The Challenge
This project was created for a Design Fundamentals class. We were tasked with doing a case study for the company Delta Airlines’s boarding passes. Our professor gave us an example of the boarding pass that Delta currently uses, in which it is quite difficult to understand the information provided (see image below). Our task was to redesign the pass to make it more legible and organized.
Original Boarding Pass
This is the original boarding pass used by Delta, as provided by our professor.
Design Constraints
Our professor gave us some guidelines and constraints for the design challenge. The shape of the boarding pass had to remain the same, and all the information currently included in it must also appear in our redesigns. Additionally, the only colors we were allowed to use were the Delta brand colors (blue, red, black, and white).
We were instructed to use a variety of font sizes and formats to create a hierarchy of information. Our professor provided us with all the information currently on the boarding pass, as well as the Delta logo and some other assets which they use.
Process
I started my redesign by determining how the information would be arranged. I separated the information based on what pieces were important to the passenger (such as gate, boarding time, seat number, etc.) and which were important to the crew. I also determined what was necessary to the passenger after boarding (seat number, destination and arrival, etc.) and what was no longer important after boarding (gate number, boarding time, etc.). I also decided on what was the most important information to the passenger overall: boarding time, departure time, gate, zone, and seat.
Once I had separated the information, I started the design process by creating a system by which to display the information on the pass. I decided to arrange the passenger information at the top, occupying most of the space -- as it would be the passenger who would be using the boarding pass the most -- and the crew information in a smaller section at the bottom. I also decided that the pre-boarding information should appear in the larger half of the pass, while the post-boarding information would be in the small stump that would be trimmed off after boarding is complete, and which the passenger would be left with.
In my design, I used the typeface Europa, a clean sans-serif which looked modern and readable. I used different weights and sizes to create a hierarchy; the most important elements of the pass would be in a bolder and larger font than the less important elements. I arranged all of the information into two main rows, and then divided the information within the rows into columns. I used the Delta brand colors to group information to distinguish between the different columns of information. The first one included the name and destination/arrival locations. I made the font smaller for this information, as I didn't think it was the most important information. The second column contained the boarding time and departure time, and the third column contained the gate, zone, and seat. These two had larger fonts to ensure they were visible quickly to the user.
All the less relevant information was kept in a smaller font and made less visible. The Delta logo and other small details were relegated to the margins so as to take up less of the user's attention. For branding purposes, I included the Delta logo on the background of the ticket as well.
