnecessary complexity through poorly designed pricing bundles.

  • The consistent placement of the flight search form at the top of the homepage was a common pattern. This positioning was critical as it aligned with users' expectations, allowing them to quickly start the booking process, which is essential for creating an efficient task flow.

These insights directly informed the design analysis, establishing a baseline for usability expectations and guiding Fly UX's differentiation, while still aligning with familiar patterns (Schade, Cheng, Sherugar 2016).

1.2 Online Survey

Primary data was collected from 40 users across various industries to understand their goals and preferences when using an airline website. Both open-ended and closed-ended questions were used to gather qualitative and quantitative data.

  • 76% of users were put off by cluttered layouts and unclear information; showing the need for cleaner designs and clearer communication.

  • 27.5% found it hard to identify pricing and flight times; suggesting the need for clearer displays of this information.

  • 82.5% confirmed that smart defaults made booking easier; indicating this should be used more widely.

  • 70% expressed frustration with upsell offers during booking thus highlighting a key area to improve.

Whilst the survey provided a small overview of user frustrations and preferences, usability testing was carried out to observe these behaviours in real-time and gather deeper qualitative insights.

1.3 Usability Testing

To gain deeper insights into user interactions and refine design decisions, a dedicated usability testing exercise was conducted to observe real user behaviours in a natural setting. Two participants were recruited for remote usability tests on desktop devices, completing key booking tasks on two airline websites: Aer Lingus and Eurowings.

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These platforms were selected to observe usability differences between full-service airlines and low-cost carriers. Participants' activities were guided by the Fly UX design principles: User-Centric Functionality, Clarity in Communication and Fluid Navigation.

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Although small in sample size, the sessions provided rich, actionable insights into usability patterns, user frustrations and areas of satisfaction.

Please note: Usability test videos are unavailable for public viewing due to user privacy.

Key Observations
- Usability Testing

The following patterns were observed across both websites during the sessions:

  • Participants responded positively to calendar-based date selection and simple click-based passenger inputs that allowed tasks to be completed with minimal effort.

  • Participants encountered difficulties with unclear flight times, confusing fare package descriptions and call-to-action buttons that were not positioned where expected.

  • Missed steps and unexpected pop-ups interrupted task flows and made navigation feel less seamless.

1.4 Affinity Diagram

An affinity diagram is a valuable method for organising unstructured research data into themes, helping teams identify patterns and build consensus on findings.

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For this project, I collaborated with a peer contributor to conduct a virtual affinity diagramming session using Miro. Together, we reviewed research observations and grouped them into categories based on recurring behaviours, pain points, mental models and contextual factors.

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These findings provided a critical foundation for developing the Customer Journey Map. By organising user behaviours, frustrations and mental models under the three core design principles, we were able to visualise how people interact with the booking process.

1.5 Customer Journey Mapping

Following the affinity diagramming session, a Customer Journey Map was developed to visualise users' interactions across the flight booking process, from initial planning to entering personal details. this helped identify where the users felt delighted and where friction was encountered in their experience.

Key Observations
- Customer Journey Map

  • Delight was strongest at the start, during travel planning and initiating flight searches, where User-Centric Functionality made navigation intuitive and seamless.

  • Smooth navigation combined with clear scannable results led to confident decision making. Thus, reinforcing Fluid Navigation.

  • Peak friction occurred during bundle selection, where User-Centric functionality and Clarity in Communication faltered due to unclear pricing and confusing options. Therefore, disrupting the flow and creating uncertainty.

  • Uncertainty around upselling and excessive steps reflected a breakdown in Clarity in Communication and Fluid Navigation, causing frustration.

  • Delight returned slightly at the final stage, with User-Centric Functionality and Clarity in Communication making form completion easier through smart defaults and clear summaries.

2. Analysis

These analyses helped define the forthcoming design goals that align with the three core principles of this study; User-Centric Functionality, Clarity in Communication and Fluid Navigation.

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The following set of analyses has been structured thematically to effectively highlight patterns in user pain points, successes and opportunities for design improvements across critical booking stages (Rosala 2022).

3. Goals for Fly UX

By prioritising our core design principles; User-Centric Functionality, Clarity in Communication and Fluid Navigation, the aim is to streamline the booking process, minimise friction and deliver a delightful experience from start to finish for Fly UX.

1. Homepage Experience

Objective:

Minimise visual clutter and distractions, ensuring that users primary focus is on the core task, flight booking.

  • Design Considerations:

    • Implement a clean, minimalist design with a balanced use of whitespace, limiting unnecessary elements (e.g. excessive promotions).

    • Ensure that the primary call to action, "Book a Flight," is prominently displayed above the fold, using bold, visually distinct elements (e.g. a large button with a contrasting colour).

    • Position secondary action (e.g. sign-up, manage bookings) are easily accessible but do not overshadow the main objective.

    Connection to Design Principles:

    • User-Centric Functionality: Prioritising the most critical task and reducing friction.

    • Clarity in Communication: Clear messaging that directs users straight to the booking process.

    • Fluid Navigation: Streamlining entry points for a smoother transition to other parts of the site.

2. Calendar Interaction

Objective:

Make date selection intuitive, clear and fast helping users make informed decisions.

  • Design Considerations:

    • Implement a calendar component with interactive elements that show both available and unavailable dates. Use colour-coding to visually differentiate between the two.

    • Allow users to switch between month, week or days views depending on their preferences.

    Connection to Design Principles:

    • User-Centric Functionality: Users can effortlessly select dates, improving the decision making progress.

    • Clarity in Communication: Instant feedback on available dates reduces confusion.

    • Fluid Navigation: Clear, responsive calendar navigation makes the process feel seamless.

3. Flight Selection Flow

Objective:

Simplify the flight selection process, making it transparent and easy to navigate.

  • Design Considerations:

    • Create a grid layout for displaying flight options, ensuring pricing, departure/arrivals times and travel duration are clearly visible.

    • Allow users to filter and sort flights based on various criteria (e.g. price, duration and flight times).

    • Ensure a clearly labelled "Summary" or "Review" section so users can quickly verify their selections before proceeding.

    Connection to Design Principles:

    • User-Centric Functionality: Simplifies comparison and decision-making.

    • Clarity in Communication: Transparent, understandable flight details.

    • Fluid Navigation: Users can quickly scan, review and proceed, ensuring ease of transition to the next stage.

4. Booking Process

Objective:

Ensure a streamlined, smooth booking process that reduces user effort and improves completion rates.

  • Design Considerations:

    • Introduce a visible progress bar at the top of the page from the first step of flight selection to show users where they are in the booking process (e.g. Flight Selection, Seat Selection).

    • Keep the entire booking process under 6 steps, eliminating unnecessary steps and reducing cognitive load.

    • Use progressive disclosure to only show the necessary fields based on user selections. For example, separate seat and baggage selection into distinct steps, only showing them when relevant to the users.

    Connection to Design Principles:

    • User-Centric Functionality: Reduced number of steps increases completion rate.

    • Clarity in Communication: Simple, concise task flow that guides users seamlessly.

    • Fluid Navigation: Clear progress and reduction of cognitive load help users navigate efficiently.

5. Information Clarity

Objective:

Ensure users have quick and easy access to essential flight and pricing information.

  • Design Considerations:

    • Use icons to provide context about flight details, such as stopovers.

    • Highlight stopovers clearly in the flight grid, providing essential details like airport names, duration, and layover times.

    • Ensure all tooltips and icons are easily accessible without interrupting the user's flow. 

    Connection to Design Principles:

    • User-Centric Functionality: Users can access necessary info without overwhelming them.

    • Clarity in Communication: Simplified information makes it easier for users to understand key details.

    • Fluid Navigation: Information is contextually placed so users aren't interrupted or distracted. 

6. Smart Defaults and Summary Screens

Objective:

Enhance usability by reducing manual inputs and providing clear summaries before final submission.

  • Design Considerations:

    • Use smart defaults to pre-fill common information (e.g. location, dates, number or passengers) to save time and effort.

    • Include a summary screen that clearly lists all selections before the user confirms the booking, ensuring transparency and accuracy.

    • Allow users to easily edit selections and search criteria from the summary screen in case they need to make changes.

    Connection to Design Principles:

    • User-Centric Functionality: Reducing manual inputs makes the booking process faster and more convenient.

    • Clarity in Communication: The summary screens ensures users are fully informed before final confirmation.

    • Fluid Navigation: The clear summary screen allows users to easily move between selections, reinforcing a smooth journey. 

7. Error Handling and Navigation Optimisation

Objective:

Improve navigation and error handling to prevent frustration and keep users on track.

  • Design Considerations:

    • Introduce clear error messages that are helpful and not obstructive, with suggestions for correction (e.g. "Please select a seat before proceeding").

    • Provide users with a clear path to resolve errors, such as highlighting missing or incomplete fields.

    Connection to Design Principles:

    • User-Centric Functionality: Minimising disruptions to the user's workflow enhances the overall experience.

    • Clarity in Communication: Clear error messages help users understand and rectify issues.

    • Fluid Navigation: Smooth transitions and effective error handling keep users engaged.

Notes on Scope and Time Constraint

Due to time constraints, the scope of the wireframes and prototype was limited to early booking stages, ending at the seat selection screen on desktop devices. This strategic focus allowed for a deeper exploration of the most critical touchpoints identified in the research findings.

4. Design

The design phase focused on addressing the key usability challenges on a flight booking website uncovered through research, aligning closely with design goals outlined in section, "3-Design Goals for Fly UX". Each design decision was grounded in Fly UX core principles, User Centric Functionality, Clarity in Communication and Fluid Navigation, with a clear aim to reduce booking friction, surface essential information and streamline user journey.

4.1 User Flow

To lay the foundation for a smooth and intuitive booking experience, a streamlined user flow was developed to reflect the natural steps users take when searching for and selecting flights. The goal was to minimise friction, reduce unnecessary steps and keep users focused on their primary task.

Each stage in the process was carefully considered to support the core design principles:

  • User-Centric Functionality - The flow prioritises essential tasks such as searching, selecting and reviewing flights while removing unnecessary distractions.

  • Clarity in Communication - Each step is clearly defined, helping users understand their current position and what's required next.

  • Fluid Navigation - The sequence is logical and efficient, guiding users from the homepage through flight selection, seat choice and baggage options with minimal effort.

The final user flow provides a clear, structured path through the booking process, supporting confident decision-making and reinforcing an intuitive experience from the very first interaction. Following multiple iterations, the flow reached a level of clarity and confidence that enabled the design process to move forward with a solid structure in place.

4.2 Sketches and Interaction Design 

With the user flow established, initial sketches were produced to validate the structure and begin visualising the overall user experience. These low-fidelity wireframes served as an essential step in translating the user flow into tangible screens, enabling rapid exploration of layout ideas and task progression without the constraints of high-fidelity details.

Sketches were used to:

  • Confirm that the sequence of screens aligned with the intended user journey.

  • Experiment with layout and hierarchy to support ease of scanning and interaction.

  • Identify and address potential friction points early in the design process.

Guided by Fly UX core design principles; User-Centric Functionality, Clarity in Communication and Fluid Navigation, each screen was designed to keep users focused on the goal, present information in a digestible way and allow for smooth movement throughout the booking steps.​

Design Challenge: The Summary Panel

One area that presented unexpected challenges was the summary panel. Sketching this component proved to be more complex than anticipated due to limited space and the risk of overwhelming the users with too much information in a compact area. Despite these constraints, a version was developed that will be carried forward into high-fidelity.

 

This next phase will help assess how the panel functions visually and interactively, while also clarifying what information is truly essential for user to be aware of as/when they review their selections as they progress.

5. Final UI

Building on the validated user flow and refined sketches, a high-fidelity interface was developed to bring the Fly UX booking experience to life. This stage focused on refining the visual language, interaction behaviour and information hierarchy into a cohesive and accessible format. This aligned with the overarching UX design principles: User-Centric Functionality, Clarity in Communication and Fluid Navigation.

5.1 Visual and Interaction Design

The interface features a clean, professional aesthetic with a white background that reinforces clarity and focus. A consistent colour palette, navy as the primary and pink as an accent, establishes visual hierarchy without distraction. Contrast levels were carefully tested to meet Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1, ensuring strong readability and accessibility. 

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Attention to spacing, typography and component behaviour enhances usability and visual clarity. The layout follows a modular structure to maintain visual consistency throughout the desktop experience, while allowing the design to scale easily in future iterations.

Each screen was structured to support user goals with minimal friction:

Homepage:
The search form is immediately visible above the fold, reducing steps needed to start a flight search. Below this, travel inspiration tiles are visually distinct but secondary to the main task.

Flight Selection:
Flight options are presented in a clear grid, enabling effortless comparison across dates and times. Visual differentiation between selected and unselected states aids decision-making. A dynamic Booking Summary panel on the right updates in real time to reflect selections, supporting user confidence and progress tracking.

Seat Selection: 
The seat map presents information with clarity and ease. Subtle grey blocks indicate standard, lower-cost seats; light blue highlights seats near the front of the aircraft; and red blocks mark premium options with added legroom. When a user selects a seat, its price and location are automatically populated in the summary panel, supporting quick comparisons and confident decision-making.

Addressing Design Challenge: The Summary Panel

One of the more complex components to design was the Booking Summary panel, which had to house a range of real-time details, flight selections, pricing breakdowns and seating information, within a narrow vertical column.

Early sketches revealed layout tensions: there was a risk of overwhelming the users with too much tightly packed information. Iterating through layout options helped refine the content hierarchy, prioritising what users needed to see each step, such as selected inbound/outbound airports, arrival/departure flight times, dates and seat selections.

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While there are still constraints in the vertical space, the final design proved workable in the prototype. The panel now serves as a continuous, reassuring reference point for users throughout the booking process.

6. Prototype

A high-fidelity prototype was developed to simulate the core Fly UX booking journey, from homepage entry through flight and seat selection, offering a realistic demonstration of the intended user experience. This clickable prototype allows a functional representation of layout, interaction behaviour and task flow supporting internal review and potential future testing.

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Please note: The scope of this prototype ends at the seat selection stage. Subsequent steps such as baggage selection and entering personal or payment details were intentionally excluded from this case study.

6.1 Design Goals in Practice

This prototype was crafted around the foundational design goals established in section 3. Every interaction consistently embodies the Fly UX principles: User-Centric Functionality, Clarity in Communication and Fluid Navigation.

Key implementations include:

  • Homepage Experience:
    A minimalist layout with a prominently placed "Search Flights" call-to-action was used to immediately guide users towards their core goal. By minimising unnecessary content and promotional clutter from the outset, the design prioritised task initiation and reduced cognitive load, aligning with User-Centric Functionality.

  • Calendar Interaction:
    A calendar interface with visual cues such as highlighted dates ranges and non-selectable past dates, enabled users to choose travel dates quickly and with confidence. By avoiding manual input (which can be error-prone due to differing US and European date formats), the click-based interaction supported Clarity in Communication and helped prevent entry mistakes.

  • Flight Selection Flow:
    Flights were displayed in a structured grid with clear typography, fare categories, stopover icons, times and prices. A live-updating summary panel helped users keep track of their selections in real-time. This combination simplified comparison, prevented decision-fatigue and supported fluid navigation by keeping key information visible throughout.

  • Booking Process:
    The booking journey was streamlined through the use of a visible progress bar, reduced total steps and progressive disclosure (e.g. showing only relevant booking options at each step). These elements maintained a sense of momentum and helped users understand where they were in the process-supporting both Fluid Navigation and User-Centric Functionality.

  • Information Clarity:
    Key details like stopover information and seat types were presented using familiar icons, hover tooltips and concise text. This approach made complex choices easier to understand at a glance and avoided the need to rely on fine print, reinforcing Clarity in Communication.

  • Smart Defaults & Booking Summary Panel:
    Frequently used inputs (like number of adults or departure airport) were pre-filled with sensible defaults based on typical user preference or location setting for nearest airport selection. Also, booking summary panel displayed the user's current selections and total cost throughout each step of the booking process, minimising the need to backtrack and recheck. These features reduced effort and reinforced confidence, strongly supporting User-Centric Functionality.

  • Error Handling (Planned):
    Although not implemented in the current prototype due to limited scope, future iterations will introduce contextual error-messaging, such as real-time validation and in-place guidance for correcting invalid entries. This is particularly crucial during the completion of personal and payment details, where clear feedback helps users stay on track, minimise frustration and maintain progress. These enhancements align with the principles of Clarity in Communication and Fluid Navigation.

Each of these design decisions was intentionally made to reduce friction, support confident decision-making and deliver a seamless booking experience, directly supporting the Fly UX principles and addressing user needs observed during research and testing.

6.2 Handover Documentation 

The final handover package consists of the completed wireframes, each accompanied by detailed annotated notes. These annotations specify the intended user interactions, content organisation and key functional elements necessary for development.

Annotations include:

  • Clear identification of clickable and interactive elements, like buttons, forms, and navigation links so they can be built accordingly.

  • Clear explanation of how content is arranged and styled to guide users’ attention and make information easy to follow.

  • Instructions on how user inputs are managed and how progress through the booking steps is visually communicated.

This documentation is designed to provide clear, actionable instructions to ensure that the design is accurately implemented and the user experience remains consistent.

This marks the completion of the UX design phase for Fly UX within the scope of this project. The high-fidelity prototype and comprehensive handover documentation establish a solid foundation for development and further user testing. While there is always room for refinement through iterative feedback, this stage represents a meaningful step towards delivering a user-centred, clear and seamless flight booking experience, anchored by the core principles of User-Centric Functionality, Clarity in Communication and Fluid Navigation.

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In the following section, I share my personal reflections on the project, highlighting key insights gained and areas for future growth.

Reflection

As the sole contributor to Fly UX, I thoroughly enjoyed having full creative control and the opportunity to explore and shape the end-to-end design process without compromise. One of the most gratifying parts of this project was the high-fidelity design phase, seeing my ideas take visual form and building a fully clickable prototype brought the experience to life in a meaningful way. Although challenging, prototyping was a valuable learning curve. Connecting every interaction to support smooth, fluid navigation required both time and patience, but the result was a realistic simulation of the booking journey. It affirmed the importance of prototyping as a cost-effective way to surface usability issues early, before any development takes place.

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This project also presented growth opportunities. One of the main limitations was the restricted research sample size, which doesn't fully represent the diversity of airline website users. Additionally, I believe the survey created lacked the focus needed to produce actionable insights. Moving forward, I would conduct more targeted, close-ended surveys throughout the research phase, adapting the questions to better align with the design objectives. This would allow for deeper insight and stronger links between user needs and final design outcomes.

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Another constraint was the limited scope of the project. Since Fly UX is a conceptual project undertaken as part of the Diploma in UX Design with the UX Design Institute, I was completing it in parallel with the accompanying course modules, applying new knowledge in real time but in a short timeframe; concentrating on selected stages of the booking process to demonstrate key principles effectively. I would have liked to carry the prototype through to the booking confirmation and make it fully responsive across mobile, tablet and desktop devices in order to demonstrate my end-to-end design delivery. Additionally, validating the design with real users in a final round of usability testing would have been ideal, providing further evidence of how the design performs and where refinements may still be needed. 

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Throughout the process, I consistently applied the Fly UX core design principles: User-Centric Functionality, Clarity in Communication and Fluid Navigation. These principles not only shaped each design decision but also anchored my thinking when reflecting on pain points, prioritising features and defining the overall experience.

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While the scope of this project was intentionally limited, it offered valuable hands-on experience and sharpened my ability to design intentionally with users in mind. Moving forward, I'm excited to take these learnings into future projects, applying stronger research methods, designing across all breakpoints and continuing to advocate for simple, user-focused digital experiences. 

References

Eksioglu, Mahmut, Esin Kiris, Tugba Cakir, Merve Guvendik, Efsane D. Koyuturk, and Merve Yilmaz. 2013. ‘A User Experience Study of Airline Websites’. Lecture Notes in Computer Science. doi:10.1007/978-3-642-39253-5_19.

Moran, Kate, and Kelley Gordon. 2023. ‘Heuristic Evaluations: How to Conduct’. Nielsen Norman Group. https://www.nngroup.com/articles/how-to-conduct-a-heuristic-evaluation/.

Rosala, Maria. 2022. ‘How to Analyze Qualitative Data from UX Research: Thematic Analysis’. Nielsen Norman Group. https://www.nngroup.com/articles/thematic-analysis/ (May 9, 2025).

Schade, Amy, Yunnuo Cheng, and Samyukta Sherugar. 2016. ‘Top 10 Enduring Web-Design Mistakes’. Nielsen Norman Group. https://www.nngroup.com/articles/top-10-enduring/ (April 3, 2025).

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