Young students and working professionals want to book and source local events catered to their interests with real-time, accurate information avoiding prior research and thought.
My goal was to design a solution that creates meaningful connections and experiences where pre-event (planning, messaging, booking, purchasing), during-event (arriving, sharing) and post-event (review), is done directly within the app.
“As a Canadian, I have an appreciation for culture and my friends are from different ethnic backgrounds. I would love to learn about their cultures through events.”
Systems Analyst, 25
“I want to know how to get to an event and back avoiding any surprises as I’m making time to go out given my busy lifestyle.”
Grad Student, 24
“I wish it was easier to find like minded people to meet up for events when you don't have any friends going.”
Clinical Researcher, 25
Need for curated Directory
Interviewees are frustrated with not being able to find events targeting their generation. They believe that meeting like-minded individuals and creating relationships is possible with people of similar mindsets.
connect through similar interests
They feel that meeting people online and through friendship apps can be superficial and doesn’t allow for a meaningful connection. They value having similar vibes, interests and stages in life when it comes to meeting new people.
curious about unique experiences
They’re interested in special and unique events that gets them excited to attend. Think pop-ups, classes, installations and shows. The interviewees value learning new skills, practicing mindfulness and "everything aesthetic".
less is more; simplicity is the key
Initially wanting to explore a wide colour palette and complex visual identity, I realized mid way through my work that this wasn’t the best take for my product. Given that this app targets Gen Z, I was comfortable with exploring bold colours. Keeping things simple ultimately proved to not be distracting in the flows.
TESTING, TESTING, TESTING
I found new insights the more I tested my product. Making adjustments, seeking feedback and revisiting designs was important in building my design thinking skills and solving this problem. Getting comfortable with testing and applying insights was something I learned through this project.
always design for the user
Although I had an initial vision of the solution, I quickly accepted, through multiple iterations, that I would have to revise my designs. Given the authentic feedback I received, I was able to apply a human-centric approach to a process I wasn’t familiar with.
accessibility at the forefront
There’s always work to be done in terms of accessibility. Whether that includes using the Face ID feature for logging into the app or checking out, it’s important to consider how I can make certain decision points easier for the user to navigate. Including voice input when exploring events will be something to consider as well.
expanding the connections feature
Building a meaningful connection through this app is next priority on my list. Based on my inital research, it made sense to focus on finding events catered to the user. However, this can be taken a step further with introducing users to like-minded people to attend said events with.
track events and calendar
Something else that came up in my research findings was that users don’t want to invest prior thought and research into finding and attending events. They tend to get stressed when there isn’t a backup plan, things don’t work, and etc. Creating a planner/calendar function would alleviate the stress this causes.
