Table management that turns seats into revenue.

A hospitality platform that helps restaurants move beyond one-time transactions by turning reservations, waitlists, and guest data into long-term customer revenue.

Lead UI/UX Designer

SaaS · Mobile · Tablet

2023

Product Design · UI/UX · Product Strategy · Design System

01 Brief

Full-service restaurants run on their tables — the most valuable, most perishable inventory they have. Trufl was built to help operators get more out of every seat, from casual spots to fine dining.

Revenue, not just covers Dynamic F&B minimums and guaranteed-seating commitments shift the model from 4-wall revenue to customer revenue.

Hospitality first Waitlists, reservations, and customizable floor plans raise the level of service on every shift.

One operator suite A single toolset to maximize revenue, increase profit, and run the floor end to end.

02 Problem

The current model doesn't understand a restaurant's most valuable customers — or maximize its most valuable hours.

An ancient booking model Built for a time when guests frequented neighborhood restaurants run by people in their community.

Peak hours, flat pricing Restaurants have peak hours and high-value customers but don't maximize revenue based on guest profile.

No view of guest LTV Little understanding of how guest lifetime value can or should shape the booking process.

Guests want more Diners want secured seating, a tailored experience, and rewards for their dining activity.

03 Insight

Identify high-value guests on the first visit, build strong follow-on incentives, and grow guest lifetime value — instead of treating every seat the same.

04 Opportunity

Yield management for the dining room: make more revenue during peak times using dynamic food and beverage minimums, increasing per-seat revenue based on demand the way a hotel prices its rooms.

05 Goal

Success was defined across three lenses — what guests needed, what the business needed, and what the design team had to build to get there.

User goals

Streamline reservations and waitlist management

Enhance staff scheduling for seamless shift management

Enhance guest experience and satisfaction

Strengthen customer engagement and loyalty

Increase revenue

Business goals

Simplify dining reservations and enhance restaurant visibility

Drive restaurant revenue and optimization

Increase operational efficiency and restaurant satisfaction

Increase contracts and subscriptions

Design goals

Improve overall product usability

Improve brand consistency & recognition

Drive cross-team collaboration

06 Solution

The Trufl Partner & Manager apps are a comprehensive hub that helps restaurants optimize seating capacity and service efficiency through innovative table-management tools — boosting return on every shift.

Faster table turnover Smooth control over waitlists and reservations streamlines turnover and reduces guest wait times in the front of house.

Floor plan customization Operators easily customize floor plans, optimizing seating to maximize capacity and the dining experience.

Revenue maximization Dynamic pricing and minimum-spend options for food and beverage capture demand strategically.

Enhanced guest experience Efficient waitlist and reservation management, personalized service, and optimized seating.

Data-driven insights Oversee and expand the business at every phase, guided by data and top-tier support.

Establish new revenue streams Offer a range of ticketing options, curate additional items for purchase, and introduce special shifts to enhance revenue generation.

Real-time monitoring Track restaurant activity and reservation spend from anywhere, at any time, to make informed decisions on the move.

Guest-facing booking Diners pick party size, date, and time, browse available events, add extras, and book in a few taps — with a clear cart and transparent pricing.

07 Design process

Behind every screen is a series of interconnected decisions. This section explores how customer needs, business goals, booking mechanics, brand principles, and system design worked together to shape a cohesive and scalable product experience.

Guest experience The booking flow adapts to demand and to how valuable a guest is. When a restaurant isn't busy, reservations are simply accepted; when only a couple of tables remain, dynamic food & beverage minimums convert scarce inventory into roughly 25% more revenue per seat. High-value, loyal guests get premium tables and reserved inventory plus rewards — protecting peak-hour yield while making the best customers feel recognized.

Market research Trufl's customers are SMB and enterprise restaurants, most of whom had never used booking software. Incumbents like OpenTable and Resy dominate only the mid-market — roughly 36% of the smallest slice — while SMB (365K+ venues) and enterprise (51K+ venues) remain near-empty white space. Their go-to-market was driven by who would pay SaaS, not by opportunity size, so the way in is business-model innovation rather than feature parity. (Projection based on Q2 2023 Google data.)

Revenue model A two-sided model that aligns everyone. A guest makes a $25 food & beverage commitment; Trufl charges a small variable transaction fee, keeping $2.50, while the restaurant nets the full $25 of guest spend. Diners get credit they'd spend anyway, restaurants capture committed demand, and Trufl earns on every transaction instead of a flat subscription.

Trufl style guide A brand foundation covering logo usage, typography, and color. SF Pro Display carries product UI, Bodoni 72 anchors customer-facing headers, with Optima and Avenir for print — paired with a tight palette built around the gold #C0A563, black, and warm neutrals. Clear misuse rules keep the wordmark and brand mark consistent across product, web, and print.

Design system A comprehensive component library built in Figma: color tokens, SF Pro Display type styles, and an extensive icon and tag set. It scales from mini cards, guest states, and table objects to containers, inputs, buttons, and toggles — so the Partner and Manager apps stay consistent and fast to build across every screen and state.

Usability test A full round of testing: a pre-session survey on background and prior software, a recorded usability test measuring completion, time on task, and error rates, and a post-session survey across eight participants. Synthesizing video, notes, and ratings surfaced friction — too many ways to assign tables, small tap targets, swipe confusion — which drove concrete refinements like adding table-group and duplicate actions, clearer hierarchy, a publish button, and a darker floor-plan background.