BUZEE
Manage events better
Client: Sadhana Studios
Client industry: Consulting
Type of project: UI/Ux research project
Tools: Figma
Duration: 2 weeks (April 2024)
People: 2
Background
In today’s digital world, managing events are becoming complex and time consuming. Users are constantly inundated by invites through various channels and in various formats including posters, images, social media and messaging platforms
Problem Statement
How do we manage events when bombarded with invites through so many channels and receiving the invite in so many different formats?
Research Goal
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To understand the pain points in the event management journey
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Understand the preferences and needs of event hosts and attendees
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Explore ways to enhance this event management experience
The Research
Users
The Research was targeted primarily at 2 types of users:
1.Event hosts
2.Event attendees
Within this, we tried to understand their experiences in 2 different settings
1.Professional events
2.Social events
A wide age range of users from 20-45 were covered for the interview. User profiles includes entrepreneurs, academicians and corporate employees
Research Methodology
A combination of Primary and Secondary Methodology was used
Secondary Research
•Evaluate existing image-to-calendar applications and similar services to identify strengths, weaknesses, and opportunities for differentiation.
Primary Research
•Conduct in-depth user interviews with both event hosts and attendees to gain insights into their current practices, challenges, and expectations regarding event invitation management.
Competitor Analysis
EasEvent
Pros
1.Simple, easy to use
2.Useful technology
Cons
1.Poor UI
2. Only available on android
3. Ads ruin the experience - have to watch a 30s ad for each calendar addition
Revenue Model
1. Ad supported
2. Users are willing to pay for a better ad free experience
Lu.ma
Pros
1.Simple, easy to use
2.Useful technology
Cons
1.Poor UI
2. Only available on android
3. Ads ruin the experience - have to watch a 30s ad for each calendar addition
Revenue Model
1. Ad supported
2. Users are willing to pay for a better ad free experience
UNDERSTANDING THE USER
We tried to understand the needs of both the event hosts and event attendees. We created a survey and interviewed users across various age groups and wide range of professions such as academicians, corporate professionals and entrepreneurs. We surveyed over 20 participants and interviewed 5 of them.
Event host - 4 main categories were explored in more detail through survey and interviews:
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Event setup
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Event awareness and distribution
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Post event distribution and prior to the event
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Post event analysis
Event attendees – again 4 main categories were explored
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Understanding event preferences
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Event awareness
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Decision making – to attend or not to attend
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Post decision making actions
"I want to know who else is going to the event before I can decide"
BREAKING DOWN THE PROCESS
Through the process of surveys and interviews, we got a better understanding of both the user groups - event attendees and event hosts
The event hosts want to maximize attendance to their event. Finding and distributing the event to a large number of people was a challenge for large scale open events.
For event attendees, they want to know who else is going. If they plan to go with other friends or family members, they want to know if they are available at that time.
Research Synthesis
Affinity Map
User Journey - Event Host & Event Attendee
THESE WERE SOME MAJOR INSIGHTS I WANTED TO CALL OUT
Diverse Events to Attend
Our users engaged in a wide range of events spanning from intimate birthday gatherings to large scale events such as weddings and concerts.
Professionally, they attend work socials and conferences
Diverse Channels of Invitations
The channels and formats through which the users receive an invite include:
1. Text message
2. Images
3. Emails
4. Word of mouth
5. Social media posts
Decision Making Factors
The users wanted to know a few things before making a decision on whether to attend an event, such as:
1. Who else will be attending?
2. What are the costs?
3. Is it clashing with any other event?
Missed Opportunities
Users stated that they missed events because they:
1. Forgot to RSVP
2. Forgot to set reminders
Frequency of Invitations
Users receive 8-10 invitations a month, of which they manage to attend 4-6 of these events
Solution Space
How might we help the event attendees (*) manage events when bombarded with events through so many different channels and receiving the invite in so many different formats?
*Due to limited time, we decided to focus on event attendees
Solution:
The users need to
1. Easily consolidate various types of invites into a provisional calendar
2. Avoid cluttering their main calendar with undecide events and add them only when they have decided to attend
3. Set reminders to RSVP and attend
4. Know who is attending and make an informed decision
5. Follow event creators to be notified of the upcoming events and prevent missed opportunities
Introducing BUZEE - Busy made Easy
Ideation
UserFlows, Wireframes and Wireflows
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Prototype
TITLE OF THE CALLOUT BLOCK
Next Steps
The MVP designed has been targeted at the event attendee as they are a larger sample size and also because of time constraints. The targeted customer group is more likely to be an event attendee than an event host
Revenue Opportunities
A. Ticket Sales
Based on Physical Location
1. Events near me: Link to other events that are happening in the next X hrs around your physical location. Receive % of ticket fees for paid events
Online events based on timing
2. Events online now: Link to events that are happening in the next X hrs online. Receive % of ticket fees for paid events
B. In app Advertise events
3. Target based on event preferences(for attendees) and audience preferences for event host - Biggest pain point for event hosts which is finding the right audience. Pricing can depend on the participants reached.
4. Non targeted Advertising: An extension of the above can be non targeted advertising of events like f&b events which can reach a larger number of people
Roadmap
MVP is based on following features
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Add maybe events to an intermediate calendar
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Sync the confirmed events with calendar of your choice
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Explore events near your based on location & time
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Get notified of events from a particular host
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Share calendar
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Share event
Next steps
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Implement revenue opportunities through ticket sales
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In-app advertising for event hosts to reach a large audience (both targeted and non-targeted)