From UPPs to Date amendment NS

A minor feature with major pain points — Date Amendment
 

⬆️ In the previous flow, over half of users were blocked at the first step, causing a steep drop-off throughout the journey — with a final completion rate of less than 4%.

 

Date Amendment (post-booking date change) served <5% users but caused outsized cost:

  • 🔺 $15M/year in support (7% of HT), stalling roadmap for 2 quarters

  • 🔺 17× higher maintenance footprint vs. most-used flow

  • 🔺 Generated the most bugs, up to 17× bug-per-usage ratio

👉 Became a case study of hidden complexity → tech debt, and the North Star of our redesign initiative.

 

📊 What the Data Revealed

  • Only 4% completed the flow via self-service.

  • 10% reached out to customer support within 24h after starting the flow.

👉 This exposed two core issues:

  1. Confusing / broken steps → even eligible users couldn’t finish.

  2. Lack of guidance → users defaulted to support, creating uncertainty.

 

The Invisible Iceberg: Rebuilding Logic Across Fragmented Systems

Biggest challenge wasn’t UI — it was hidden UX debt across legacy systems.

 

👑 My Scope & Leadership

As lead product designer, I drove the NS redesign by:

  • Auditing fragmented bug logs & rules → surfaced root UX breakdowns

  • Visualizing blind spots with system mapping & diagrams

  • Translating findings & benchmarking into systematic design proposals + A/B testable fixes

  • Aligning PMs, engineers, and policy stakeholders on a simplified MVP with measurable goals

👉 This was where my role expanded from UI design → driving system logic & cross-team alignment.

 

⬆️ Historical bugs and UX breakdown

⬆️ Mapping out the unknowns to be resolved

⬆️ Competitor analysis after UX audit

 
 
 

🧩 Design UPPs: 3 Hidden Breakdowns

To untangle the legacy system, I audited the core DA journey and uncovered users pain points into 3 main themes:

 
🔥 Theme 1: Unclear Rules & Eligibility


  • 50% blocked at first step (no paths / explanation)

  • 91% of support time from non-refundable bookings

    → Eligibility logic fragmented & unclear

🔥 Theme 2: Opaque Availability & Cost Info

  • 72% of errors tied to calendar availability

  • Users couldn’t predict bookable dates or costs

    → No visibility, sudden price shifts

🔥 Theme 3: Vague Actions & Feedback


  • 15% error rate from mismatched prices, allotment fails, unclear payments

    → Inconsistent / missing feedback

 
👉 “Users faced blocked entry, blind calendars, and broken feedback — driving high drop-off and support cost.”

✨ Turning Pain Points into Design Impact

Audits revealed 3 core issues — we resolved each with focused design solutions.

🔧 I. Clarifying Rules & Eligibility

1. Edit Before Cancel

Allowing users to change booking details before forcing cancellation

👉 Already supported by 3 of 4 competitors

2. Eligibility + Alternative Paths

If amendments aren't allowed, we now:
• Clearly explain why
• Offer alternate and clear nudges (contact property / request free cancel)

3. Unified Amendment Rules

90% hotel partners enabled Proactive Fee Waiver → removed unnecessary blocker into a seamless path.

🔧  II. Reveal Availability & Cost Early

1. Show Availability Status Upfront

Display clear availability indicators in calendar → users see what’s bookable before entering flow.

2. Offer Alternatives When Unavailable

When unavailable, suggest nearby dates / similar properties / flexible options → reduce frustration and retain users.


 

3. Introduce Benefit Selection in Flow

Let users to select new benefits (e.g., breakfast, late checkout) directly during amendment → smoother decisions, less drop-off.

👉 Only Traveloka allows benefit selection via RG; other competitors lack integrated benefit selection.

4. Add Visual Comparison of Benefits & Price Changes
Show clear side-by-side highlights of cost & benefits → users see trade-offs instantly, boosting trust.

👉 no major competitor currently provides this comparison feature upfront.

🔧 III. Clear Actions & Transparent Confirmation

1. Clarity Before Confirm
Show updated terms & payment changes as edits are made
→ no surprises later.

2. Aligned Confirmation
Final page mirrors updated prices, policies, and methods
→ matches what users saw earlier.

 
 ✨To bring these design visions into reality, we evaluated MVP paths not just by UX impact, but by feasibility and business value.✨

🔧 How We Moved From Vision → MVP

a strategic MVP targeting the highest-impact issues
 

Challenge

Full redesign = high risk + high cost, slow path to value

Our Approach

Leverage existing Cancel & Rebook (CXR) infra → deliver Phase 1 MVP with impact + feasibility + user coverage.

Outcome

Prioritized critical fixes, Delivered higher ROI (+$3.3M/year) with faster impact, despite higher initial dev effort.

 
Phase 1 MVP Trade-Offs: Evaluating Strategic Paths

Cancel & Rebook let us scale a single clear flow, instead of keeping fragmented rules we offer less confusion and a more predictable experience to the users.

⬆️ A side-by-side comparison of refactoring the existing flow on MMB vs. leveraging Cancel & Rebook (CXR) within the current booking infrastructure — balancing dev effort, scalability, speed, risk, and business impact.

 
🚀 MVP Delivery: 90% Use Case Coverage, Minimal Risk

Scope

  • Covered refundable & non-refundable bookings

  • Edits: dates, rooms, guest count

  • Safe payment flow (charge + refund post-edit)

Impact highlights

  • ✅ Quick impact, aligned with long-term vision

  • ✅ Simpler UX → fewer drop-offs & support

  • ✅ Low rollout friction → no infra rebuild

 
 

Early Signals & Impact

Within weeks of launch in Q2, we saw clear positive impact:

 

🧑‍💻 Unlocked Extra Dev Resources

  • Initiative prioritized → +3 devs allocated

  • Faster MVP build & fewer post-launch bugs

📉 Lowered Support Load

  • Drop in date-related HT after launch

  • Users gave positive feedback on clearer offers & comparison

🔁 Future Expansion

  • PM & Ops flagged improved flow consistency

  • Paved way for broader rollout & new revenue (e.g. room upgrades)

 

✅ MVP shipped in Q2 → supported live A/B + usability testing

Early signals boosted team confidence to invest in Phase 2 (UI clarity + cross-platform consistency); with the early testing showed 90% use case coverage.
Post-launch metrics (e.g., completion time, refund rate) were also tracked by the team after the lauch.

 

🚀 Strategic Learnings

Stepped beyond UI into strategic product thinking — untangling legacy, aligning teams, and delivering value under constraints.

  • Systems thinking: Scoped a future-proof MVP with PMs/engineers → reduced long-term logic debt & enabled phased rollout.

  • Execution under constraints: Prioritized high-impact fixes → shipped MVP within quarter, cut support load.

  • Cross-functional alignment: Synthesized UT + Ops data → achieved team buy-in & shaped roadmap with confidence.

 
 

🔜 What’s Next

  • Validate impact via A/B testing (drop-offs, support)

  • UI improvements aligned with unified booking funnel

  • More usability testing for eligibility + offer clarity

 

🌝

By bridging UX clarity, system logic, and cross-team alignment, this redesign laid the foundation for a scalable, user-centered booking experience

— covering 90% of user cases with minimal risk and setting the stage for Phase 2.