Team

Marriott Digital

Timeline

6 months

Role

UX lead, writer

Objectives

Design, develop, create buzz and launch Marriott’s first hotel ratings and reviews platform – a highly visible product with inherent risks – in collaboration with the Marriott Rewards team. To elicit reviews for at least 1,100 hotels by the end of Q4.

Process

• Collaborated with the member community team and third-party development vendor

• Prepared presentations for the highest echelons of the company

• Worked with designers to develop the guest experience

• Leaked to Elite members via the online Rewards community

• Soft launched to existing Elite members; iterated on feedback

• Prepared online announcements for the general audiences

• Handed assets off to the third party to build and release

Impediments

I stepped into the UX lead role as the initial concept was being finalized. Due to the poor user experience it offered, I determined that it was not ready for release and stopped the project a month prior to release. I reported my findings to senior leadership and recommended forming a new UX team. I worked with this team to develop optimal user flows, functionality and design by adapting a “less is more” approach.

Results

• By the end of Q4, all hotels worldwide had at least one review, surpassing KPIs threefold

• The product also received positive buzz on our member-exclusive online community

• The resounding success of the initial concept led to the current “Verified Ratings & Reviews” product, allowing for a refresh based on feedback from customer call centers, post-stay surveys, in-depth user testing and a retargeted brand identity