iOS/ANDROID APP CASE STUDY
Universal Orlando Resort's
Express Pass Offer
OVERVIEW & THE CHALLENGE
Universal Orlando Resort offers a discounted Express Pass after 4pm, but only if you’re in the right location at the right time.
Universal’s Express Pass is a fantastic product and a major time saver, letting guests skip to the front of the line for their favorite rides. However, at over $100 per person, it’s not cheap. The good news? Universal offers a discounted version for just $35 after 4pm, but this deal isn’t widely advertised throughout the park. Unless guests notice the small signs outside certain shops, they may miss the chance to buy it. I partnered with Universal’s product and engineering teams to send push notifications directly to guests’ phones, helping this offer reach a broader audience. Our goal was to make the pass easy to understand and purchase, so guests could enjoy their day without any hassle or confusion.
ROLE & DETAILS
Lead Product Designer
Wireframing, Prototyping,
User Testing, Documentation
Team
1 Product Designer
1 Product Owner
6 Engineers
Design Timeline
July 2021 – October 2021
Tools
Axure, Sketch, InVision
FIRST ROUND WIREFRAMES
The goal was to provide guests with enough information to make a quick decision.
One of our primary goals was to equip guests with clear, concise information so they could make quick, informed decisions—especially given the various restrictions tied to the discounted pass. We anticipated common frustrations, such as guests buying the pass only to find out it wasn’t valid the next day or at a different park. To address this, I designed multiple wireframes with different approaches to key questions: How do we clearly communicate that the offer is only valid for the day of purchase? What’s the best way to highlight the cost savings and generate excitement? How can we show that the pass is specific to one park but also explain options if guests want to switch parks? These initial wireframes were shared with the product and engineering teams to help clarify requirements and identify edge cases.
SECOND ROUND WIREFRAMES
The wireframes gained more context with the help of a copywriter.
It turned out that the Express Pass wasn’t actually on sale, just offered at a lower price, so I removed any references to a sale from the designs. Working with a copywriter, I enriched the body copy with clearer, more descriptive language and included an option that clearly spelled out the immediate benefits for the guest. Striking the right balance between promotion and information was key. I also replaced the park logos with the Express Pass logo, hoping this familiar branding would catch guests’ attention since they see it throughout the park all day. By this stage, the product, engineering teams, and I felt confident about the direction of the first two design options and were ready to move into full design.
THE DESIGN
The design phase added color and left us with two options to test.
During the design phase, I chose to focus on two options that I felt struck the right balance of information. Both designs were quite similar, with the main difference being how guests could switch between the two parks: Universal Studios Florida and Universal’s Islands of Adventure. When guests receive and open the notification, the park defaults to their current location to enable a quick review and purchase. While the product team wanted to offer the ability to switch parks, they preferred not to draw too much attention to this feature. Finding the right level of emphasis for the park-switching option was key, so it was time to bring these designs to users for testing.
USER TESTING
I met with 10 users in-person at Universal Studios to gather feedback and first impressions.
During a full-day session in the park, I met with guests and guided them through my prototype. I asked about their overall understanding of the offer and their level of interest. Then, I observed how they navigated the flow—from opening the notification to viewing the offer and locating additional details. The 10 guests confirmed key details such as which park the offer applied to, its validity period, and their preferred method for switching parks. Notably, 90% favored the native iOS toggle, and all participants appreciated seeing their name displayed on the lock screen.
ERROR STATES & EDGE CASES
During testing, I also asked about these error states.
If a guest received the push notification but delayed opening it, there was a chance the offer could have sold out in the meantime. I asked participants if they understood this message, and every one of them said yes. They also appreciated having the option to explore other offers. On the other hand, if a guest left the park before opening the notification, they would see a yellow banner error. We gained valuable feedback here—originally, the message began with 'Looks like you’re out of the park,' which some guests found unsettling, even though it was based on location services. Based on this, we revised the copy to sound more like a friendly guess about their whereabouts.
FINAL DESIGN & WHAT I LEARNED
With testing concluded, final designs were created and delivered to engineering.
This project was truly enjoyable to work on. While the screens and functionality weren’t overly complex, getting every detail right was crucial due to the potential impact on revenue. Enabling guests to purchase Express Passes directly from their phones was only the beginning—there are many more products set to go digital. Ensuring that guests clearly understand what’s being offered and how to buy it is absolutely essential for success.