Research

Our experiences and struggles in the event business

In the first brainstorming session we discussed our struggles in the event business, which need better solutions. We all have experiences with planning events. Natascha organizes the «Ladies Night» – a yearly event to promote her business Storytellerdresses, Noah is known for his home parties, Robin is member of the party collective Avalanche, and I am member of ZAK Jona where I organize concerts and rent the location out to clients who celebrate their birthday, anniversary or wedding.

Crazy 8, brain writing and scribbles

To bring as many ideas on paper as possible, we engaged in a quick exercise known as «Crazy 8.» Using this method, our aim was to generate eight ideas within eight minutes. Each team member wrote down eight ideas in this timeframe. Subsequently, the next person added to these ideas, and the process continued. Following this exercise, we realized that we shared a similar vision.

Next, we transitioned to «brain writing». This technique is similar to «brainstorming», but with individuals generating ideas independently before group discussion. To prepare for the initial wireframes, we loosened up with «scribbles», rapidly sketching various layouts without overthinking.

Ideation and target audience

We determined that with this product, we want to target private people  who are ready to spend some money for their party, but want to keep the planning in their own hands. To be able to provide different services from catering to service personal, we made up a company which owns multiple locations, catering companies, and a decoration stock.

For the next steps we formulated this design challenge to keep in mind:

Prototyping

Wireframing – from analog to digital

As a next step we sketched our ideas on paper and discussed our ideas further. When the first questions where clarified, we set up a figma file to digitize the sketches.

It was impressive to me, how we developed a solid idea, formulated a design challenge, and finished wireframes in just one morning.

Testing

First testing and adaptations

The next week we started with prototyping our figma wireframes and formulating tasks for our test subjects. Then we tested our prototype with our classmates. In this first testing, we identified some ambiguities which weren't clear enough to our test subjects.

In this stage of the process we also decided that our solution had to be a desktop app, because the majority of people plan parties on a laptop and not on their smartphones.

Card sorting and information architecture

To test our sitemap we made a card sorting with our classmates as test subjects.

Visual design

I was the most experienced in our group when it comes design. Therefore, I designed different logo drafts, defined a font and font sizes, colors, and a grid for the website. Natascha is a great writer, so she was responsible for writing and content. Robin did the sitemap and designed the check out process, while Noah was responsible for the pages of the service providers and prototyping.

While Noah was still prototying, I designed and prepared our presentation which we presented at the Google office where our teacher Roman worked.

User flow of the event planning

Here you see an overview of the event planning and check out process. The user can filter offers from different providers and follows a fixed process of four steps. It was difficult to break down the process to four steps, but we wanted to make the user flow as easy as possible.

Conclusion

In this project I learned a lot about the ideation of a UX design project. It was impressive how fast we were able to develop and realize an idea.

I also learned a lot about team work and how to use everyones skills for the best result. I also learned strategies to make the process fast and efficient without leaving out crucial steps like research and testing.