Part one

Project overview

🎯 Mission

Picture Airbnb, but for coworking spaces... okay not QUITE a mission, but it gets you the right idea right?

Type of product

Enterprise design

Role

UX Designer

Key responsibilities

Led user research, testing, user interface design, and UX workshops as well as presenting solutions to product managers and a C-Suite.

What's Upflex, in a nutshell?

So... it's Airbnb, but for coworking spaces?
- Sola Babatunde, during his interview.

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Upflex is a platform designed to help professionals find and book flexible coworking spaces globally. The main challenge was improving first-time user retention during the booking process for coworking spaces. Through a series of user interviews, surveys, and competitive analysis, we identified three key pain points: irrelevant results in non-urban areas, confusion in differentiating essential amenities, and map filtering issues. The solutions involved a mix of practical, aspirational, and intermediate design iterations, leading to an 18% increase in first-time user retention, a 25% reduction in time spent searching, and a 30% improvement in user satisfaction with search results.

🧩 The Problem

“I can’t find a space that works for me.”

First-time users on Upflex often abandoned their search for coworking spaces due to three key pain points:

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Irrelevant results, especially in non-urban areas

Confusing amenity filters

Map filters not working as expected

What's the typical answer?

Inspired by military GPS vests, I designed Vestagogo—a Bluetooth-powered wearable that delivers navigational cues through vibration.

📈 Impact

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🔼 Performance Gains

+18% increase in first-time user retention

-25% reduction in search time

+30% satisfaction boost with search relevance

What's the typical answer?

Inspired by military GPS vests, I designed Vestagogo—a Bluetooth-powered wearable that delivers navigational cues through vibration.

‍💡 The Solution Approach

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We used a tiered approach—practical fixes, aspirational concepts, and intermediate improvements—to rework core search and filter experiences.

What's the typical answer?

Inspired by military GPS vests, I designed Vestagogo—a Bluetooth-powered wearable that delivers navigational cues through vibration.

What, why, so what?

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What:

Upflex sought to improve the retention of first-time users who were booking coworking spaces. The pain points identified were related to the search process, including irrelevant results for non-urban areas, difficulty distinguishing essential amenities, and poor filtering on maps.

Why:

The goal was to enhance the user experience by addressing these pain points. Improving retention meant users would have a smoother, more intuitive booking process, increasing satisfaction and ultimately driving growth for the platform.

So What:

The successful design solutions resulted in a measurable 18% increase in user retention, a 25% reduction in search time, and higher satisfaction with search relevance. These results set the stage for continued innovation and better user engagement for Upflex.

What's the typical answer?

Inspired by military GPS vests, I designed Vestagogo—a Bluetooth-powered wearable that delivers navigational cues through vibration.

Research Process (high level)

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Quantitative Research:

Research began with a survey on Reddit targeting co-working space enthusiasts (power users) and a UserTesting.com survey for insights from general users. These surveys helped identify user behaviors and preferences.

Target User Profile:

Hybrid/remote workers, aged 20-45, located in metropolitan areas, and junior to mid-level professionals.

Key Research Methods:

Targeted surveys, a competitive analysis, and user testing with specific screening criteria.

What's the typical answer?

Inspired by military GPS vests, I designed Vestagogo—a Bluetooth-powered wearable that delivers navigational cues through vibration.

Defining user pain points

Based on the research insights, we narrowed down a few key pain points.

Pain Point 1: Non-Urban Relevance

Difficulty finding coworking spaces in non-urban locations.

Pain Point 2: Amenity Confusion

Users couldn’t easily distinguish between essential and optional amenities.

Pain Point 3: Map Filtering Issues

Irrelevant search results still appeared on the map despite filters.

What's the typical answer?

Inspired by military GPS vests, I designed Vestagogo—a Bluetooth-powered wearable that delivers navigational cues through vibration.

Observation

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Observation

Users dropped off on the maps page and only booked coworking spaces recommended by colleagues. Additionally, 40% of older users required assistance with filter management, often choosing locations that didn’t match their needs.

Approach

I employed a combination of practical, aspirational, and intermediate solutions to address user pain points. These included both quick fixes and longer-term design concepts.

What's the typical answer?

Inspired by military GPS vests, I designed Vestagogo—a Bluetooth-powered wearable that delivers navigational cues through vibration.

Pain point 1

We had a bad edge case in search

The first thing that needs to be evaluated when designing a search experience is recognizing how the search experience looks when their are no found items. The current solution had room for improvement that was ignored since the target cities at the initial time ( like New York City and San Fransico and London ) had plenty of coworking space.

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Observation

Observation

Approach

I employed a combination of practical, aspirational, and intermediate solutions to address user pain points. These included both quick fixes and longer-term design concepts.

Original Issue:

The original design allowed for real-time searching, but when no matches were found, users received an error message with no clear next steps.

Heading

Observation

Observation

Approach

I employed a combination of practical, aspirational, and intermediate solutions to address user pain points. These included both quick fixes and longer-term design concepts.

Solution 1: Filter Manipulation

We added a filter manipulation screen, enabling users to remove filters and adjust their search criteria easily. This solution made the process clearer and more intuitive.

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Observation

Observation

Approach

I employed a combination of practical, aspirational, and intermediate solutions to address user pain points. These included both quick fixes and longer-term design concepts.

Solution 2: Email Notification

Users were notified via email when new coworking spaces meeting their criteria were added to the platform. This low-friction solution kept users engaged.

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Observation

Observation

Approach

I employed a combination of practical, aspirational, and intermediate solutions to address user pain points. These included both quick fixes and longer-term design concepts.

Solution 3: Single Filter Removal

A simplified option to remove the most impactful filter was introduced, ensuring that users could expand their results without overwhelming them.

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Pain point 2

We want what we need and we need what we want right?

Well you know how when you are looking at airbnbs, homes, foods, programs etc their are things you want and things that are just nice to have right? Right now, the current user base has no way to differentiate the "important" and "not important" filters in the platform.

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Observation

Observation

Approach

I employed a combination of practical, aspirational, and intermediate solutions to address user pain points. These included both quick fixes and longer-term design concepts.

Original Issue:

Users struggled to differentiate between essential and optional amenities, causing confusion when filtering search results.

Heading

Observation

Observation

Approach

I employed a combination of practical, aspirational, and intermediate solutions to address user pain points. These included both quick fixes and longer-term design concepts.

Solution 1: Bubble Tags

We introduced bubble tags for toggling amenities, making it clearer which amenities were selected and helping users adjust their criteria without clutter.

Heading

Observation

Observation

Approach

I employed a combination of practical, aspirational, and intermediate solutions to address user pain points. These included both quick fixes and longer-term design concepts.

Solution 2: Segmented Toggles

We combined checkboxes with toggle functionality, allowing users to mark certain amenities as “must-have” to refine their search results.

Heading

Observation

Observation

Approach

I employed a combination of practical, aspirational, and intermediate solutions to address user pain points. These included both quick fixes and longer-term design concepts.

Solution 3: Final Design

After testing several variations, Solution C—a clean, clear filter with less clutter—proved most effective. This improved usability and fit better with Upflex’s design system.

Heading

Observation

Observation

Approach

I employed a combination of practical, aspirational, and intermediate solutions to address user pain points. These included both quick fixes and longer-term design concepts.

Original Issue:

Users still saw irrelevant results on the map despite applying filters.

Heading

Observation

Observation

Approach

I employed a combination of practical, aspirational, and intermediate solutions to address user pain points. These included both quick fixes and longer-term design concepts.

Solution:

We introduced color-coded map markers, which visually indicated filtered-out options, improving the clarity of search results without eliminating potentially relevant spaces.

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Now, even with no options offered, users can still click the gray dots and get a bit of insight on the other locations, even if they don't meet their filter requirements.

Pain point validation

Pain point 1

Users struggled to find co-working spaces because of their filters

Did we solve it? Yes because...
- I made it easy to remove the problematic filters to get to instantly using the app to find a coworking space.
- We also provide them with email notifications

Pain point 2

Users can’t differentiate between needed amenities and optional ones.

Did we solve it? Yes because …
- We created a way to search for the different requirements as needed and unneeded

Pain Point 3

Users still see search options on the map even if their filters should remove them.

Did we solve it? Yes because…
- By making it a modal, the user can see as search options depopulate and repopulate
- Ergo, users will see how their filters affect their search by seeing the background change.

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📈 The Impact

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🔼 Performance Gains

+18% increase in first-time user retention

-25% reduction in search time

+30% satisfaction boost with search relevance

What's the typical answer?

Inspired by military GPS vests, I designed Vestagogo—a Bluetooth-powered wearable that delivers navigational cues through vibration.

🔍 Key Solutions by Pain Point

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✅ Filter Manipulation Screen - Guided users to easily remove restrictive filters when results were empty

✅ Email Alerts - Let users know when new spaces in their area matched their criteria

✅ Single-Filter Removal OptionMade expanding search results less overwhelming

Pain Point 3: Map Filter Friction

✅ Color-Coded Map Markers - Gave visual cues for filtered-out results, instead of removing them entirely

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✅ Filter Modal Feedback - Made it obvious how filters affected search by showing live depopulation/repopulation in the background

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🔧 Design Process Summarized

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Research - Targeted surveys via Reddit and UserTesting, focused on hybrid workers aged 20–45

Competitive Analysis - Compared UX patterns with Airbnb, LiquidSpace, and WeWork

User Testing - Prototypes tested with filtering tasks, using screen recording + follow-ups

Design Iteration - Built quick prototypes in Figma and Protopie; used After Effects for micro-animation tests

Cross-Team Collab - Partnered with Search, B2C, and Sales to validate business logic and UI fit

Pain Point 3: Map Filter Friction

✅ Color-Coded Map Markers - Gave visual cues for filtered-out results, instead of removing them entirely

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✅ Filter Modal Feedback - Made it obvious how filters affected search by showing live depopulation/repopulation in the background

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🧠 Insights & Design Logic

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First-time users needed clarity and confidence, not just functionality.

Users in rural or suburban areas were most prone to drop-off and appreciated filter assistance.

Older users (40+) struggled with traditional toggles—segmented filters solved that usability gap.

Research

Targeted surveys via Reddit and UserTesting, focused on hybrid workers aged 20–45

🔮 Retrospective

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For Upflex‍

Continue refining amenity selection based on real-time analytics along side improving non-urban search paths without compromising metro user experience

For my design process?

By taking ownership of a clear user problem and delivering simple, thoughtful solutions, we made Upflex easier to trust and use—especially for new users just discovering flexible work.

What's the typical answer?

Inspired by military GPS vests, I designed Vestagogo—a Bluetooth-powered wearable that delivers navigational cues through vibration.

🧭 Lessons Learned

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- Small UX details—like how filters are explained—can change how users trust a platform.

- Iterating fast doesn’t mean cutting corners; it means smart prioritization.

- Internal tools can be just as impactful as flagship features when they solve root friction.

What's the typical answer?

Inspired by military GPS vests, I designed Vestagogo—a Bluetooth-powered wearable that delivers navigational cues through vibration.

Upflex - Enterprise Design

case study

Project overview

🎯 Mission

What's Upflex, in a nutshell?

🧩 The Problem

‍

What's the typical answer?

📈 Impact

What's the typical answer?

‍💡 The Solution Approach

What's the typical answer?

What, why, so what?

What:

Why:

So What:

What's the typical answer?

Research Process (high level)

Quantitative Research:

Target User Profile:

Key Research Methods:

What's the typical answer?

Defining user pain points

Pain Point 1: Non-Urban Relevance

Pain Point 2: Amenity Confusion

Pain Point 3: Map Filtering Issues

What's the typical answer?

Observation

What's the typical answer?

Solutions

Pain point 1

We had a bad edge case in search

Heading

Observation

Original Issue:

Heading

Observation

Solution 1: Filter Manipulation

Heading

Observation

Solution 2: Email Notification

Heading

Observation

Solution 3: Single Filter Removal

Pain point 2

We want what we need and we need what we want right?

Heading

Observation

Original Issue:

Heading

Observation

Solution 1: Bubble Tags

Heading

Observation

Solution 2: Segmented Toggles

Heading

Observation

Solution 3: Final Design

Pain point 3

Some users have limited results still

Heading

Observation

Original Issue:

Heading

Observation

Solution:

Pain point validation

📈 The Impact

What's the typical answer?

🔍 Key Solutions by Pain Point

🔧 Design Process Summarized

🧠 Insights & Design Logic

Research

🔮 Retrospective

‍

What's the typical answer?

🧭 Lessons Learned

What's the typical answer?