PROJECT Case Study
Carnival Booking Engine
As a Product Owner and UX Lead at Carnival Cruise Line, I spearheaded performance marketing initiatives aimed at enhancing the booking experience and maximizing conversion rates across both mobile and desktop platforms. I took charge of evaluating and refining the transactional flow and site performance of Carnival.com through a continuous cycle of research & A/B testing.
By closely monitoring and analyzing user behavior, I identified winning experiments that showcased improvements in user engagement and conversion rates. These successful experiments were then prioritized and seamlessly integrated into the development team's backlog, ensuring their swift implementation.
Cruise Search Application
Design, Prototyping, Testing
My primary focus as the UX Lead was to optimize the Cruise Search application for Carnival Cruise Line, with the goal of creating a unified and seamless user experience across multiple search views, including grid, list, and calendar. By harmonizing these views, I aimed to enhance user engagement with cruise dates and room options, such as inside, balcony, and suite accommodations.
Additionally, the business objective was to drive more qualified traffic into the booking engine, ultimately increasing conversion rates and facilitating a smooth and efficient booking process.
To achieve these goals, I employed a combination of designing, prototyping, and testing methodologies to ensure that the final design solution met the needs of users and the business while delivering a satisfying and intuitive experience.
Find a Cruise
The "Find a Cruise" search bar is the most interacted element on the Carnival.com homepage. This component is vital as it is the prime entry point into the booking engine. This "FAC" component is constantly tested with new hypotheses and design interactions in order to increase engagement. "Find a Cruise" is the vital towards booking a cruise online.
Multiple Cruise Search views (grid, list, and calendar) provide flexible and informative ways for users to find the cruises they desire. Thorough user testing and prototyping were developed into A/B tests to elevate the wining experience for production.
- Upgrades to all 3 search views (especially calendar view) grew next page conversions by 11%, increasing overall bookings on Carnival.com.
Booking Engine - Reservation System
User Testing, Prototyping, Design
Booking Engine step 1 - "Number of travelers and rooms" is the crucial first step in order to generate what I term as "transactional momentum". This first part of the transaction flow was constantly prototyped and tested several different UI selectors (native controls vs. custom).
As the lead UX Lead for the Booking Engine application at carnival.com, I prioritized delivering a seamless mobile booking experience without sacrificing performance. Through ongoing user testing and UI enhancements, I identified and addressed friction points in the transactional path.
By improving UI, taxonomy and filtering functionality, users can easily find cruises that interest them. This approach resulted in higher engagement, conversion rates, and user satisfaction.
By leveraging my skills in designing, prototyping, and testing, I continually refined the Booking Engine application to provide a consistent and delightful experience across devices. This user-centric approach not only enhanced the usability of the mobile booking process but also contributed to improved performance metrics and increased user satisfaction.
Booking Engine - Deck / Location screens have an overabundance of information which can be a challenge for conversions on smaller screens.
Through vigorous user testing we had discovered about 8-10% of first-time bookers were confused by the different deck names and associated prices. This led to UI enhancements to the group deck and pricing information, into a cleaner presentation in order to reduce friction.
Courtesy Hold mitigation screen increased lead captures for cruise prospects. Which led to personalized marketing campaigns for those leads to increase booking conversions.