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Qantas
Helping travellers get to the good bit: the holiday.
UX Lead
2+ years (ongoing)
Research, design
I've worked with Qantas for over two years, helping improve their website through continuous research and testing. So far we've run more than 40 A/B tests and delivered 8 figures in additional revenue. The work has uncovered new design patterns that help customers find the flights they're looking for, ultimately improving conversion. Our learnings are meticulously documented and are being used across the business to inform future design projects.
Background:
Qantas recognised their flight booking journey had become cluttered and confusing. Years of tweaks and add-ons had taken their toll. Unsure which features were helping or hindering, Qantas brought us in to test, learn, and bring some clarity to the chaos.
Research
First up: find the pain points.
We spent 6 weeks in research mode, looking for every little thing that might be hindering users. We did four different types of research to ensure the entire experience was evaluated:
User interviews
I talked to 10 customers as they navigated the flight search and purchase journey.
Heuristic evaluation
Analysed each the journey against usability and conversion principles.
Competitor review
Studied 12 other airlines to understand where Qantas differed from the category.
Data & analytics
Collaborated with a strategist and data analyst to uncover journeys, drop-offs and more.
Above: pages from the research document.
Problems
The research showed us what was broken and where to start. It uncovered hundreds of experiment ideas that we grouped into 3 primary problem areas:
1
Users are overwhelmed by the amount of information when searching for flights.
2
Users aren't seeing the value of additional options when purchasing flights (e.g. car hire, hotels, insurance).
3
Lots of users are unintentionally skipping the seat selection step when purchasing flights.
When prioritising with the Qantas team it was decided that Problem 1 and Problem 3 should be the primary focus and Problem 2 could be tackled at a later date.
Process
We worked with Qantas to prioritise fixes and build an experimentation roadmap. We wrote hypotheses, designed solutions and A/B tested to validate success. The goal: fewer blockers, smoother choices, and a better time for the people booking flights.
Over two years, we redesigned and tested key parts of the journey—search, filters, sorting, seat selection, and more. I led the UX and UI side: research sessions, designing test variants, and data visualisations to help the numbers make sense.
Above: screenshot of high-level test results documented in Miro.
A/B test samples
(Sorry, results are confidential!)
Hypothesis:
IF we declutter the flight search results screen
THEN more users will select flights and progress to the next step
BECAUSE they will find it easier to identify a suitable itinerary
Current Experience
New design
Hypothesis:
IF we add destination imagery to flight deals
THEN more users will choose a deal
BECAUSE the destination will be more appealing
Current experience
New design
Hypothesis:
IF we enable filtering on seat selection
THEN more users confirm a seat
BECAUSE they will find it easier to identify a suitable seat
Current experience
New design
Simplifying multi-leg flights:
Hypothesis:
IF we reduce multi-leg flights to a single row
THEN more users will select flights and progress to the next step
BECAUSE they will find it easier to identify a suitable itinerary
Current Experience
New design
Impact
The site's now faster, simpler and easier to use—and we have the evidence to prove it.
Some tests boosted conversion. Others lost but taught us something valuable. All of them helped steer us in the right direction. We've run over 40 experiments, brought in tens of millions in additional revenue—and the lessons we learned are shaping the future of the Qantas site.
Want the nitty gritty?
This case study's pretty light on detail—NDAs and all that. Get in touch if you want to talk shop.