ImpactApp Design Helps Connect People at SEGD XLab Event
I'm Leslie Wolke, an independent wayfinding technology specialist based in Austin, Texas. Last summer, while working on projects with Two Twelve, I was asked to co-chair xlab, a new SEGD event focused on design, technology and the built environment. While we were in the planning stages, my xlab colleagues and I discussed the idea of creating an app to help participants navigate and network during the event. We didn’t know if we could identify, design and develop enough useful features to make the app helpful in time for the event which premiered atEyebeam Art+Technology Center in New York on November 3, 2011.
David Gibson offered Two Twelve’s design resources pro bono, and through partnering with them and Rubenstein Technology Group we were able to develop the app, XLab 2011: Design of Location on time and at minimal cost. The app featured up-to-the-minute schedule and programming information and a dynamic participant directory. We blended the speakers and attendees into one browsable list of profiles through which users could tag people they met and link directly to their websites and apps. About 60% of participants downloaded the app, and, of those surveyed, 70% used it prior to or during the xlab event. We also got some great feedback to incorporate into the next release of the app for xlab 2012, planned for this coming November here in Austin.
