Redesigned the website to offer a unique experience to users so that they can better explore cultures.
What is Ethnic Events Vision?
Ethnic Events is a Chicago based startup with the focus of making cultural exploration possible wherever we are. Ethnic Events is committed to global diversity and awareness and wants to create a platform where people are able to travel internationally right in their cities in the USA and experience a different culture without having to get on a plane.
Overview
Our project assignment was to revamp the website design to allow organizations to showcase cultural events, for users to explore culture, and for companies to book private cultural events to their workforce. We were tasked to conduct a UX audit on the current website to determine which parts of the site could be improved and provided recommendations to enhance the user experience.
TEAMATES
Ali Alamshahi
Zach Stevenot
ROLE
UX Designer
METHODS & TOOLS
User Surveys/Interviews, Research, Comparative Analysis, Figma, Miro
PRACTICES
Sketching, Wireframing, Userflows, Prototyping, Usability Testing
Process
On the first day of the project we had a kickoff meeting with our client to gain a better understanding of the companies vision and the purpose of the website. With the new insights we gained, we created a schedule to complete the project within a three week sprint.
Research
To split the workload my teammates they started the week off with comparative research to look through event websites like Eventbrite, Meetup, Facebook Events, and etc. I took this time to create and distribute our user survey, so that we could tackle some general questions about users experience with event websites and to gauge their interest in learning about cultures.
Surveys
The surveys that I distributed yielded some interesting results.
Users are most likely to attend cultural events revolving around food and music.
Socializing, enjoyment, learning, & networking are the main reasons for users to attend events.
Facebook and Google are the main resources for users to find events.
UX Audit
As a group we decided to tackle the UX audit as soon as possible, so that we could understand the features that our client was trying to implement.
The current website offered users the ability to browse cultural events, organizers to create events, and companies to book private events.
User Interviews
After synthesizing all the user survey results, we drafted questions for our user interviews that would allow us to get in-depth answers to figure out user needs. I scheduled and conducted six user interviews which yielded valuable information about our users and their expectations. With this information in mind we were able to come up with problem statements and start ideating on solutions.
User Interview Takeaways
Users wanted clear categories in the search results and event browsing pages.
Users wanted social media integration as most of them use Facebook currently.
All users again mentioned food as their main interest when it came to culture.
All users were interested in learning more about culture which further us to create the culture discovery section of the website.
Persona
With all the information we gained from the user surveys and interviews as a group we were able to come up with a persona that encompassed all our target user needs.
Needs a convenient way to browse events.
Cares a lot about experiencing culture with friends.
Is interested in the idea of having a medium to learn and experience cultures.
Problems
With the persona created alongside all the research we had done we were able to come up with these key problems to tackle. With the problems uncovered we were then able to ideate on solutions to our problem.
Users need a way to find local cultural events because they are planning a trip abroad next year and would like to familiarize themselves with culture.
Ethnic Events needs a website redesign that offers users an experience where they can learn about culture, attend cultural events, & improve their experience with browsing events.
Solutions
A browsing page and filtering system that allows users to search by culture and event type.
A culture discovery section that offers information about the culture and recommends organizations and events.
An event page that offers all information necessary for the user to attend.
A dashboard for organizers to easily add or manage events and ticket purchases.
Design
With our solutions written out we started to bring our ideas to life in Figma. We wanted to create an initial stage one prototype to test key features with users. After testing our stage one prototype we would then create another series of mid-fidelity wireframes then move towards building our design system.
With our first iteration of the prototype we tested key features with users to observe the speed and accessibility of our website. All the tasks we devised were completed within fifteen seconds.
Usability Testing
We performed a series of usability tests with six different users.
Task 1
1. On the home page, show me how you would find and add the event called the “Flowers Secret” to your calendar.
2. Tell me where the event is being held.
3. Tell me who the event organizer is.
4. Tell me what culture this event is from.
Task 2
1. Can you tell me which events are free?
2. Can you tell me which events are online?
Task 3
1. Can you show me how you would sign up for an account?
2. Can you show me how you would log in if you already had an account?
Task 4
1. How would you go about finding the Japanese Culture page?
Changes
Prototype
Our fully functioning prototype
Next Steps
Optimize check-out process
Usability testing the hi-fi prototype with new tasks.
Mobile app design.
All-in-one organizer platform that includes marketing tools such as email automation, Google Ads, and social media integrations.
Reflection
Real Client Projects Require More Planning & Time Management Than Conceptual Projects
A big learning curve for me for this project was having to juggle working on our project while being able to schedule meetings and maintain proper communication with our client. I was incredibly proud with how our team handled our clients request to bring her concept to life. We were able to manage our time and work standard hours compared to my previous projects which was eye opening. Through this project I was able to get a larger grasp and understanding of Figma’s tools. I found myself being a lot more comfortable with modules and my workflow efficiency increased. I still have a lot to learn and I can’t wait to continue my journey in UX.