We continually update and improve Mazévo to make it an even more powerful and valuable tool. How do we decide what features to add? Much of our product development work is driven by input from the people who use Mazévo every day.
That’s a little unusual in modern software development, but collaboration with customers is how we designed our scheduling solution years ago, and it will always be an important aspect of how we enhance the system.
What’s the best way to provide feedback or request new features? This article will explain.
TL;DR Key Takeaways:
- Mazévo’s product development is largely driven by customer input.
- Feedback in any form is welcome, but structured feedback is easier for us to act on.
- Focusing your communications on the challenges you face and the consequences of those issues frees our development team to craft the optimal solution.
- We’re eager to hear from you!
The Most Useful Feedback Starts With the Problem, Not the Solution
Our customers are some of the most experienced and knowledgeable event management professionals in the business. So, it’s not surprising that when a new challenge arises and they want their scheduling platform to help them address it, what they share with us often takes the form of a solution—please add this button, build this integration, etc.
That’s completely understandable. However, reaching out to explain a problem typically results in a more effective and comprehensive product enhancement.
To understand why, imagine we’re talking about art rather than software. If you hand a sculptor a lump of clay that already has basic shapes carved into it, the artist is forced to work within those boundaries. If, instead, you give them only the raw material, now they can really lean into the task, leveraging all their experience and creativity. You allow them the freedom to explore all the possibilities and provide the best possible finished piece.
An Example of Actionable Input
Here’s a real-world scenario to illustrate the type of input that’s most useful to our product development team. A Mazévo user says:
“I need the product to integrate with my catering software.”
While it’s beneficial for us to know that an integration would be helpful to you, that statement doesn’t give us the context we need to understand the full scope of the problem so that we can develop the optimal solution and not just build a quick fix into the system.
Now, imagine that rather than a one-sentence request, the user says this:
“Our catering office manages menu selections and linen orders in CaterTrax. Event coordinators planning room setups in Mazévo can’t see whether catering information has been finalized. As a result, staff have to make time-consuming phone calls or send emails to verify event readiness. This affects approximately 200 catered events each semester.”
That is something we can sink our (programming) teeth into!
How To Structure a New Feature Request
To be clear, we’re happy to hear from customers no matter how they choose to reach out to us. If you want to jot a request on a cocktail napkin and snail mail it to us, we’ll absolutely read it and reach out to you for more information or clarification.
That said, you can eliminate a significant amount of back and forth by providing the following in your initial outreach:
- The “big picture” context (in the example above, a high volume of catering orders)
- The problem and consequences (needed information isn’t readily available; lots of time is wasted on follow-up conversations)
- When it occurs (in the event planning phase)
- How often the issue arises (200 times per semester)
- Who the problem affects (our catering office, event coordinators, and by extension, our customers)
- What workarounds, if any, are being used (calls and emails)
- What success looks like (direct access to information that eliminates the need for follow-ups)
Submit Your Product Enhancement Ideas Today!
If there is an operational challenge you face—duplicate data entry, customer confusion, reporting limitations, etc.—and you believe a new Mazévo feature (or a change to an existing one) might be the answer, contact us at support@gomazevo.com. We can’t promise that every requested feature will be added to the system, but you might be surprised at how many are!
We also appreciate input from organizations that aren’t yet using Mazévo. To learn more about our advanced event scheduling solution, book a live demonstration tailored to your needs. Or simply reach out with questions.
