Impact

Our team realized there was an opportunity to decrease event planners’ workload, put premium, internal, clients in control, and simultaneously inspire new clients while generating leads for an event collaboration software. A win-win all around!

  • Generate leads for event planning and collaboration software, SimpleEvents.

  • Decrease workload for event planners at SimpleScience by optimizing all sourcing data.

  • Inspire connective collaboration for new clients and event planners.

Problem

Finding the perfect venue for in-person, global conferences, company retreats, and sales incentive meetings are laborious for event planners at SimpleScience. How might we utilize existing partnerships and databases of proven venues?

Results

The venue sourcing platform illuminates opportunities to help evolve the SimpleEvents product over time and improve the overall business experience. Organizations often launch, then jump right into watching the data and numbers. While this is valid and useful this project taught us to shift perspective and create tools for practical collaborative interactions.

Sourcing Platform to Lead Generation Tool

Data collection became the key component in generating leads for SimpleEvents. Manual data input was eliminated and transformed the event planner experience. While large, beautiful, photos of venues and luxury resort amenities capture clients’ interest and inspire event coordinators for collaboration.

  • SimpleScience is an experience agency specializing in event planning and marketing. From your 80-person corporate event to an 8 thousand global conferences all events are planned, promoted, and produced in their event management software called SimpleEvents

  • The sourcing platform is a natural first step in the user journey. Searching venues and locations puts the user in control while building excitement for the event. Event details are implemented from the start allowing for a custom, curated experience.

  • Once a venue is souced and submitted. A team collaborator gathers leads for the event planning platform. All sourcing data can be implemented in the event event management software called SimpleEvents.

 
 
 

Empathy-Informed Tool Building

SimpleScience creates hundreds of events globally. Leveraging their client’s and event planners’ needs helped inform my design decisions. I also reviewed popular venue platforms and competitor platforms to streamline the collaborative process.

The users we were designing for were both event planners and current clients of SimpleScience. We considered all aspects to build a tool that supports communicative, empathetic, and inclusive interactions. Keeping in mind the opportunity to gather future clients for SimpleEvents.


Solving for online and offline moments

As the design lead on the SimpleEvents team, I think a lot about building tools that help promote connective collaboration. Our team is solving for both online and offline moments, event sourcing is the start of most events. It’s a moment loaded with firsts-first interaction between client and event planner, first experience with SimpleScience, and trust with the company.

  • Current State: Before the Sourcing platform, SimpleScience event planners work with a database of trusted venues. All data is logged in a spreadsheet file. All event details are updated and shared with clients individually. New venue sourcing is a laborious process of calling, confirming, and reviewing information. Then, updating files, images, and data.

    Sharing Information: Trusted Venues share PDF files of all the data necessary to create an event. Once a venue is selected that matches the client’s criteria all future information is done through email, and phone conversations with clients.

    Travel Websites: Websites like Kayak, Travelocity, or Orbitz for example don't provide the necessary information to source a venue for large, global, corporate events. They can serve as a starting point for inspiration such as location and venue aesthetic.

  • Necessary Information: After talking with event planners, and reviewing their spreadsheets and PDF files from venues. A way to optimize all client events was necessary.

    Pain Points:
    • From your 20-person executive meeting to your 3,000-person conference, sourcing events are time-consuming.
    • The back-and-forth with suppliers can’t enusure every planner receives at least three quotes for all their event's needs.
    • Source, coordinate, and manage client’s needs are completed at different touch points.
    • At-a-glace capacity, pricing, and facility details can be challenging.
    • Receiving custom recommendations from available suppliers that match clients’ budgets are not transparent.
    • The average response time from suppliers is 2-5 business days making it challenging to be competitive.

 
 

Application Intent

Access the most complete information on venues to quickly narrow your search, in one place. Receive destination rates quickly and within budget. 

  • Search over 300K global venues. 

  • Source venues by attendees and room ratings.

  • Filter venues with specific occupancy maximums.

  • Estimate attendance with the meeting space calculator. 

  • Easily compare information and share with clients.

  • The new sourcing platform brings all your venue data, and tracking into one platform that everyone can use at scale.

    • Easily find preferred suppliers and venues with key data sets your company values.
    • Automatically receive quotes for all your event needs and always choose the best venue for your event.
    • Recieve tailored event experiences with experts who care.

    Get the most from your RFPs and Eliminate the back and forth by building RFPs with details that mean the most to you so venues can respond with a customized proposal.

    • Customize your RFPs to your needs
    • Attach and send additional files easily.
    • Send one RFP to multiple venues.
    • Save and clone criteria for future use.

  • Track and manage venue responses on a centralized platform. Compare venues and narrow down results. Shortlist properties quickly.

    • Compare bids side-by-side.
    • Communicate with venues on key details.
    • Share comparisons with stakeholders with easy reporting.
    • Save your preferred venues for future events.
    • Review and rate venues after the event.

 

Design and Team Communication

Communication with the development team is critical. As designers, our work is a stepping stone for developers. A beta was implemented and feedback was given using Pastel. This helped us find bugs and make improvements quickly.

  • • A master components file helped define brand guidelines, colors, fonts, etc.

    • XD sharable links are used to review and comment on all our digital design files before handing them off to the development team.

    • Pastel is the tool of choice to communicate with the dev team. It’s website feedback software that allows designers and developers to collect feedback on websites that are in beta.

    • Review from the sourcing team. Feedback and testing were given to the sourcing team.

 
 

Halfway Mark

SimpleScience plans to use the sourcing platform to simultaneously promote new business for SimpleEvents. However, it’s not uncommon to mistake a product launch as the end goal. Organizations often launch, then jump right into watching the data and numbers. While this is valid and useful this project taught us to shift perspective and create tools for practical collaborative interactions.

The launch of sourcing for SimpleEvents is the halfway mark to note what people do with what you’ve given them. This platform illuminates opportunities to evolve products over time and overall business experience.

 

Smart Design Automation

Automating data workflows empowered novice users to cut design time by 50%, eliminate manual entry, and accelerate campaign creation, driving faster, more successful campaigns.