Rende Vous App Prototype

Course: INLS 385 – Info Systems Analysis & Design

Software: Adobe XD

For a final project, we were assigned to create a prototype and a system that could be implemented in the real world.

Proposal

Have you ever wanted to go see a show, but no one you know is interested or available? Ever moved to a new city where you don’t have any friends? Do you, like so many of us, fear awkward social situations, loneliness, or boredom? There are always things happening, but we need a way to find these experiences and create a group to attend them with.  

Enter Rendez Vous. We aim to construct a social media platform for single users to connect over. Search for events that interest you and unite with other like-minded individuals. Create relationships during special experiences and find new friends along the way.  

Our persona, Erica, is an ideal candidate for using Rendez Vous. By examining her personal needs and pain points we can better understand what we need to offer our users for them to get everything they need out of the project. 

While the software development life cycle is an ongoing process with many core and finer steps along it, in our workplan section we have highlighted points which we will focus on. Using PERT analysis we have multiple estimates of the time frame required to complete these chosen steps as we take Rendez Vous from inception to completion. With a worst-case scenario of 55 weeks and a best-case scenario of 23, the PERT analysis shows us that creation of Rendez Vous should take around 38 weeks total. 

Our economic feasibility projections are that we will need a budget of about $910,000. These costs will be used to cover labor, resources, software, and marketing. A table is presented to demonstrate the breakdown for the budget and potential allocation.  

Screenshots from our prototype model follow which display a simple, efficient, and elegant design that will make finding and attending events with Rendez Vous a user friendly experience. 

We list some of our core requirements in the next section. Our platform will need to seamlessly integrate many third-party APIs to become a singular resource for event planning. Event creation and discovery will be the backbone of the app, coupled with user reviews and feedback.  
The sixth section is our questionnaire, designed to gather insights into our customers. Answers given by users with different needs than those understood by our design team and persona research will help us as we iterate on Rendez Vous and direct us toward creating a more perfect product. 

Persona 

Erica Landing, age 22, from Charleston, South Carolina 

Job – Flight Attendant  

Core Needs  

– Event tracker with complete and up-to-date records of what is happening and where 

– Safe, secure application for meeting like-minded users in entertaining social atmospheres 

– Consolidated access to resources necessary for participation in said events for ease and convenience 

About – Erica is a flight attendant for a major airline that operates internationally. Her work starts and ends at the airport, so she often finds herself in foreign cities with free time. She is a social person, outgoing and friendly looking to utilize her opportunities abroad to see as much of the world as she can. 

Motivations – Erica is familiar with many of her destination’s most popular tourist attractions. She wants to further experience different cultures by creating friendships and attending events. 

Pain Points 

– Short-term stays/international layovers leave little time for planning event attendance 

– Attending events solo is lonely and less enjoyable, Erica wants to properly utilize her limited time abroad. 

Workplan

All times, A, B, C, and Pert Result are in weeks.

Feasibility Analysis 

There are many components that must be put together in order for the app to work properly and be successful. These components include labor, resources, software, and marketing. We believe that the costs for the project will be an estimated total of $910,000. In terms of labor, we would want to hire a project manager, a UI/UX designer, two front-end developers, two back-end developers, a quality assurance engineer, and a marketing specialist. Considering the length of the project and the pay rate in the state our team is based in, this labor will cost approximately $700,000. This number could increase as we move forward and decide to add more members to the team. It will be assumed that each team member uses their own equipment, but we will have $10,000 set apart for software or hardware purchases. Next, we would have to pay monthly for a SQL database to store data and a server host for the app. The total monthly cost for both would be around $650. The goal of our app is to create opportunities for the user to save money on their outings. Thus, we would also have costs for integrating third-party services such as Uber, Ticketmaster, and Expedia. The cost to integrate each service is estimated at $15,000, bringing the total to $45,000. Marketing would be a priority for us as we want to expand our services to as many people possible. Having more people using the app also increases the possibility for people to form groups and attend events together. Our main approach would be to make brand deals with influencers and pay for ads across websites or other apps. $70,000 would be set aside for brand deals and $15,000 for ads. Lastly, we aim to set aside $35,000 for unexpected costs that arise. Our proposal demonstrates economic feasibility as we analyzed our needs to succeed.  

Functional Model 

  Fig 1 Fig 2     Fig 3 Fig 4 

We want a simple and easy-to-understand interface. Figure 1 displays a mockup of our initial event selection page with basic icons displaying the type of event and leading to pages like Figure 2. Each event subtype will lead to a list of that type of event for users to search through. Figure 3 displays an events main page with basic information, as well as links to third-party sites. In Figure 3, the ticket icon leads off the app to Ticketmaster, and the car icon leads to Uber, two applications that allow the user to find an event with Rendez Vous, gain admission and find transportation. Figure 4 shows the main page, with a calendar that updates as the user adds events to their itinerary.