Twin City

Twin City is a home swapping platform for creatives to exchange homes across 50+ cities.

Product
Web platform

Role
Co-founder, Product Designer

Timeline
July 2024 - August 2024

Contribution
User research
Product design
Feature development

SHIPPED

Redesigned the availability and requesting features, helping users complete their first home swaps

I co-founded Twin City. We quickly gained 3,000 users across 50 cities, but most had never actually completed a home swap. This case study explores how providing users with clarity on compatible travel plans helped them experience the magic of home swapping.

The New Experience

Overview

We launched Twin City with the basics

Users could browse homes they'd love to stay in and also chat with hosts. The niche of creatives and the selection of designed homes set the platform apart. But the experience? Frustrating…

The Old Experience

Challenge

I needed to understand why swaps weren't happening

As a user myself with a home in London to swap, I felt the frustration myself. Requesting was effortful - 6 clicks, write a message, send, wait. But it was exciting when a handful responded, until we ended up in back and forth date negotiation that didn't go anywhere.

Karen

24 Jan 2025

Hey Karen! I'm planning a trip to Berlin on Aug 1-7.
Would you be up for a swap?

Hi Isaac, I'm keen but am only free the last two

weeks of August.. Would that work?

Ahh it doesn't, I need to be home then :(
What about September 10 - 17?

Afraid not, I need to be in the office that week.

Maybe October?

Same boat haha. Let's keep in touch :)

Conversations dying at date negotiation

Research

The root of the problem was availability, not trust

Many experts advised adding trust features, but when I spoke with 8 users, trust was barely mentioned. The pattern was clear: users logged in with trips planned, but availability only showed vague months like 'August'. The system wasn't matching on dates — it left that to the conversation.

'This person looks available in August,

but when I propose my dates they're not free.

Testing

Iterate, iterate, iterate...

To help users complete swaps, I explored making availability specific and requesting effortless. I tested my approaches with 6 users and ran into a few problems.

Exploration 1: any dates, automated message

The receiving experience was still broken

Users could request any dates with an automated message. Quick for requesters — but hosts barely responded. Dates didn't match, messages felt impersonal.

Exploration 2: confirmed dates, personal note

So I connected the two problems

Requests could only be made from confirmed availability. Users wrote their own messages. Dates already aligned, and messages felt genuine.

Solution

Date alignment happens before conversation starts

Hosts set their availability. Guests find matches for their dates. The system aligns on intent and compatibility.

I. For hosts: Adding availability

Hosts add precise availability windows that accurately communicate their travel plans. No more mismatched requests.

Adding Availability

II. For guests: Requesting from confirmed dates

Guests see who's available for their trip. They write a personal message and send confident requests quickly.

Sending a Request

Impact

50% of users subscribed after their first swap

I pushed for a first swap free model to prove value before asking for money. After completing a swap, users' mindset shifted: "I'm doing this all the time now." And the subscription became a no-brainer.

Whilst Twin City wasn't skyrocketing, we had 40+ annual subscribers within a few months -

enough recurring revenue to reopen conversations with investors.

Billing page

Reflections

Start with the wrong assumption

I assumed trust was the blocker and nearly built verification features. Testing with 8 users proved it was availability. This project taught me to validate hunches early — even the obvious ones — before committing to a solution.

Build less to ship faster

Four weeks and one engineer forced me to design a minimal solution that could solve the problem. This constraint helped us ship quickly and get feedback with users asap.

IY • Product Designer