My Role
Senior Product Designer (iOS Mobile App Consultant)
Team
Designer (Myself), 1 Product Manager, 3 Front-End Devs, 3 Back-End Devs, 1 Content Strategist, 1 Supporting Designer
Project Timeline
3.5 Months
Stakeholders
Director of Product Design, Director of Product, VP of American Express Partnerships
Overview
American Express, a leader in premium financial services, positions itself as a lifestyle brand, with luxury travel as a core member benefit. Renowned for its Platinum Card—a symbol of luxury, offering members exclusive travel perks and unmatched rewards.
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NDA Disclaimer
NDA Disclaimer
Due to confidentiality agreements, this case study presents only a high-level overview of the project.
Feel free to reach out directly for more details or a deeper discussion about my contributions.
Feel free to reach out directly for more details or a deeper discussion about my contributions.
Background
Hired by Expedia as a senior product design consultant to redesign an outdated Amex Travel mobile web experience.
With Expedia already a key partner of Amex, the team and I were able to leverage Expedia's API to integrate seamless functionality while focusing on creating a cutting-edge, native iOS app.
Learn more about Expedia & Amex's Partnership:
Expedia Group & American Express Travel: Delivering a Seamless Travel Experience
Expedia Group & American Express Travel: Delivering a Seamless Travel Experience
Problem
American Express's outdated Travel web experience falls short of modern user expectations, frustrating members and obscuring the true value of its benefits.
Amex cardholders struggle with frustrating booking flows, unintuitive navigation, and hidden perks, leading to underutilization and a diminished sense of value. This lack of seamlessness has done a disservice to the premium experience expected by Platinum members.
Showing Current Amex Travel Mobile Web Experience
Addressing each pain point through a dedicated iOS app design will significantly elevate the user experience and reestablish trust in the brand.
🚨 Poor Wayfinding
• Confusing navigation; therefore, not knowing how to utilize benefits
• Frustrating booking flows and unintuitive navigation.
• Limited accessibility, losing where they left off
• Confusing navigation; therefore, not knowing how to utilize benefits
• Frustrating booking flows and unintuitive navigation.
• Limited accessibility, losing where they left off
🚨 Performance Issues
• Extremely slow load times and sporadic glitches across the site,
• Account management challenges,
• Inconsistent optimization across devices
• Users having to move to a desktop to complete a medium to large task or booking
• Account management challenges,
• Inconsistent optimization across devices
• Users having to move to a desktop to complete a medium to large task or booking
These issues diminish user satisfaction and hinder the platform’s ability to meet modern traveler expectations.
Solution
Design the new Amex Travel, a fully native iOS app designed from the ground up to provide Platinum American Express cardholders with a seamless and luxurious travel experience. This bespoke app seamlessly combines Amex's premium branding with the robust functionality of Expedia's APIs to deliver an elevated travel solution.
Watch the reel I created for our Amex pitch — highlighting the new luxury Amex Travel app experience.
🔒 This was a surprise pitch... American Express did not yet know what our team was building for them.
Approach
"A bold re-imagination of luxury travel - built from insight, not assumption."
Research-Driven
We combined Expedia’s extensive travel industry expertise with our deep research into the Amex Travel web experience to establish a strong baseline.
Redesigning Key Pain Points
We identified and reworked major friction areas in the web journey to improve clarity and flow.
Building a Native Design System
Building a Native Design System
Adapting the web system to a native app was challenging. We leveraged Amex’s web design system and audited their existing mobile apps to inform our approach, creating a bespoke, modern native experience tailored specifically for the new Amex Travel app.
Outcome
We designed and developed a fully functional mobile app that looked and felt like a luxury iOS experience, surpassing the current Amex Travel experience.
•Personalized Home Page: This offers tailored trip suggestions and quick links to frequent actions.
•Personalized Home Page: This offers tailored trip suggestions and quick links to frequent actions.
•Seamless Booking Flow: Intuitive and flexible options for flights, hotels, and activities.
•Benefits Page: Consolidates all Amex perks, enhancing discoverability and usability.
•Profile Page: A robust dashboard for points management, trip history, and preferences.
•Interactive Trip History: A map-based travel log that is visually engaging and functional.
✈️ Made for You:
Smarter recommendations based on your trips and preferences.
🔍 Effortless Discovery:
The right destinations, stays, and experiences at the right time.
The right destinations, stays, and experiences at the right time.
🎛️ Seamless Navigation:
Intuitive interactions make planning and booking second nature.
Intuitive interactions make planning and booking second nature.
🚀 One Step Ahead:
Proactive insights and exclusive offers just when you need them.
Proactive insights and exclusive offers just when you need them.
Clear Booking Flow
Refreshed Hotels Search Results
A modern UI with improved content hierarchy, clearer pricing vs points cost, and streamlined filters makes finding hotels faster, & built to match how you travel.
Search Hotels by Map
An interactive map view lets users explore hotel options by location, with live price bubbles and scrollable cards that sync as you browse.
Booking Details
Everything you need at a glance—booking details, itinerary access, and key trip info in one place.
Enhanced Benefits Experience
Benefits, Redesigned with Purpose
Showcasing the travel benefits that matter—designed to feel personal, premium, and unmistakably Amex.
