Let’s be honest. Studying for a driving theory test isn’t exactly thrilling. Pages of dry rules, endless road signs, and tricky multiple-choice questions...

Learning to drive in the Netherlands with Nutheorie always was about experience. Nutheorie already had the perfect mix of engaging lessons, humor, and dynamic teaching methods that made studying actually enjoyable, but no web experience to truly reflect that.

At the end of the day, this wasn’t just about improving a product - it was about making learning feel like fun, not an obligation.

Smart and relevant gamification did the trick :) Users kept coming back, eager to level up their cars, improve their scores, and unlock new rewards. More tests taken meant better preparation, stronger engagement, and ultimately, higher success rates.

💳 Checkout friction reduced

Booking an exam used to be a tedious process with too many steps. By streamlining the flow, simplifying date selection, and removing unnecessary fields, we made it effortless. Less confusion, fewer drop-offs, and faster bookings.

🏆 A stronger brand experience

Beyond UX improvements, the entire platform got a visual refresh. A more intuitive homepage, engaging illustrations, and a clean, modern UI finally brought Nutheorie’s high-energy approach to life.

Studying should feel like driving, not a test. So I came up with the idea to give students a modifiable and upgradable car as a part of gamification :)

The idea was simple: every test you passed, your car stayed in top condition.

Score 100%? Your ride looks flawless.

80%? Some scratches.

60%? A dented hood.

40% or lower? Flat tires. Shattered glass. Total wreck.

And it didn’t stop there.

Want a better car? Unlock it by buying 15 extra practice exams. Now, instead of just seeing a percentage score, users felt their progress - visually, tangibly, and with a little competitive push.

But! What's the point of a car if you can’t keep driving? At the bottom of every test screen, we added a fuel-up option - buying more tests not only unlocked cooler rides (pickups, sports cars, trucks), but also came with bulk discounts. The more you bought, the cheaper each test became.

And just like that, we turned studying into strategy.

Most young people don’t want to spend hours comparing options, reading walls of text, or figuring out a confusing interface. They want clarity, speed, and a visual experience that instantly makes sense. So based on the analysis I redesigned it from the ground up to match the way young users think and interact online.

By removing friction, making the experience more intuitive, and focusing on visuals, we created a homepage that felt fresh, modern, and built for the youngsters. It affected the conversion due to simplification of the home page and the check out flow.

Through analyzing user behaviour, I identified that most students struggled with selecting an exam date, and enormous amount of steps to finally get to last step of check out. So I've changed that removing and simplifying the flow as much as possible, applying user-centric approach.

This wasn’t just about making things look better, but about pushing for better experiences in a system that can convert more. Every decision had to be fought for, debated, and justified, and sometimes it felt like an uphill battle. But in the end, that fight was worth it. Gamification, simplification, and clear logic - that's a win.

I reshaped how users interacted with learning. And I learned something too - good design doesn’t happen in a vacuum. It happens when you push, defend, and prove why every detail matters.

What to learn more? Check out the full case study :)