OVERVIEW

For this project, I chose to address a problem I have personally experienced. The app is designed to bring together various holiday-related events and experiences in Canada. The target audiences include newcomers to Toronto, Canadian tourists visiting Toronto during the holidays, Toronto residents, and people who struggle with finding gift ideas each holiday season.

My process involved defining the problem, identifying the primary audience, conducting secondary and competitive research, developing value proposition canvases, designing wireframes and moodboards, and finalizing the prototype.

PROBLEM

The problem I've chosen to address is the lack of a single platform that brings together holiday events and experiences. When a holiday season comes around, those who have lived in Toronto for a while likely already have their favourite spots and traditions. However, for newcomers, it can be isolating to have no connections and spend the holidays away from family without a clear way to socialize.

416Toronto is a platform for holiday-related events and experiences. Instead of searching across multiple sources, users can find everything in one place. Moreover, it provides a space for immigrants to share and participate in their cultural traditions away from home.

TARGET AUDIENCE

The target audience for this project includes newcomers to Toronto as the primary audience, Canadian tourists visiting the city during the holidays as the secondary audience, and Toronto residents, as well as individuals who struggle with finding gift ideas each holiday season, as the tertiary audiences.

While it would be ideal to expand to other major cities, I decided to focus on developing a minimum viable product first, to refine the concept and better meet the needs of the users.

SECONDARY RESEARCH

Before conducting primary research, I did secondary research to understand the market and user needs. I focused on browsing Toronto-related communities on Reddit and Facebook to learn about people's holiday activities.

Key findings:
- Many people ask others about holiday events happening in the city.
- There are questions about spending holidays on a tight budget.
- Users seek locations for "Instagrammable" photos.
- People ask about unique restaurants, cafes, and takeout options.
- Many, including students, parents, and tourists, ask about gift ideas, though the suggestions are general.
- Some people feel Toronto isn't great for holidays, which could be due to the lack of a centralized platform for events. Despite Toronto's large population, it seems there's a need for an easier way to find and share holiday activities.

COMPETITIVE RESEARCH

After reviewing hundreds of comments, I decided to check out existing competitors. There are several Toronto-related websites, and here's a brief overview of each:

Todocanada.ca
- Focuses on major Canadian cities
- Lists events in blog post format, updated weekly
- No option to filter events by price
- No direct ticket booking; it's a list of events happening in Toronto.

Blogto.com
- A blog dedicated to Toronto
- Offers sections like travel, arts, sports, and music
- No direct ticket booking
- Filters events by date
- Can filter places (e.g., design, bookstores, restaurants) by neighborhood or bus stop.

Destinationtoronto.com
- Another Toronto-focused blog
- Features various sections to explore
- Lists events and places without the option to purchase tickets
- Filters events by date and type.

Bodo.ua
- Not a direct competitor but offers unique features
- Provides a list of experiences in a city that can be purchased as gifts for others
- Allows direct ticket purchasing
- Filters experiences by price, age, and type
- E-certificates are sent to recipients at a specified time
- Offers the option to exchange experiences if the recipient isn't satisfied with the gift.

VALUE PROPOSITION CANVAS

After completing secondary and competitive research, I moved on to summarizing all the insights. Creating a value proposition canvas (VPC) seemed like the right next step.

Since my product targets different user groups, it made sense to create a separate VPC for each main segment.
Here's the first one, made for a Ukrainian immigrant Olenka.

I also created another VPC for a lower-middle-class Torontonian named Robin.

WIREFRAMING

I decided to take a mobile-first approach for this product because mobile devices account for the majority of global web traffic. Starting with mobile also allows for a more focused, simplified design that can later be adapted for desktop.

MOOD BOARDING

The next step was creating mood boards. They're a quick and free way to set the aesthetic before starting on digital lo-fi wireframes. I aimed to capture Toronto's modern architecture, holiday vibe, and nightlife. I also created a style tile to maintain visual consistency.

DESIGN

After all these steps, I would like to present an interactive prototype of the app.