1 designer (me), 1 product stakeholder acting as client
User research, personas, user-flow mapping, wireframes, visual mockups, interactive prototyping
Concept project. Validated end to end as a clickable prototype.
Kayaking · interactive prototypeJump to prototype ↓
A dependable way to get on the water
Renters wanted to book a kayak, boat, or jet ski without friction. Owners wanted to list their watercraft without handing over the keys to a stranger. My job was to design a mobile experience that let both sides transact securely, on their own terms.
Three people, two sides of the same booking
"I already booked the campsite. I don't want the kayak to be the thing that falls through."
Grab a kayak close to whatever lake she's driving to that weekend, with pickup that fits her schedule, not the owner's.
Local listings and marketplace posts with no way to confirm gear will actually be there when she shows up.
"If a jet ski doesn't show up on a booked tour day, that's my reputation, not just a refund."
Line up multiple watercraft from vetted owners he can rebook week after week for his tours.
No way to check an owner's track record before wiring a deposit for gear he's never seen.
"I'll hand my boat to a stranger, but only once I know who they are."
Turn her watercraft into weekend income without babysitting every handoff herself.
No recourse today if a renter no-shows, damages gear, or disappears mid-booking.
Two problems, seen from both sides
Renters wanted watercraft near their chosen lake without losing flexibility; owners needed a way to make theirs available without giving up control over pickup.
Pick up directly from an owner, or at a selected lake location, whichever is closer.
Make watercraft available at a lake, or hand it over directly, without sacrificing safety.
Both sides of the transaction needed to trust a stranger with something valuable: a rental fee, or a boat.
Wants verified owner profiles, honest reviews, and a secure payment flow.
Wants to vet renters, message securely, and have recourse if something goes wrong.
A dual rental system, built on trust
Renters choose between booking directly from an owner or picking up at a lake location. On top of that flexibility sits a verified-profile system, secure messaging, and a streamlined booking-and-payment flow, so either side of the transaction can trust it.
Research → design → prototype
A short, iterative loop. Each stage sharpened what the last one surfaced.
Interviewed and modeled potential users, Annie, Ben, and Lisa, to surface preferences and pain points. Then surveyed existing watercraft-rental services to find gaps a new app could fill.
A flow chart mapped the entire rental process for both sides: renters browsing and booking, owners listing and approving. That became the blueprint for every screen that followed.
Wireframes laid out the core screens for smooth navigation, then became the foundation for detailed mockups. Those got refined iteratively to fit both renter and owner needs.
Interactive prototypes turned the mockups into a testable flow. Booking, pickup choice, and payment held together the way the user-flow chart promised.
