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Finding an Expert Was Never the Hard Part
Finding an expert is easy. Trusting one enough to pay is not. Users had no signal of fit before booking, and no reason to come back after. Every session felt like a fresh gamble. A directory solves discovery. It does nothing for trust, and trust is the actual bottleneck.
Three Decisions That Defined the Product
Free Preview Before Booking
Users get expert-quality thinking before paying. That's the highest-converting moment in the funnel, not a courtesy tacked on to look generous.
Diagnosis, Not Directory
Browse replaced keyword search with a problem input. Users describe the issue. The system surfaces fit, instead of making them guess which keyword matches which specialist.
Membership Is Earned, Not Bought
Tiers are earned by behavior, not payment. You make decisions with expert backing. That's a different product than a discount code, even though both look like a badge on a profile.
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User Insight
Maya: a freelance designer who researches heavily before paying for anything. If she can't tell whether a specialist fits before committing money, she doesn't book.
Goals
Verify fit before paying · Get a fast, credible signal · Avoid booking blind
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Key Flows
Curated Onboarding
Four setup questions replace a slide carousel. It ends on "Here are your specialists," not a pitch.
Get a Free Preview
The primary call to action on every profile. The response card is the most considered surface in the product, because it's the one place a stranger decides whether to trust you with money.
Ask 3 Specialists
A multi-preview send with a comparison view. Users pick the response that resonates, not a profile photo.
Insight Library
Every session ends with one written takeaway. The product gets more useful the more it's used, instead of resetting to zero each time.
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Flow Validation
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Visual System
Four colors, two typefaces. The constraint forces every decision. There's no reaching for a fifth color when something feels unclear, which is usually a sign the actual problem hasn't been solved yet.
Paper
#FFFFFF
Soft Gray
#F3F3F1
Ink
#0B0B0C
Electric Blue
#2F5CFF
Aa
Neue Montreal
Display & headings. Slight negative tracking on
large sizes; a little positive tracking on small
uppercase kickers for a crafted, human feel.
Aa
Inter
Body, labels, and UI. Highly legible at small sizes; weights 400–800 carry the full hierarchy of controls and copy.
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Why This Project Matters
This started as a CareerFoundry brief. I came back after graduating to close the gap between what it was and what it needed to be. Grounding every UX decision in a business reason, not just a screen that looks finished.
If This Were Real
Phase 1 — Visual Identity
Tighter illustration style and a distinctive iconography system.
Phase 2 — Accessibility & Live Sync
Voice guidance, full screen reader support, and real-time availability sync.
Phase 3 — Expert-Side Product
A specialist dashboard for earnings, availability, and the preview inbox. This is the marketplace's supply side, and right now it doesn't exist.
Credits
CareerFoundry brief, extended post-graduation; all design work original.