event suggestions an_overview

Events Diary - overview

Design decisions influencing how we deal with incoming 'Event Suggestions'.

The presentation

 1. Four Guiding Principles Understanding why the Events Diary behaves the way it does.

2. A Real Example

Some simple screen-shots walking through how an event could be added, and how to deal with it from your website control.

Guiding principle #1

Their diary entry on your website is about signposting only, leave marketing to them to do from their website. - try and keep details to a minimum- be wary of variable information- especially when creating a 'series' of events

Guiding principle #2

Reuse as much known data as possible.

- locations- roads- organisations

Display of the known data will follow automatically, contacts, web-urls, email addresses and maps. When info changes, you only have to edit one place, the info cascades down, directories, events diary etc

Guiding principle #3

Tight constraints and KISS for them - but you can override all you want. - their limit is 255 chars (description) 255 chars (notes)- the rules say you can edit all you want - clarify and simplify- strip 'marketing speak' out- event Title is all important - rewrite it if necessary- you can add as much text as you want- advanced date checking shows bank holidays

Guiding principle #4

Make them complete the online suggestion form if they want their event promoted on your site.

- less work for you- they will have to think about the exact data they give out- they take ownership, errors are their errors- you get permission to alter their content - data conforms to our standard e.g. dates - basic value checking  "it ends before it starts?" - opportunity for further cross data-checking "our contact details are wrong, that person left ages ago"

Example of an org adding an event

Godalming Museum has an Exhibition running for a number of days.

We will (a) imagine they filled in the form.

We will see what options they could use.

Then we (b) look at what you get as an "Event suggestion".

Then look at a list of issues you face before publishing.

(a) Godalming Museum add and event

Godalming Museum have an event 13-31July

But its COMPLICATED ... not open every day

Them filling in your form (top part of form)...

Them filling in your form, the middle ...

Them filling in the end of your form - Event Notes

We can do some basic data checks prior to them submitting the "Event suggestion" - try and catch the

really basic errors.

(b) You have to deal with the incoming "Event suggestion"

Suggestion appears in Events, click on it ...

Details already filled in, need checking though...

View the original Event Notes in two places#1 before you save first day

Saving the event or the first day in series

Suggested title was  "Godalming Photographic Club"

 - could be clearer - could say "exhibition"  - there are no "categories" in this Events Diary - taken alone could easily be mistaken for a link to the Godalming Photographic Club home page

After reading the Event Description, changed Title to:

"Annual Photographic Exhibition"

Nothing else was altered. The event was added. The Event Notes tell me it goes on for a number of days (19 in total).

View the original "Event Notes" #2Decide to pick the next 18 concurrent dates

Remove dates when the museum is closed red (x)Optionally alter times, any dates you want

Use the filters to find and edit individual days, delete days from events held at this place

Key takeaway pointsMake them fill in the Event Suggestion form

Reuse existing information whenever you can

Each day/entry for an event is a separate entity (!)Naming the Event Title is critical - be prepared to override suggestions

They agreed to you changing the wording to their Events when they made the Suggestion

Events you add yourself suffer no size constraints as Suggestions do

You can always elaborate and extend Descriptions if you need