Ifema - Trade Fair

CASE

Design and test a 365-day digital platform to support hybrid, physical, and virtual events for IFEMA, Spain’s leading trade fair organization, integrating multiple third-party tools.

INDUSTRY

TRADE FAIR

CLIENT

IFEMA

OVERVIEW:

About the Project:

IFEMA LiveConnect is a digital platform created for IFEMA Madrid , t leading trade fair organization in Spain, with a public-private ownership model. The goal of the project was to design a 365-day digital experience that complements IFEMA's physical and hybrid events, allowing exhibitors, visitors, and administrators to connect, network, and generate business opportunities beyond the event dates. The result was a comprehensive SaaS platform integrated with existing event technologies, built to support physical, virtual, and hybrid events and serve as the foundation for IFEMA's new digital business model.

THE CHALLENGE:

The Challenge:

A digital platform that works as the foundation for IFEMA’s new 365-day digital business model, perfectly integrated with the tools and functionalities of any digital or hybrid events ecosystem—designed to enable seamless hybrid experiences through integrations with systems like Jitsi Meet, Salesforce, and calendars, while addressing the specific needs of administrators, exhibitors, and visitors and streamlining operations across physical and digital touchpoints.

MY ROLE:

My Role:

As a Service Designer, I was responsible for:

- Leading the end-to-end service design of the platform.
- Gathering functional requirements and mapping user journeys for the three main user types: administrators, exhibitors, and visitors.
- Designing the workflows for platform integrations with tools like video conferencing, CRM, and scheduling.
- Defining key functionalities in collaboration with the product manager.
- Conducting user research, usability testing, and iteratively validating solutions with stakeholders.
- Aligning service operations with both user expectations and business constraints.

DEFINING THE SOLUTION:

The Process:

We followed a Product Discovery-led approach to create a product from scratch that aligned with both user needs and business goals. The process included:

In-depth user research to identify core needs, behaviors, and pain points of the three main user profiles.

Cross-functional workshops with stakeholders from business, technology, and marketing to shape a shared product vision.

Definition of key functionalities and service flows, including the integration of third-party tools.

Continuous iterative design and validation cycles, including user testing sessions to refine the experience and ensure its usefulness, usability, desirability, efficiency, and effectiveness.

Delivery of a scalable SaaS platform (IFEMA LiveConnect) that supports year-round engagement, enabling IFEMA to extend the lifecycle of its events and provide ongoing value to its community.