At Brightec, we’re all about people. Whether it’s learning how users tick so that we can build better apps or cultivating happy, creative teams that work hard for our clients, we believe everything starts and ends with people.
So, when Virgin Red (one of the most people-oriented brands there is) approached us to help build out their new loyalty platform, we jumped at the opportunity.
50 years in the making
One of the things we admire about the Virgin brand is its focus on making life better. For half a century, Virgin has worked to create moments that stay with their customers forever. From unforgettable holidays to a glass of wine with friends, Virgin connects people with the things they care about.
And Virgin Red is the red thread connecting all of Virgin’s companies together.
The rewards club celebrates its members for living a life more Virgin by giving them exclusive access to rewards from the Virgin group and beyond. Anyone can sign up to Virgin Red and Virgin Points never expire. So, you can save up points for your next big holiday or spend them on your daily coffee. It’s all about finding those moments of joy in the everyday and enjoying a well-earned reward.
Giving members more of what they want
In 2020, Virgin Red approached us with an idea. They wanted to launch a new train ticketing feature as part of Virgin Red. This new service would take something ordinary - the necessity of purchasing train tickets - and make it extraordinary by giving members the chance to earn points on their everyday travel.
The Discovery Phase: Going on a Journey
To get things moving, we began with a Discovery Phase. This provided an invaluable opportunity to find out more about Virgin Red, their members, and their vision behind the train ticketing service. We collected this information in the following ways:
Workshops: We hosted workshops with the Virgin Red team to explore their vision behind the app. This allowed us to explore the feasibility of developing a ticket booking system within the existing Virgin Red application.
User Testing: We carried out 5 rounds of user testing to understand how Virgin Red members interact with the platform, as well as what works for them, and what doesn’t. This information was invaluable and informed the design of the Virgin Trains Ticketing app.
Prototypes: An application of this size requires multiple rounds of technical prototyping. This is always a fun stage for our team. It lets us showcase what an app is going to look like and how it’s going to work. Prototyping also gives us a chance to quickly and easily explore new avenues and try out various ideas.
User Research: Creating an app with the knowledge of what users want from it is a reliable way to ensure success. It’s why user research is so important. We worked closely with Virgin Red’s user research team to integrate multiple rounds of research into their customer base. The data we collected from this stage steered the direction of the app development process.
Technical Design: Surfacing multiple systems from multiple teams takes some significant planning. To create a robust application, we needed to onboard existing codebases, assess architectural choices, and explore API and data structures. The creation of technical designs got the whole team on the same page before we even wrote a line of code (and we ended up writing over 50,000 lines of code, so it was time well spent!)
Working as an extension of the Virgin Red team
Throughout the project, we worked as an extension of the Virgin Red team, working alongside their delivery and product managers, as well as other third parties. This allowed for a cohesive approach that saved us significant time on developmental changes.
Through detailed app design and development, we addressed performance and memory limitations, network speed, cross-device compatibility, battery consumption, and assisted with app store releases.
Working smart to get smarter
At Brightec, we are always looking for ways to improve and deliver even better results for enterprise clients. Design Sprints offer the perfect environment for us to work smart and get smarter; to understand what’s working and what could be improved.
The Virgin Trains Ticketing app was built within an agile framework running in two-week sprints. This allowed us to work closely with the Virgin Red team and meet regularly to discuss any issues, continually refine our processes and streamline the app’s development.
Readying the app for launch
Before the app was released, it had to pass certain accreditation criteria from the Rail Delivery Group (RDG) to make sure it would cope with user demand.
The app was subjected to careful testing to ensure it could handle everything from basic journeys to complex ones, including the uncertainties of travel; from late trains and ticket cancellations to multiple changes and rail replacements.
Following this extensive testing, we were reassured the app was ready to be released to the public.
Virgin Trains Ticketing Reception
We are delighted the Virgin Trains Ticketing app has received an overwhelmingly positive public response. The app is making travel more convenient and rewarding for Virgin Red members and is bringing everyday travel into the future. Here’s what users have to say about the app:
“I was very pleased with the easy joining process and the ease then to link it to my Virgin Red account which worked straight away.”
“Great App and even better support. I think they are working 24/7 to iron out any bugs and make sure all is ok for everyone”
“Great app. Brilliant functionality, easy to use. “
The Future of Travel
Brightec’s ethos is to produce meaningful technology that makes people’s lives better, we loved this project from the get-go. It was fantastic and inspiring to work with the Virgin Red team and we are grateful to have learned so much during the process.
Virgin Red very much saw this stage of work as a proof of concept. Once it had proved itself, the decision was made to create the product as a stand-alone project. Fitting for a Virgin Company, this monumental evolution included creating a bespoke brand identity. You can read about this stage of the journey here.
Get in Touch
If you liked the sound of this project and you are looking to develop something on a similar scale, get in touch. We welcome all kinds of app development projects and would love to share how we can help.
