Experiential design is the art and science of making places into experiences. Experiential design has become an important component of any public awareness campaign. By creating physical experiences out of ideas and information, we make complex messages easy and enjoyable to absorb. In addition to entertainment projects, experiential design is ideally suited to museums, interpretive centers, zoos, aquaria, resorts, urban redevelopment, corporate campaigns, and cultural sites such as architectural and historic landmarks.
Whether the project is a trade show exhibit or a 500 million dollar theme park, the process by which it is created is the same. Call it ´the 5 C´s´: Context, Concept, Content, Construction, and Continuity. This is a simple way to understand the major aspects of developing a project.
The Vertex team explores what the client wants to achieve. Learning the intent of the project helps us determine what the best ´big idea´ to achieve these goals will be. Challenges and opportunities are identified. The who, what, why, and where is determined. Considerations of budget, schedule, and facility issues are examined. A variety of approaches are explored, tested, and the ideal solution is turned into a concept proposal that sells the idea in words and pictures.
We determine how to best implement the big idea. Based on the concept proposal, Vertex refines the idea into a concept package: if the concept proposal contains the who, what, why, and where, the concept package defines the how. Scope of work, schedule and budget are refined. Here we define the parts of the project, everything from how it will fit in its space to story outlines, media issues, technological considerations, the color palette, and many more aspects of design required to turn a good idea into a real place that people can visit.
Ideas take shape. The concept package is now developed with ever-greater detail through specified steps: Schematic Design, Design Development, and Construction Documentation. This process allows for regular client input and budgetary checks to make sure the message is delivered and the budget is met. Architects, engineers, designers, writers, and experts in many other disciplines create precise specifications for every aspect of the project. Text, models, reference materials, drawings, and images all come together so that everything is thoroughly defined. The big idea becomes a detailed design that can be successfully implemented in the real world.
The project is built . Now Vertex oversees the creation of the project in time and space. During this exciting phase, we provide creative direction to the vendors and fabricators, making sure that everything is implemented exactly as it was intended to be. We maintain the integrity of the big idea as its component parts are created, everything from the media (sights and sounds), to lighting, setwork, costumes, and graphics are supervised by Vertex to ensure the experience is delivered on time and on budget.
The project is up and running. Once the project is built and operable, it is ´tweaked´ to make sure everything runs properly, cycle after cycle, through a process called ´test and adjust´. The teams that will maintain and operate the project become familiar with their roles. Select groups of guests are brought in to enjoy the experience, and the experience is refined based on their responses. Finally, the project is opened to its intended audience, after which Vertex´s primary responsibilities are done. Thereafter we perform a quality control function, assuring the experience remains functional, fresh, and attractive.