Overview
Daybase was a service that allowed customers to book workspaces in communal settings close to their homes, designed for remote and hybrid workers seeking a coworking environment with great technology and ease-of-use.
As Founding Product Designer, I collaborated with the Head of Product and Head of Engineering to ideate, design, and develop the mobile app, marketing website, and branding elements in close partnership with Mythology.
Challenge
Create a digital application for a physical coworking space that allows users to reserve and manage various workspots, purchase account credits, and invite coworkers, all from their mobile devices.
Research
I began with generative research alongside the Head of Product. We recruited potential users via social networks and UserTesting.com opt-in surveys, then conducted 50+ interviews with individuals from diverse backgrounds: venture capitalists to individual contributors, studio apartment dwellers to camper van residents.
Competitive analysis
I conducted competitive analysis across reservation and hospitality leaders, including Delta Airlines, Airbnb, Uber, and ClassPass, to identify proven patterns for sign-up flows and account management. Leveraging high-success-rate patterns let new users onboard quickly, whether they were founding members or walk-in customers from foot traffic.
Wanted to be able to use as a home base office when visiting a town/city.
P1, P3, P4, P5, P6, P7, P9, P10, P11
Office space would be a way to get away from family and kids and do heads-down work. Homes don't account for having a dedicated office space in city-center.
P1, P2, P3, P4, P5, P6, P8, P9, P10, P11
Fast and secure wifi is critical due to confidential nature of job/work/business.
P1, P2, P4, P7, P8, P9, P10, P11, P12
Want ability to book multiple SKUs — desk, conference table, huddle room, private booth.
P2, P4, P6, P7, P9
Easy to use digital appliances like monitors or projectors and whiteboards desired for brainstorming and general meetings.
P3, P4, P6, P8, P9, P10, P11, P12
Seamless check in for minimal interfacing with staff if desired (avoid human contact with COVID).
P1, P2, P3, P4, P6, P7, P8, P9, P10, P11, P12
Membership would be ideal. Easy transaction within application.
Ad-hoc buying of day pass or membership within the application to use any time they want.
Would like the ability to access workspace 24/7.
Concierge to book space, get office supplies, or other administrative office tasks.
P1, P2, P4, P5, P6, P9
Printing and copying services are nice. Other services would be a "nice to have".
P1, P8
Coffee, tea, café options would be a "nice to have".
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Private phone booth for confidential calls or video conferences.
P1, P3, P4, P6, P9, P12
Bike lock up or public transport in walking distance. Don't want to drive.
P1, P3, P4, P8
Secure digital payment.
P1, P3, P4, P8
Want to see location on a map to determine the best option. Check hours and get directions.
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Busy indicator to determine when peak hours are for social or avoiding personal contact.
P2, P3, P5, P6, P9, P11, P12
Invite coworkers or friends to a location and append them to a reservation for easy access.
P2, P4, P5, P6, P7, P9, P11, P12
Easy account deletion and purging of private information.
P1, P7, P10
Suspend membership if traveling for work or temporarily relocating.
P5, P8, P12
Reservation details and easy cancellation for booked workspaces.
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Login with Facebook or Google.
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Clear notification preferences for reservation reminders and promotional updates.
P1, P7, P10
Check into reservation with QR code or NFC chip reader.
P1, P5, P6, P8, P10, P11, P12
Research synthesis: office workspace needs, amenity priorities, and digital app requirements across 12 participants
Two primary themes emerged
- Users with children, and those seeking a change of environment in the immediate wake of the pandemic.
- Customers who wanted a cost-effective, fully bookable, and manageable service accessible entirely from their mobile devices.
"I work remotely full time and live in a 2 bedroom condo with kids, 5 minutes from downtown Hoboken. I really want a space to get out of the apartment to focus. This app makes it so easy to quickly book a spot. I need this."
Michella, Research ParticipantDesign Process
Starting from pen-and-paper sketches, we cycled through multiple iterations before finalizing the experiential workflow. User stories derived from research directly informed the information architecture, which I translated into high-fidelity Figma prototypes.
Sign-in and account creation flow, one of 34 feature epics mapped in FigJam
Scope
- 34 feature epics developed end-to-end
- Secure login and password recovery flows
- Account management and credit purchasing
- Location and workspace reservation
- Workspace details and health & safety information
- Reservation management and cancellation
Collaboration
Working in a small team, I also took on product management responsibilities: writing requirements, crafting epics, and bridging design and engineering. I used FigJam to build flows and annotate stakeholder input, then worked in tight feedback loops with the lead engineer to close experience gaps in the alpha.
Mid-fidelity wireframes exploring the booking and account management flows
Conceptual Branding prior to Branding Collaboration with Mythology. Shown from left to right: Map View, Office Preview, Time Picker, and Seat Picker
Branding & Accessibility
The Daybase brand launched in August 2020, giving us three months to implement the full visual system before commercial app store launch. Figma design components made the transition seamless. I partnered with the Head of Marketing to maintain brand cohesion while ensuring full WCAG 2.1 accessibility compliance, including testing for colorblindness and neurodiverse users. Inclusivity was central to the brand's identity.
Production app screens across 34 feature epics — tap any screen to view full-size
Outcomes
Explore the interactive prototype below. Click through the booking flow, account creation, and workspace selection as designed for the final app release.
95%
Booking completion rate (n=23 testers)
80%
Successful reservation modifications post-booking
50+
Generative research interviews conducted
3
Brick-and-mortar locations opened
User Feedback
- 50% of users requested reservation naming and direct calendar integration on mobile.
- 38% wanted desktop and Google Maps booking capabilities.
- 8% of testers requested account deletion, noting appreciation for transparent data privacy.
Business Impact
Following a New York Times feature on Daybase in October 2021, interest surged, accelerating research access, device coverage, and the opening of two physical locations in Hoboken, NJ and Harrison, NJ. The company pivoted to securing commuter-corridor locations between New York suburbs and the city, reducing commuting time and cost while fulfilling the work-from-near-home philosophy.
Feedback from testing drove a complete redesign of the booking workflow, pivoting from static top-of-the-hour hourly reservations to a flexible duration-based booking system.
Daybase locations: Hoboken exterior, community lounge, and dedicated workspace
Reflection
Daybase lost solvency in October 2022 and ceased operations. The app was removed from both the Apple and Android app stores.
The experience shaped how I think about 0-to-1 product work: the importance of research-driven architecture, the value of tight cross-functional loops, and the discipline required to ship a complete, polished experience with a small team under real commercial pressure.
