Enhancing the Sponsorship Experience

Sponsors who support uOttaHack rely on emails for updates, leading to potential delays and a less engaging experience. Our goal is to enhance communication by introducing more immediate and interactive methods, improving sponsor engagement and satisfaction.

uOttaHack is a student organization that supports students all around Canada in sparking their creative spirit, connecting them with company resources, and exploring their limits. Sponsors are the main source of financial support to host the event. In previous years, the way to track sponsors requests and provide upcoming information was solely via email, which caused issues in tracking information.

As the new co-director of the hackathon, I led redesigning of the sponsor experience. Over 3 months, I worked alongside the other co-directors and the development team to develop a new experience, with guidance from previous sponsors.

45% of testing users said they would much rather use this website with the redesign.

70% of testing users said they would feel more comfortable receiving information through this website.

100% of testing users said they would utilize both legacy methods and the uOttaShop portal to receive resources from the organization.

Within one month, we designed an interactive design showcasing the uOttaShop to the development team and other directors.

This is the current state of what sponsors receive, a simple email and a very long conversation thread between our sponsorship team and the sponsors.

I surveyed 42 people who are part of various companies and organizations across Ontario, Canada. I conducted a survey with uOttaHack Sponsor representatives and the Sponsorship team to hear their thoughts and this is what they said:

How might we enhance the UX of the sponsorship experience?

Goal 1: Improve the communication and time efficiency of the sponsorship experience.

Goal 2: Make it easier for sponsor representatives to connect and be able to regulate their options.

Goal 3: Update/Optimize the experience, feel, and look in order to create a professional atmosphere.

My first goal of improving communication and time efficiency, is that we came up with these three options for how we can display the users needs:

Option 1: Dashboard. Option 1 laid out all the information on one screen, which was different than our previous methods. It allowed for the user to have control of what they were involved in.

Option 2: Stripe. Option 2 was a Stripe only portal, allowing for communication for purchase which allowed a single way transaction ensuring safety of their purchase.

Option 3: Quick Response Time. Option 3 offered no independence; however, it offers a traditional alternative for people who are not looking for a long term communication.

The second goal was to make it easier for sponsorship representatives to connect and be able to regulate their options. For this, we ideated the types of ways we could present the information rather than navigation.

From user and research, people mentioned that they would like to know about their deadlines, where all the information is located, for their coworkers to be informed, and simply just more information in general about the organization.

Idea 1: Widgets

Idea 2: Information Board

Idea 3: Project Management Flow

After deliberation, eliminating Option 3 seemed to be the best option, as we found that it was harder to be able to track various email threads amongst sponsors as well as organizers. Since there was human error revolved in this process, it would talk more time to regulate various companies emails. This option was the least scalable option amongst all the other options.

When presented with the options, 100% of participants said they would rather Option 1 which housed more personalization and information.

When asked why, they said this:

• Option 2 offers an isolating option with no variety, whereas Option 1 is very autonomous.
• Option 3 doesn't offer a broadened view, just scheduling which isn't always the issue.
• Option 1 allows for no requirements to discuss to organizers about simple information. It allows for a very independent view.

In terms of making it easier for sponsors to connect with organizers we created a prototype for what we might be able to see when the user logs into the dashboard. Comparing to the other ideas from Goal 2, Option 1 included more personalization content from the ideation stage, including all user preferences and customizable options for the users.

By improving the sponsorship experience, it makes it easier for organizers and sponsorship representatives to connect with each other, and updating the process, we will have an enhanced user experience. This project allowed us to address feedback from sponsors directly and create a solution that benefits both the organization team and our sponsors.

We started off with an open ended problem. We can't work with broad concepts. By synthesizing feedback and research, it told us what we needed to improve and enhance the sponsorship process. The result is a more streamlined, professional platform that saves time and improves communication for all parties involved.

The next steps will be to implement the dashboard with the development team and test it with real sponsors for the upcoming hackathon season. We plan to gather feedback throughout the implementation process and make iterative improvements to ensure the platform meets all sponsor needs. Future enhancements may include deeper analytics, more customizable widgets, and integration with other uOttaHack systems.