Thesis week 5: Design ‘unique interaction’ that people can only experience in virtual events
I have talked with eight people who have different backgrounds. I incorporated their answers and grouped them under similar keywords, to discover key insights on virtual events and online interactions.
Key painpoints (converged by 8 interviewees)
- Low authenticity
- Lack of in-depth communication
- Miscommunication
Key findings
- Virtual interactions cannot fully replace in-person interactions.
- Good moderation helps people being engaged in conversation.
- Depending on personalities, people have different approaches on social interactions
Scoping down on problem statement
- Target users: Introverts / Participants (Speakers)
Throughout the interviews, I found it interesting that a digital environment helps introverts be more confident and relaxed about social interactions in some way.
Most people have both extroverted & introverted personalities. If I focus on people who have more introverted personality, it would easily extend solutions to people who are more extrovert.
In terms of scalability, I assume that there are more social interactions between participants. I would like to focus on participants’ interaction first. Speakers’ painpoints would be the following step after solving participants’ painpoints.
2. It’s a timely topic but make it timeless
One of main takeaways is that I should design an experience that people would like to continue to use even after the pandemic is over.
Mimicking in-person experience is not key for virtual events. I had better maximize the characteristics of digital experiences.
3. Field (Still thinking about it)
Why would people choose my products?
Brand slogans sometimes show their value propositions, implying their goals. My thesis advisor, Krystal, gave me an idea to create them. It could be like…
Goodbye, 3-hour Zoom conferences
So long, one-way Speaker sessions
Adios, awkward 1on1 conversations
…
How could I solve this?
- Hybrid format (on-site experience in no-contact space + virtual experience)
2. Breakout room toolkits
3. Career dating platform
4. (Let’s suppose that almost everyone has VR tools at home) How could I utilize VR technologies for virtual events?
