Problem

Understanding the problem

Renewal dates are hard to track

Most platforms bury renewal dates deep in settings, so people forget until extra charges occur.

Renewal dates are hard to track

Teams often don’t know who owns which tools or how many seats are active, causing budget waste and onboarding issues.

Hackathon Challenge

MVP (Minimum Viable Product)

Chat

Drag & Drop

Subscription

Calendar

Tasks handled through chat

Users can cancel, check reports, and add subscriptions

Suggestions reduce decision time

The chat surfaces relevant options so users don’t have to think about where to go next.

Drag and drop to auto-setup

Users drop an invoice, and AI fills in the subscription details automatically.

Clear overview at a glance

Users can see spending, categories, and active tools in one place without switching screens.

Quick control of team seats

Seat counts and plan details can be adjusted instantly, reducing setup time and confusion.

Billing dates visualized for clarity

Upcoming payment dates are mapped directly onto the calendar for quick scanning.

Beyond the MVP

After the hackathon, I expanded the MVP into a scalable UI framework, designed to support collaboration with engineering and future feature growth through consistent visual patterns and reusable components.

Leveraging the new system, I implemented an end-to-end onboarding flow into Billow, powered by AI-guided setup and automated seat assignment.

Story

Alex, HR manager,

opens Billow and registers Lina through the chat. With AI guiding the flow, he assigns the tools she needs in just a few clicks.

Lina, new designer,

‍is joining the team and needs access to design tools like Figma, Adobe, and Slack.

Main Page

Add member in seconds

Alex starts Lina’s onboarding directly from Quick Action.

Chat

Enter Lina’s info through chat

Name, role, and required tools are filled out conversationally.

Assign Seat

AI finds the right seats

Billow scans active subscriptions, identifies the required tools, and suggests available seats for Lina.

Canvas View

Progress shown at a glance

The canvas updates in real time, visually reflecting each tool Alex confirms through chat.

Members Page Check

Review and add tools instantly

Alex reviews Lina’s assigned tools and adds Slack with a single click.

User Testing

1. Expected Behavour

I expected users to approve the tools by responding in the chat once the tool cards appeared.

2. What Actually Happened

All three testers assumed the tool cards were interactive and clicked them instead of typing a confirmation. As a result, the onboarding flow stopped because the system was waiting for a chat response.

3. Design Fix

To guide users more clearly, I added explicit Yes/No buttons and a confirmation toast. These changes removed confusion and helped users complete the approval step with confidence.

Yes / No Buttons Added

Before

After

Confirmation Toast Added

Before

After

Reflection

I learned that the flow I expect and the flow users choose are often different, and user testing is what reveals that gap.

Initially, I prioritized visual simplicity, but observing real behaviour showed that certain guiding elements are essential for user confidence. This process taught me that intuitive design is not just about minimalism. It is about finding the right balance between clean aesthetics and functional clarity.
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‍Furthermore, I realized that creating a system that satisfies both designers and developers is a complex challenge. Bridging the gap between creative vision and technical feasibility requires constant alignment. I learned that a truly intuitive system is not built in isolation. It is the result of deep collaboration to ensure the final product is as robust as it is beautiful.