Team1 Mentor 2 Project Managers 2 Game Art Designers 3 Developers 12 UX UI Designers Timeline Jan 2024 - May 2024 NASCAR Chicago Activity Book 2024 NASCAR Chicago IAM Teams Main Web Page 2024NASCAR Chicago Trivia Game 2024 NASCAR Chicago Timed Reflex Game 2024 NASCAR Chicago child using the Activiy Book coloring page at the Event 2024IAM Team Designers at NASCAR Chicago 2024 (from left): Areanna Whittington, Taiwo Ayedun, Namuun Enkhtaivan, Charlesa Thompson, Jo-Nell Sieren (Mentor), Nancy Dumitru, Cecilia Frias, Alua Amangeldikyzy, and Jaylee LambinoBoy playing the NASCAR Chicago Reflex Game 2024 on his phone. View Products https://columbia.nascarchicago.com/
Overview
The Columbia College Chicago IAM Team partnered with NASCAR Chicago to create interactive, family-friendly experiences featured in the official NASCAR app during the event. Their work included a trivia challenge, a reaction-time game, and an engaging print publication, enhancing fan engagement and broadening NASCAR’s appeal.
Our Challenge
Family engagement at NASCAR events has been limited, leaving an opportunity to create more inclusive experiences. Families need interactive and educational activities that make the event more engaging and memorable. Addressing this gap was essential to expanding NASCAR’s audience and fostering deeper connections, especially as fan expectations evolve. Project Scope
Over a semester, I played a key role in the research and UX/UI design for NASCAR Chicago’s family-friendly digital experiences. As the Research Lead, I guided the initial research phase to align all teams with NASCAR’s brand and audience needs. As the UX/UI Designer, I designed the interactive trivia game, ensuring an engaging, accessible experience within the official NASCAR app.
My scope of work encompassed:
User Research & Strategy
UX/UI Design
Prototyping & Testing
Design System Development
With my team’s support, we developed and implemented:
Interactive Trivia Game – Engaging NASCAR history-based game for all ages
Reaction Time Game – Assisted in UI alignment and user testing insights
Activity Book & Downloadable Pages – Contributed to content structure and user engagement strategies
Together, we created a seamless, family-focused NASCAR experience that enhanced event engagement and expanded audience appeal.
Discovery:
What Makes NASCAR Great
Initially, our team knew nothing about the NASCAR brand. Through a thorough Discovery phase on Mural (Collaboration Tool), we were able to define the scope of the project and establish clear deliverables. Through this we got to know our client better.
Initial Research on Mural Board with various sections.
Under the sections we made “post its” that helped differentieate our information in a organized method.Along with our initial research we proceeded to a SWOT analysisto understand the current state and potential for success for strategic decision making before we start designing.Team Brainstorming Post Up Activity. Gauging Interests
We launched two distinct surveys as part of our research strategy to comprehensively understand our audience and gather essential data: festival goers and NASCAR fans. What we found is that of both the event participants was that they prioritize exploring the grounds, food vendors, and checking out the merchandise. This helped us gauge their interests and create personas.
Festival GoersNASCAR Fans
UX Design
Human Centered
We created Personas based off of our screener results. The Personas were crafted based on their goals, motivations, fears, frustrations, tasks, needs, and level of technological proficiency.
Qualitative Data Real Life Inputs
We conducted three user interviews with participants from the surveys.These interviews were essential in gaining invaluable insights into the preferences, experiences, and expectations of our target audience.
Persona: RyanReal NASCAR Fan: Joe Berger Product Design
Trivia Game
Our inspiration for this game was to educate and promote NASCAR Chicago. We developed diverse questions covering key moments in NASCAR history, notable drivers, track facts, and about Chicago.
Methods
Mapping and card sorting methods were used to narrow down and tests questions appropriate for the three levels of the game.
The final result is a curated set of 15 questions divided into three rounds. The chart of user interactions provided a user flow that guided the UI design process. Reaction Game
In crafting this game, the team honed their design to provide an immersive experience that pits players against legendary drivers. The game tests participants reflexes and agility to create a thrilling and competitive experience.
Method
The team sought inspiration for the game’s art from Chicago landmarks and NASCAR branding. The process included sketching and drafting a user flow map to creating low fidelity, medium fidelity and high fidelity prototypes.
The programming team members started the development from the low fidelity stage and conducted user testing to refine the quality. Findings included adjusting the background screen color, integrating. more Chicago staples into the game art, and simplifying the menu screen design.