(2024)

Client facing application (iOS)

If you're paying $500,000+ for an event, it shouldn't be run on a spreadsheet. I designed the first native iOS app that connects clients, vendors, planners, and venues seamlessly on a single, integrated platform. Leveraging innovative processes, state-of-the-art tools, and advanced technology, Function is dedicated to empowering event planners to achieve unparalleled efficiency and effectiveness in orchestrating the most extraordinary celebrations on the planet. These designs challenge traditional event planning, aiming to automate processes with an initial focus on luxury events, and eventually expand to a broader market.

Role:

Lead Product Designer

Services:

Product Design | iOS Application | User Research | Wire-framing | Accessibility

Company:

The Function 🔗

Team (3):

PM, Eng, Design (Me!)

CHALLENGE

Planning a wedding can be overwhelming, with difficult contracts, obscure fees, scattered communication, and each vendor having their own unique (often manual) process. There was a pressing need to reduce email overload and late-night texts. We decided to operate as a tool for planners, providing users with a concierge-like planning experience. This approach allowed us to integrate best practices from event planner feedback, with the eventual goal of automating processes and expanding to DIY events in the $30k-$150k range.

The product roadmap was extensive, but the team identified weddings as the area with the most immediate impact. Understanding the importance of this special day, my designs aimed to make the planning process as smooth as possible.

GOALS & METRICS

Confined to a 1 month sprint, the following design goals were established to lay the foundations for the business:

1. Scalable vendor booking framework- template booking page and flow for all 14+ vendor categories

2. Contract clarity- increasing user comprehension across offerings, legal, and financial

3. Two way communication - a place for notes, tasks, and ideas to be exchanged with your planner

4. Automating manual tasks - providing a refreshed modern approach for the annoying things

5. Manage from a single event hub - clients needed to review and manage a summary of their event from a single organized place

PROCESS

The business strategically acquired a luxury planner in New York who's average event spend was ~$500,000. As we had her walk us through the process and open the doors to the upper echelon in the city, we had to rigorously define table stakes features and what could be left manual... for now. The strategic acquisition of her business provided me with an internal product feedback loop that allowed design to find product market fit quicker than we could have accomplished alone.

Step 1: Interviewed 75+ planners

Step 2: Strategic hire of top top talent (supplemented the need for external UX research)

Step 3: Created a general template for planning and operating an event

Step 4: Defined table-stakes features and robust product roadmap

Step 5: Lo-fi product iterations of vendor profile framework, review flow and payments, event management, and communication hub

Step 6: Design reviews, adjusting for engineering constraints, and adopting native iOS design system

Step 7: Built custom hi-fi clickable prototype adapted and presented to specific vendor targets

Step 8: Hi-fi delivery of vendor profile framework, review flow and payments, event management, and communication hub

Step 9: Built marketing site (web-flow), produced social media video, and ran strategic ads pre-launch

Step 10: Deployed V1.0 to the app store

01 | Gated login

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02 | Marketing site

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03| In app vendor reviews

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04 | Payments tab

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05 | My event tab

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OUTCOME

I designed a universally applicable vendor review and booking system, launching essential features like automated payments, in-app notifications, and receipt tracking. Leveraging the native iOS system and Google's theme builder, I rapidly deployed an accessible, brand-aligned product. I also implemented a two-way communication hub for direct interaction with planners and streamlined vendor coordination. The event hub successfully managed events and provided a space for collaborative design inspiration. This significantly reduced the manual task load for planners, allowed clients to focus on the enjoyable aspects of planning, and enabled our team to concentrate on sales and marketing as we scaled towards profitability.

• Created a booking framework that successfully absorbed 14 vendor categories and transformed manual processes into automated client proposals

• Leveraged V 1.0 Designs to book and execute ~$750,000+ of business in the first 3 months

• Designs allowed for asynchronous collaboration between client and planners, drastically reducing manual interaction and repetitive tasks for both parties

• Marketing initiatives, steered and designed by The Function, increased inbound requests for our planner by approximately 11x from previous highs

• Adopted iOS native design system and deployed custom components

• The Function at launch successfully supported vendor review, event hub, two-way communication, automated payments and receipts, and all native iOS application requirements

• The Function is now the first automated payments system and event communication hub in the luxury event space

Download iOS App

05 | Final product

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