Case Study | Zealous · Multiple Submissions

Overview

Zealous is a SaaS platform for managing awards, grants and open calls. Applicants could submit more than one project, but the experience made it difficult to manage drafts, track progress and review everything before paying.

As the sole Product Designer, I led the redesign of this complex submission flow. The goal was to make multiple submissions feel like one clear journey while supporting the different workflows organisations could configure.

Problem

Applicants could submit multiple projects on Zealous, but the process made it hard to manage them as one journey. Drafts were difficult to track, and users couldn’t easily review all their entries before paying. What first looked like a communication issue was a problem with the submission experience itself.

The challenge was to create a clearer, more predictable flow without losing the flexibility organisations needed to configure their own awards, grants and open calls.

Process

I reviewed support tickets and platform feedback, interviewed applicants and gathered input from organisations. The research showed that users understood they submit multiple projects; they struggled to see what they had completed and what would happen next.

I explored ecommerce checkout patterns, then worked with Business Development and Engineering to prioritise solutions. Across eight iterations, we tested a consistent flow that let applicants add projects, manage drafts, follow their progress and review all submissions before a single checkout. Testing also helped us resolve a key trade-off: keeping the journey predictable across different payment configurations.

Outcome

The redesigned experience brought multiple projects into one submission journey without removing the platform’s workflow flexibility. After launch, Customer Support reported that multiple submissions were no longer a common complaint, and fewer applicants left drafts unfinished.

Negative feedback rated one or two stars fell from 12% to less than 1%. No significant issues were reported after launch.

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