Zeit Time Travel Tourism
Giving a new meaning to the word “pastime.”
Background
Travel with Zeit to have a blast in the past.
Zeit, a subsidiary of Richard Branson’s Virgin empire, is the first company to make time travel tourism available to the public. Careful decisions were made as to where travelers would be safely allowed to go into the past.
Role
End-to-End UX/UI designer
Tools
Figma, Miro, OptimalSort, Zoom
Disclaimer: This is a speculative personal project. It is not actually associated with Richard Branson or the Virgin Group, and I do not work for them.
Challenge
Create a responsive e-commerce site where users can feel at ease about time travel when browsing for and booking trips.
Outcome
100% of test participants were able to smoothly find and book a trip.
Summary
Using competitor analysis and user interviews, I discovered the common patterns, problems, needs, and wants of travelers. Taking those results into consideration with Zeit’s business goals, I used card sorting to figure out how to organize the site navigation.
User flows and wireframes were created to apply what I learned from my research. Next, I designed the logo as well as other branding assets for the user interface.
I created a high-fidelity prototype of the desktop site for a remote usability test. All participants easily completed the tasks given to them.
Conducting Research
Through competitive analysis of other adventure travel companies, I discovered what services they had in common and how they were presented on their sites. I wanted to study their strengths, but also look for opportunities where I could bolster weaknesses.
While direct competitors in the travel industry provided many insights, indirect competitors that were unconventional proved useful as well. Since time travel is a new experience, knowing how to assure users of its safety was important.
Research Findings
Offering packages that take the work out of travelers’ hands is clearly featured.
Search options & filters that are easy to use and prominent.
Excellent reviews & word of mouth are important in the age of social media.
Understanding the Users
User interviews were conducted to learn how they approach planning & booking a trip. Were there common motivations & needs regardless of how far or how long they were traveling? What concerns & issues did they have throughout the experience?
4 participants, ages 27-39.
3 females and 1 male.
They traveled 2-3 times a year for an average of a week.
Planning for their trips ranged from 1 week to 2 months.
Desktop was their preferred device to use because it’s easier to see more details and photos.
Motivation
All interviewees said that friends & family made trips more memorable because of the shared experiences.
Wants
A knowledgeable tour guide that they can talk to about activity details & concerns.
A sense of safety with the tour group & resort.
A variety of options for every budget to create their own personalized vacation package.
Needs
While everyone was budget-conscious, they would pay a little more for flexibility & convenience.
The freedom to relax or explore was important to them. They didn't want to feel rushed.
Everyone preferred traveling where difference in language wouldn't be an issue.
Positive reviews strongly influenced their decisions.
Concerns
Overall safety & rules of an area.
Getting sick or injured while traveling.
Losing belongings.
Potential issues with large cultural differences.
Frustrations
Hidden fees. They want prices to be clear throughout the browsing & booking process.
Unpredictability in mixed tour groups. They would like the option for private group tours.
Feeling overwhelmed when doing research due to visiting multiple sites. As much relevant information as possible should be provided by the travel company.
Defining the Users
I created a persona to represent my interview participants, who were all Millennials. This helped to keep me focused on solutions that served that particular user group.
Goals
Broaden the mind through travel.
Be immersed in other cultures.
Share the experiences with others.
Needs
A sense of security
A range of options that fit her budget.
Clear organization of information.
Frustrations & Fears
Lack of freedom & flexibility.
Being rushed.
Being alone in an unfamiliar place.
Synergy of Goals
Because time travel is a risky venture for both Zeit and travelers, it was imperative to establish what goals served both sides best. That meant I had to strike a balance in being an advocate for the user accomplishing business goals. Ideally, success on one side would bring success to the other.
Project Goals
Enjoyability
Safety
Loyalty
Flexibility
Making Sense of Mental Models
With the building blocks of research and goals, it was time to set up the information architecture.
5 participants were asked to sort 30 cards into categories that made sense to them. While doing research for the project, I realized how much I didn’t know about history, so I wondered if my participants would be the same.
Card Sort Results: Similarity Matrix
39 categories were created with little overlap. Only 2 pairs of cards were grouped together by all participants. Dates and names had far less of an effect than I anticipated. I was worried because I knew creating a sitemap with those results wasn’t feasible.
But then I thought of one of the answers I received from the card sort: “No knowledge of these times.” So rather than try to force patterns to somehow appear, I took a step back and looked at it from another angle.
“How could I organize things in such a way that a deep knowledge of history wasn’t needed?”
Instead of relying on abstract dates, I categorized destinations through a Where, When, What, and Who framework.
Regions
Where to go?
Eras
When did it happen?
Activities
What to do?
Historical Events
Who to see?
Site Map
From Point A to Point B
Finding a trip and booking it was the most important task flow to chart out. Because of the card sorting experience, I knew how vital it was to make it easy for people to search for trips.
The Trunk and Branches
Even when considering other paths that could be taken in the user flow, I kept it clear that the main path was to smoothly complete the booking process.
The Lay of the Land
I proceeded to use the sitemap and flows to direct how I organized content. Starting with low fidelity sketches to play around with layout, I then used Figma to create the medium fidelity wireframes.
The Look & Feel of Zeit
When I began sketching out logo ideas, I was searching for something that could communicate time, technology, and travel.
The chosen design was inspired by old-fashioned clocks & compasses, merging the time & adventure aspects of Zeit.
The brand colors were inspired by retro sci-fi artwork & dawn to add a touch of the technological and natural worlds. Because time travel is associated with the future and people are traveling to the past, retro sci-fi felt like a fitting middle ground.
For the UI kit, my aim was that it wasn’t distracting users from the photos of destinations and activities. I thought of it as an assistant, helping you with your tasks without getting in your way.
Stand the Test of Time
With a high-fidelity prototype prepared, it was time to perform usability testing. The objectives were to:
Find out if the categories made sense to new users.
Uncover any pain points as they go through the site.
Discover how users begin their trip search.
Find out how easily users are able to complete the booking process.
The testing was done remotely via Zoom with 4 participants in their 20’s & 30’s. They were given 3 tasks:
1. Create a new account.
2. Search for a trip that involves dinosaurs.
3. Select a trip to the Jurassic period from the search results and complete the booking process.
What I considered the most was the number of ways they could possibly begin their trip search. I expected they would either use the top navigation search function or select the card that had dinosaurs in it.
Because the main search feature was so prominent, I thought it was also possible they would use it. I had some doubts because of the results of the card sorting. Would they recognize the era that dinosaurs lived in?
Success Across the Board
100% of participants completed the assigned tasks without any problems. In Task 2, I was particularly surprised that that two participants actually used the main search bar rather than click on the card with dinosaurs in it.
Analyzing & Synthesizing
Taking the insights from testing, I created an affinity map to see what went well & what needed to be improved.
Priority Revisions
Despite the overall success, test participants brought up some things that would help improve the site.
Including the dates that each era spanned could help give users a rough idea of how long ago they were from the present day.
Adding a “Departure Date” filter to the search results sidebar would help ensure users could see what trips matched their schedules.
Showing each reviewer’s rating would help users understand at a glance, like on Amazon.
Retro-spective
If I could do anything differently, I would have run a closed card sort in order to see if more patterns would have emerged or if it would have been like the open card sort I did before.
In addition to that, I would learn more about users’ concerns regarding social challenges in past societies since cultural awareness was brought up in my initial interviews.
Because there were so many things to take into account, especially when designing for something that doesn’t exist, it was incredibly helpful to receive feedback from other designers. Getting fresh eyes and different perspectives helped me consider issues further, which led to more effective solutions.
I also learned that information may not present its value right away, but it could be beneficial later as I learned from the card sort. As the Greek statesman Pericles once said, “Time is the wisest counselor.”
