UI-Mental Model Mismatch
The page showed too many options without clear direction, confusing the subcontractors.
Business Impact:
High drop-off rates, users reverting to email/PDF submissions
Root Causes
Discovery: Heuristic evaluation, FullStory session recordings, user flow analysis
Existing user flow
Existing UI
Hidden Critical Actions
‘Download Bill of Quantities’ buttons styled as secondary, pushed below fold.
Business Impact:
Incomplete submissions, frustrated users contacting general contractors directly
Unclear Process & Outcomes
The bid submission form was hidden on a second page, breaking the natural flow.
Business Impact:
Low submission rates, general contractors receiving off-platform bids they had to manually import
Strategic Focus
Through discussions with Product, Design, and Engineering, we reframed the complaints into specific problems we could solve.
General Contractors vs. Subcontractors
Both user types could import bids, but data showed subcontractors were the bottleneck, causing extra work on general contractor’s side. As our paying customers, general contractors were experiencing the pain. Fixing subcontractor UX was actually about protecting general contractor’s value.
Reframed Problem
→ “The UI hides the submission form and creates unnecessary steps.”
Trade-Off: Desktop vs. Mobile
99%
user sessions on desktop
Zero
competitors w/ mobile BoQs
Trade-off
Redirected BoQ filling to desktop (industry standard workflow) while enabling mobile for viewing requests and communication
Design Strategy
Previous Attempts
First iteration
Second iteration
Initial exploration focused on step indicators and progress tracking. User testing revealed this didn’t address the core problem: users couldn’t find the form at all.
Core Approach
Fix the root cause (hidden form, unclear flow) rather than the symptoms
Merge two pages into one to remove the unnecessary break in user flow.
Two-column layout with Information (left) + Actions (right) = matches mental model.
Clear CTAs that show exactly what happens: “Will bid” / “Won’t bid” / “Submit bid”.
Improved hierarchy bringing critical elements (downloads, documents) closer to related content.
Wireframe
High Fidelity Design
Results
+20%
Bids with BoQ
+15%
Overall Bid Submissions
-11%
GC Manual Data Entry
Key Takeaways
- Simplify the workflow before adding guidance to a broken flow
- Match UI structure to mental models (information vs. actions)
- Strategic trade-offs (mobile) can accelerate delivery of high-impact improvements
