Venue is a company that operates an online marketplace for event venues. Venue strives to bring people together to meet, create, and celebrate. They offer a wide variety of unique spaces for any activity at various price points. Venue targets people who lack the time or ability to search, compare, and book event venues.
This case study was completed for Google’s UX Design Course | High-fidelity Prototype
Busy individuals lack the time to search, compare, and book event venues due to workload and inaccessibility
UX designer designing an app for Venue from conception to delivery
Design an app for Venue that allows users to easily book event venues digitally
Conducted interviews, ideated designs, paper wireframing, low- and high-fidelity prototypes, conducted a usability study, and accounted for accessibility
I conducted foundational research, consisting of interviews, and created empathy maps to empathize with users and their needs. A primary user group identified through research was working adults who don’t have time to search, compare, and book event venues.
This user group confirmed initial assumptions about Venue users, but the research also revealed that time was not the only factor limiting potential bookings. Time, accessibility, and lack of information are the three main pain points.
Working adults are too busy to spend significant time searching and touring event venues during the workday.
Traditional platforms, such as an event venue’s website, fail to provide a virtual tour option for users who are unable to visit the space in person.
Event venue websites typically require individuals to call during the workday to inquire more information about a space.
I then combined my findings from the research in the form of two personas to help me identify behavior patterns and the needs of the larger group of users. Each persona includes a direct quote, goals, frustrations, and a problem statement.
To further build off the personas, I created a user journey map that combined the needs of both personas. The series of experiences a user has while achieving a specific goal, such as booking a venue, have been recorded in the chart below, along with improvement opportunities for the next step, wireframing.
Taking the time to draft iterations of each screen of the app on paper ensured that each pain point was addressed before starting digital wireframes. I included versions of the Home Screen and the Venue Details Screen. After reviewing each one, I decided to combine a few elements to create a home screen that prioritized quick and easy searching and a venue details screen that prioritized a virtual tour option and clear information architecture.
As the initial design phase continued, I made sure to base screen designs on feedback and findings from the user research. The six screens below showcase the primary user flow, searching and booking a venue.
I conducted two rounds of usability studies. Findings from the first study helped guide the designs from wireframes to low-fidelity prototypes. The second study used a high-fidelity prototype and revealed what aspects of the mockups needed additional refining.
The final high-fidelity prototype presents cleaner user flows for booking event venues. It also meets user needs of clean information architecture for quick venue searching and providing multiple touring options.
The app makes users feel like Venue truly thinks about how to meet their needs. One quote from peer feedback:
“This app makes searching for cool venues in different cities so easy. I could have used this in the past when looking for my wedding reception!”
While designing this app, the importance of usability studies and peer feedback have been solidified. They provide great direction and guidance to keep the user’s needs front and center.