Brightest Young Things Website
BACKGROUND
In 2018, I managed and implemented a complete in-house UX redesign of brightestyoungthings.com, the beloved online local culture magazine I co-founded in 2006.
PROBLEM STATEMENT
The aging site was not responsive, a relic of a pre-smartphone era. Google Analytics showed that half of our users accessed the site on mobile devices, necessitating a new responsive WordPress theme.
USER RESEARCH AND BUSINESS GOALS
While the business goals skewed toward featuring editorial content, user interviews revealed that many visitors primarily sought event information or details on our in-house events.
DESIGN SOLUTIONS
- Responsive Design: Implemented a new WordPress theme to make the site fully responsive.
- Event-Forward Layout: Adjusted the layout to prioritize event information.
- Rebuilt Event Calendar: Created a new event calendar with a self-service pay-to-post system, filtering out junk content and generating additional revenue.
- Editorial Content IA: Redesigned the home page to feature multiple section modules, allowing for more than one featured article and improving user navigation.
IMPLEMENTATION DETAILS
- Information Architecture: Cleaned up bad category and tagging habits, tested and iterated over a month, and established formal best practices and weekly audits.
- Mega-Menu: Added a context-sensitive mega-menu to house all content effectively.
- SEO and Social Media: Improved SEO with the Yoast plugin, enhanced social media engagement, and added a new "Work With Us" section.
OUTCOMES
The redesign aligned the site with user needs, improved mobile accessibility, and enhanced revenue through the new event posting system. The new site launch received many positive reviews.
"Brightest Young Things, a Web-site-turned-events-organizing juggernaut that has become the locus of new-cool art and music scene."
- New York Times
The most visited museum in the world, The Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, approached BYT to collaborate on the first-ever official open-to-the-public ticketed after-hours event at their Washington DC location.
I managed all aspects of the event production, including creative direction, client communication, budgeting, staffing, vendor management, bar and catering operations, talent booking and stage management, sponsorships, volunteer management, attractions, security, ticketing, site plans, setup, and teardown.
The first event in 2017 was such a success that we were asked back in 2018 for a second event, totaling 3,800 tickets sold and over 4,200 attendees.
I managed all aspects of the event production, including creative direction, client communication, budgeting, staffing, vendor management, bar and catering operations, talent booking and stage management, sponsorships, volunteer management, attractions, security, ticketing, site plans, setup, and teardown.
The first event in 2017 was such a success that we were asked back in 2018 for a second event, totaling 3,800 tickets sold and over 4,200 attendees.
The sold-out events featured musical performances by Washed Out, Moon Boots, and The Range, special Voyager Golden Record mini-music meditation sessions in the planetarium from Take 5 and Songbyrd, and the official opening of the new interactive museum exhibition re-creating the famous hotel scene from 2001: A Space Odyssey.
The events also featured unique sponsor activations from SKYY, PBR, and Effen Vodka, a promotional and branding partnership with the Yuri's Night organization, custom green screen floating-in-space photobooths, unique roaming performers, TED-style space talks, scavenger hunts, a midnight screening of Ready Player One, and specialty cocktails and food from Service Bar, Snowing in Space, Sweetgreen, Bar Pilar, and many more.
Photos © BYT Media, Inc
I co-created The Bentzen Ball Comedy Festival in 2009 with BYT and Tig Notaro. Our goal was to create a comedy festival that not only entertained the audience but also treated the talent well—something that was severely lacking in the industry at the time. Since its annual return in 2013, the festival has attracted over 25,000 people and become known for showcasing both top and emerging talent with one-of-a-kind shows at Washington DC's top venues, unique performances in unlikely spaces, and plenty of surprise guests and after-parties. My involvement in the festival included end-to-end production and logistics, creative direction, talent booking, venue relationships, marketing and ticketing, sponsor management, customer service, micro-site design, staffing, as well as show running and hosting.
featuring
- Sarah Silverman
- "Weird Al" Yankovic
- Bill Burr
- Jessica Williams
- Jonathan Van Ness
- How Did This Get Made?
- Amanda Seales
- Nick Kroll
- Stuff You Should Know
- Jenny Slate
- Janeane Garofalo
- John Hodgman
- Adam Friedland
- Jim Gaffigan
- Chelsea Peretti
- Ira Glass
- Phoebe Robinson
- Patton Oswalt
- Doug Benson
- Dr. Katz
- Reggie Watts
- Al Franken
- Rob Corddry
- Tim Heidecker
- Brandon Wardell
- & many more!
"...it was really a magical weekend."
"...boundlessly creative"
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Photos © BYT Media, Inc
Events DC
In March 2019, Events DC aimed to create an activation at SXSW to celebrate and elevate the District's place in the vibrant e-sports community. My goal was to tailor the activation for every attendee, regardless of their gaming experience level. The “levels unlocked” concept allowed guests to choose their own adventure and advance further into the activation, progressing from casual gaming on retro arcade cabinets to competing against professional players on the latest platforms. The activation also featured music performances from national acts, video game-inspired craft cocktails from Drink Co., custom LED tunnels and projections, Loot Box scavenger hunts, and playful, interactive scenic installations.
Later in the year, we continued the campaign in DC with a block party experience, coinciding with the opening of Drink Co.'s new e-sports themed pop-up bar.
Later in the year, we continued the campaign in DC with a block party experience, coinciding with the opening of Drink Co.'s new e-sports themed pop-up bar.
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All Photos © Advoc8, LLC
Advoc8 was also tapped to revitalize a unique food festival in DC: a cooking competition between embassy chefs. I chose passport stamps as the central element in the creative design concept, with custom gobos illuminating the epic Ronald Reagan Building atrium. Additionally, we created custom passport holders to house the program and designed various communal dining areas themed to different regions, enhancing the sense of travel and adventure.
All Photos © Advoc8, LLC
additional event work photos
2019 Citi Open Tennis Tournament
CNN Political Hangover Brunch
TOMS Shoes End Gun Violence Together Rally
Google Digital Africa Reception
Camp Amazon at St Judes
AEM Infrastructure Week Reception
CNN Political Hangover Brunch
TOMS Shoes End Gun Violence Together Rally
Google Digital Africa Reception
Camp Amazon at St Judes
AEM Infrastructure Week Reception
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All Photos © Advoc8, LLC
SOCIAL MEDIA
I was also tasked with revitalizing the lackluster Advoc8 social media accounts. Here are two videos for which I provided creative direction, collaborating with the exceptionally talented video and motion graphics team:
I transformed a money-losing afterthought into the biggest Capital Pride fundraiser of the year, attracting over 23,000 attendees since 2010. This co-promoted event kicks off Pride weekend, covering dance floors in glitter at prestigious venues like The Newseum and Arena Stage and complete build-outs of unique warehouse spaces like the Wonderbread Factory and Hecht's Warehouse. In 2018, we helped turn Echostage into a new go-to destination for the LGBT crowd.
I also secured MGM National Harbor as a major sponsor for Capital Pride. Activations included an interactive element-inspired backdrop photoshoot wall, themed drag and dance performances promoting their upcoming concerts, and a video photobooth that simultaneously created Instagram-ready clips for personal use and advertisement-ready clips for Metro ads to run throughout the weekend.
I also secured MGM National Harbor as a major sponsor for Capital Pride. Activations included an interactive element-inspired backdrop photoshoot wall, themed drag and dance performances promoting their upcoming concerts, and a video photobooth that simultaneously created Instagram-ready clips for personal use and advertisement-ready clips for Metro ads to run throughout the weekend.
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To promote the element-themed event, I directed a no-budget photoshoot using Echostage's enormous video screens as our ever-changing backdrop:
Photos © BYT Media, Inc
rei united outside campaign
The nation’s largest consumer co-op engaged BYT extensively in 2016 as a key partner for the opening of their east coast flagship store. This nearly year-long project included a number of in-house produced events, such as the #UnitedOutside launch party at the National Museum of American History, the beef jerky celebration Jerky Fest, and the Wild Kitchen outdoor dinner series supporting conservation partners. The project culminated in a massive six-day opening celebration at the new store.
All Photos © BYT Media, Inc.
Library of Congress & National Archives
For the first time in their history, these two institutions partnered with an outside organization to host after-hours events. Bibliodiscotheque, a celebration of disco culture at the Library of Congress, sold 1,750 tickets in under one minute and featured a live performance by Gloria Gaynor. The National Archives event celebrated the opening of the Spirited Republic exhibition, which covered the history of alcohol in the U.S. This event featured craft cocktails from local mixologists and received sponsorship from Heineken, Budweiser, and Tanqueray.
All Photos © BYT Media, Inc.
fotoweekdc
From 2014 to 2017, BYT took over the production of FotoWeekDC, Washington DC’s largest visual arts festival. This citywide celebration attracted over 40,000 visitors annually to more than 150 exhibitions, programs, and events, highlighting world-class photography and providing exposure for photographers working both locally and globally.
All Photos © BYT Media, Inc.
National Geographic Partnership
In a unique partnership with National Geographic, BYT was granted unprecedented access to their entire DC headquarters, where I created an annual after-hours museum experience that has sold over 15,000 tickets since 2012. These events offered a choose-your-own-adventure experience of infotainment for the well-read DC creative class, featuring TED-style talks from emerging explorers, music performances and dance floors, pop-up interactive science exhibitions, craft cocktails, and much more.
All Photos © BYT Media, Inc.
Everything else
RAGNARÖCK - A Hirshhorn Late Night
Snallygaster Beer Festival
We The Party People @ Smithsonian National Museum of American History
Into the Blue - National Portrait Gallery After Hours
Wonder At Night & Murder House Party @ Renwick Gallery
Snallygaster Beer Festival
We The Party People @ Smithsonian National Museum of American History
Into the Blue - National Portrait Gallery After Hours
Wonder At Night & Murder House Party @ Renwick Gallery
All Photos © BYT Media, Inc.
“BYT have staked their claim in the DC events scene and are quickly becoming a destination for brands and sponsors to create content, connect with consumers, and generate impressions.”
