Case Study
Surfline · Sessions 2.0
Turning post-surf review into a habit.
Redesigned Surfline's iOS Sessions experience to improve retention, increase engagement, and make session review fast, intuitive, and worth coming back to.
Surf Score — progression at a glance
Impact
What the redesign moved.
- 01Faster clip access
- 02Increased session review completion
- 03Fewer false-positive reports
- 04Shifted Sessions from a passive log to an active habit
Overview
Sessions 2.0 focused on redesigning the iOS experience to better match how surfers actually review their sessions — with a focus on speed, clarity, and progression.
- Role
- Lead Product Designer
- Team
- PM
Engineering - Timeline
- 3 weeks
The Problem
The existing Sessions experience wasn't delivering on its promise.
01
The UX was complex and didn't match how surfers review sessions.
02
Users didn't trust the data due to inaccurate wave detection.
03
The experience prioritized data over the moments users cared about.
Business Goals
Three priorities defined success for the business and the product team.
01
Increase MAUs
Make Sessions a reason to return — not just a place data lands after a surf.
02
Modernize the experience
Bring the UI and interaction patterns up to current mobile expectations.
03
Reduce false positives
Improve detection accuracy and rebuild trust in the underlying data.
Key Insights
Two patterns shaped the direction.
Surveys and interviews kept surfacing the same friction. These were the two we couldn't design around.
01
“Wave count is inaccurate”
Trust in the product was low because users couldn't rely on the detection.
02
“Just show me my clips”
Users felt overwhelmed by data and primarily wanted fast access to the moments.
Product Strategy
Instead of redesigning everything, we made a few high-impact bets.
Three weeks meant focus. Each bet had to justify the design investment with a clear product reason.
Bet 01
Prioritize clips over data
Users didn't want dashboards — they wanted moments.
What changed
- Clips became the primary entry point
- Reduced visual noise and secondary stats
Why it worked
Matched real user intent → faster engagement and shorter time to value.
Bet 02
Introduce progression
Sessions needed a reason to come back.
What changed
- Surf Score as a simple, persistent metric
- Clear trend over time
Why it worked
Turned each session into a feedback loop — not a one-off log entry.
Bet 03
Make review fast
Friction was killing usage.
What changed
- Faster navigation between waves
- Scannable breakdown and quick favoriting
Why it worked
Lower effort per session → higher review completion rates.
Bet 04
Design within constraints
Rebuilding the cam player wasn't an option.
What changed
- Focused on surrounding UX instead of playback
- Improved navigation, context, and speed
Why it worked
Delivered impact without heavy engineering investment.
Final Experience
A modernized Sessions experience built around speed, clarity, and progression.
Three surfaces carry the redesign — a single anchor metric, a fast session overview, and a wave-by-wave review flow.
Surf Score
A single metric that turns every session into visible progress.
Surf Score anchors the experience and gives users a reason to return — a personal trend that builds with every paddle out.
Session Overview
Recent sessions, one tap away.
Location, activity, and performance are combined into a quick, scannable view — built for the post-surf check-in, not deep analysis.
Wave Playback
Every wave, reviewable in seconds.
Seamless navigation, clear breakdowns, and quick favoriting make it easy to find and save the moments worth coming back to.
Outcome
Sessions 2.0 turned a low-retention feature into a meaningful part of the Surfline experience.
By prioritizing clips, simplifying the experience, and introducing progression, the product better aligned with how surfers actually reflect on their sessions.
0×
Faster clip access
0×
Session review completion
0%
Fewer false-positive reports
Reflection
The biggest unlock wasn't rebuilding the player — it was designing around it.
Working within constraints forced sharper prioritization and led to a more focused, effective solution. In a short timeline, clarity and impact mattered more than completeness.