Client
Airbnb is an American company that operates an online marketplace for lodging, primarily homestays for vacation rentals, and tourism activities.
Product: Add a Feature | Airbnb Workspaces
Role: UX Researcher & Designer
Disclaimer: This is an independent project based on my own ideas for improvement.
Challenge
In recent years Airbnb has expanded beyond rentals and into experiences both online and in-person. In this project, I was looking at ways they could expand further with the changes people are experiencing in their work-life due to the pandemic.
With the pandemic, many people and companies have moved to remote work. While some plan to go back into the office, many companies and individuals are opting to work remotely permanently. Working from home can be challenging for a variety of reasons.
I believe that the pandemic has offered an opportunity for us to connect intentionally and at times/ locations that work best for the individual.
Results
In doing market research I was able to identify that nothing quite like this solution existed. After speaking to users it became clear that a feature like this would be used and appreciated.
Using my initial research findings I was able to create an integration to the Workspaces feature for Airbnb that users were able to navigate easily.
“[Working] remote has made me feel like “I need to get out more.” I miss social interactions and the opportunity to build friendships with coworkers. There is a sense of isolation and loneliness.
Research.
Determine if Workspaces would be an impactful feature to add to Airbnb and how.
I needed to understand how people might want to connect when they work. Through my research, I was trying to learn if they would be looking for a personal connection, if it was more about getting out of their home, or any other potential reasons. The goal was to understand when, where, and why people would want to meet and work as a remote employee.
Market analysis.
At this stage, I was curious if users would be interested in an experience type of feature or if they would be looking predominantly at the spaces. To help me better understand what was on the market in these realms I looked at two buckets of companies:
Real estate run office spaces such as WeWork, Centrl and Regis. These operated predominantly on a month-to-month basis and were targeted at companies more than individuals.
Experiences & lifestyle businesses or apps like Meet-Up, Bumblebizz and Eventbrite. These sorts of businesses were helpful because they run off of individual users creating groups or events. And Bumblebizz is specifically designed for people to network and meet other professionals.
Define.
User personas.
For this project, I conducted live interviews as well as a user survey. This research helped me identify two key user groups for the Airbnb Workspace feature. I used Carl Jung’s archetypes to group these into The Sage and The Everyperson.
When creating my personas I work diligently to be specific while only including relevant information that can discourage unnecessary bias. The most important things for these users were based on their work needs, which included environment, people, technology, and overall work setup. The other key identifier for these users which helped me choose their user category was job focus.
User flow.
After defining my user personas I had a clear idea of how to shape this feature for Airbnb. I created a task flow and user flow to ensure I had thought through the ideal happy path as well as the specific screens I would need to create a seamless user experience. I still had a few lingering questions to iron out in the prototype.
Prototype.
After conducting my interviews it was clear that there were different types of spaces people would be interested in listing on Airbnb as well as different reasons they would rent a space and why. Some people needed space, and some people wanted connection.
Airbnb has two different flows for its users. The one most are used to at this point for booking a stay, and a slightly different user flow for booking an experience. My user interviews indicated that there were people who would book a space to connect with others and there would be users who would book space because they don’t have something suitable at home.
These two perspectives made me curious about which pattern people would prefer. I had assumptions but needed to have those reinforced. I created a prototype that would allow users to select their dates then location, or select the space first then add dates.
I decided to keep the prompt pretty to avoid pushing users one way or another when they worked through the flow. The prompt included the following details: “You are looking to book a Workspace, you end up selecting the Cheery Office for February 16th All Day”
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Test.
The testing allowed me to check which user flow pattern would make the most sense to encourage users to follow. I was particularly curious if users would want to book by date or if they were more flexible and interested in finding an environment that met their unique work style.
Overall Feedback
Overwhelming positive response in general from all testers.
Multiple people made the comment that they wished the feature existed right now. This is a clear pain point for folks with the pandemic and shift to remote-only work-life and reaffirmed what I discovered in my research.
All users felt like the experience/flow matched Airbnb so well they really didn’t need to think twice about using it.
Suggestions for Improvement
In running this test I was curious if people would book time or place first. After selecting their location it would go straight to the results screen where they could either A) Add dates then select the location or B) Select the location then add dates.
Most of the users who tested the original prototype added their dates first and then found a location. Due to this behavior, I added a screen immediately after a user picks their location. The screen has an option to skip as well as having the “I’m flexible” feature that Airbnb has implemented in recent years.
When I designed the check-out screen I mimicked the design pattern that Airbnb uses for everything (experiences and stays). This included a toggle button that said “booking for work”. In my mind that is a clear indicator that the user needs a receipt for reimbursement or for taxes.
While most people didn’t struggle with this aspect, I did have a few who found it confusing. Since this feature is meant to be for work the phasing could be confusing or misleading. I have since reworded it to “Need an invoice for work?” to add an additional level of clarity for this feature.
Iterate.
Airbnb has very clean designs and they are relatively transparent about their design guidelines. This made it very easy for me to create initial designs that followed those guidelines. Using the feedback I gained from testing I added a calendar step immediately after a user selects “Find a workspace” which mimics the “Find a place to stay” user flow. This step is skippable for the users who are less concerned with dates.
Final reflections.
This project stemmed from personal conversations with people throughout the pandemic. It also came from my own desire to connect and be around other people. I went into the project with a few ideas about how this feature could work and what the focus could be. It is always humbling to hear what the users share and take their insights to guide my designs. It is probably impossible not to have some initial biases about how something could work. I wouldn’t have started with the designs I ended up making without all of the research and conversations I had along the way.
I feel really great about what I created and I think it genuinely meets a market need.