EXD 101- Intro to Experience Design Final Project Guidelines
The Premise
Throughout the semester you have learned about Experience Design and how it can be used to educate, entertain, and engage audience from a variety of different demographics and cultural contexts. Now, it is your turn to be the designer!
Pulling from the theories, methodologies, and content that we have covered in this class, you are to design an experiential attraction (theme park ride, museum exhibit, escape room, experiential marketing campaign, themed restaurant, etc.) according to the following guidelines. This assignment is made up of two parts:
A verbal presentation during the Final Exam period.
A written portfolio to be turned in to the professor no later than the Final Exam period.
The Portfolio
There is no required length for the portfolio, but it needs to be clearly divided into the six sections listed below and should show a fully-developed original concept from the student. Please write in full sentences and use proper grammar when doing this assignment.
Section 1- Overview and Walkthrough
What type of XD space have you created?
What is the theme of your experience?
What is the goal or big idea of your experience? What sort of design aesthetics do you use to get the ideas across?
Where is it located?
What are the microexperiences littered throughout the macroexperience?
Take the reader through the touchpoints of your experience
o Cover in as much detail as you possibly can, from the second the guest walks in the door to the minute they leave.
Section 2- Demographic Research
Who is this experience designed for?
o Is it tailored for a specific demographic, or are you going for mass appeal?
What kind of an audience are you trying to attract?
o International?
o Local?
o Regional?
Would you have any competitors in the region? If so, who are they?
How do you plan to market your experience?
Section 3- Concept Visuals
Your portfolio and presentation must include some sort of concept visual for your experience. This can be achieved through:
o Concept Art (hand-drawn or via computer graphics)
o Mood Board
o Scale Model
o Sketchup/Vector Model
o A physical prototype of something from your experience
o Storyboards
o An Experience Map
You may use any mixture of these visuals, and you may use as many as you want.
Simple pictures on a Powerpoint will not count towards this section
Section 4- What is Your Why, and How is it Unique?
In short, why does this experience exist? What is its main goal?
How is your experience different than similar ones that are currently in existence?
Section 5- Why Will Your Experience Be Successful?
Why do you think that your experience will resonate with people in the markets you have chose?
If the opportunity arose, would your experience be viable to expand? Why or why not?
How will you gauge success (other than pure profit margins)?
Section 6- Works Cited
Everything in Experience Design comes back to research. A great XDer once said Design without research is like trying to put together a jigsaw puzzle with your eyes closed.
o Please include all sources you found while researching this project.
o Sources need to be cited in proper format according to the style you are most comfortable with.
o There is no required number of sources, but Im looking specifically at variety and reliability of those found.
The Presentation
You have the freedom to do your presentation in any style you wish. Things like standard slides and lecture, hands-on presentation, business pitch, or anything else you can think of will be accepted as long as it is presented during the last class period on Finals Week.
For the sake of brevity, please aim to make these presentations five minutes in length.
The Grade (25 Points Each)
Originality of idea
Depth of research and design
Visuals and Presentation
Knowledge of theories, methods, and concepts talked about in class
