As a user and service design consultant, I often spot small UX details that make a big difference. Sometimes they are frustrating. Other times, they quietly save the day. Recently, while booking cinema tickets for myself and some friends, I experienced a small but smart bit of design thinking in action.
Recently, I booked cinema tickets online for myself and a group of friends, using my mobile. Everything was going well. The process was simple and fairly intuitive.
Then this happened:
Somehow, maybe because of my fat fingers, but probably not, I had selected sears that were sat separately. But, of course, I probably wouldn’t have noticed and would have booked the seats.
Enough customers must have turned up and complained that they weren’t seated together for the UX team to introduce a warning message when they noticed that something was likely wrong.
I’m unsure about the wording, but the concept is great (if they can’t refine the seat selection process). It gave me a chuckle when I think of what might have nearly happened – as they say, “films are better when watched together.”
This tiny intervention is a good reminder that service design is not only about making the ideal journey effortless. It is also about spotting common mistakes and offering a helping hand at the right moment. Good UX sometimes shows itself most clearly when it saves you from yourself.