Universal Orlando
Omnichannel Transformation
Services: Strategy, Research, Design
-Executive client partner leading design
-6 interfaces created over 9 months
The challenge
In the competitive landscape of Orlando's theme parks, Universal Orlando often played second fiddle to Walt Disney World. Universal lagged behind in digital innovation, but in partnership with our client, we had a ambitious vision for a comprehensive omni-channel digital transformation. This initiative aimed to revolutionize the experience across guest and employee touchpoints.
The most significant challenge lay in executing this transformation towards a consistent experience across 6 interfaces while introducing innovative ways to enhance in-park experiences with digital solutions.
By integrating these digital advancements, we aimed to elevate Universal Orlando to a must-visit status with repeat customers, ensuring every moment spent at the park was filled with enjoyment and convenience.
I focused on
-design excellence
-insights led designs
-executive partnerships
I served as the day to day creative leader, mobilizing the team to reimagine the full guest journey. A central goal was establishing design excellence. This began by first building the designs with a foundation of a strategic vision, then fine-tuning the experience through research and insights. Contextual inquiries, focus groups, and iterative usability testing guided designs to ensure the solutions were not only forward-thinking, but also data-driven and resonated with customer needs. Finally, I worked hand in hand with executive product and engineering clients to solve for problems such as merchandising, backlog prioritization and team resourcing as well as worked with the CMO to garner feedback and ensure the new digital guest experience aligned with business goals and metrics.
Highlights
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Convenience with virtual queues, real-time wait times, digital park maps, dining reservations, show schedules
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Reduction in call center and guest services traffic, saving operational costs
6 interfaces
Across 3 theme parks: gate entry, guest responsive web, native mobile, in-park self-service kiosks, waterpark queue, employee responsive web
20+
Cross-disciplinary design team members including operations, UX/UI design, content specialists, researchers
I led a team of over 20 intent on evolving the full vacation experience from the spark of inspiration to the final moments post-vacation. Our mission was to simplify the myriad choices in ticket selection while enticing guests to upgrade their experiences. We meticulously explored innovative ways to merchandise ticket options and showcase curated itineraries, alleviating the overwhelming planning fatigue that often accompanies a trip. A key focus was delivering crucial information to guests, including the latest event updates, dining reservations, and exclusive hotel benefits, all to position Universal Orlando as a multi-day destination rather than a single-day visit.
