Austin City (un)Limited: ACL and Effective Web Design

This is one of the most exciting times of the year in Austin. The seasons are changing, the weather is becoming (subtly) “cooler”, and all the zealous college students are back in town performing the delicate balancing act between work and play. From October 12 to October 14, the Austin City Limits Music Festival will bring thousands of people from across the country to enjoy performances throughout our beloved live music capital of the world.

For some, this means being stuck in traffic for an ungodly amount of time while tourists stumble across crosswalks and pay $25 daily parking at garages and lots across town. However, most of us will partake in some variation of ACL events. Whether it’s going for all three days, a single day, or going to an after-show, ACL brings one of the most precious luxuries we have today straight to our doorstep: music, and lots of it.

The well-designed ACL website makes browsing the lineups easy. But when you’re out and about and away from your computer, it can be difficult to work out the logistics of the festival. Even if you don’t have the required amount of space on your phone to download the app, the ACL website allows you to draft, save, and print your schedule before you hit the festival grounds. Always a step ahead, ACL uses apps (via iPhone or Droid) to make the festival 21^st century friendly.

When searched via the Internet on your smartphone, the ACL website can be difficult to use. The pages, though clean on a computer or iPad, seem cluttered and, with the slip of your thumb or a double-tap to zoom, will guide you to a page that you had no intention of visiting. Because this isn’t the organization’s first rodeo, ACL has an app specifically designed and catered towards the festival. Their app, which saves time as well as battery life on your phone, combines all the necessary components a concert-goer would need to navigate the festival with ease.

From food vendors to scheduling conflicts (Jack White and Neil Young both play on Saturday night), the ACL app is a perfect example of a company that caters to the needs and wants of their customers by providing festival-goers with the maps, schedules, and updates that are pertinent to an enjoyable experience. By using the widespread nature of smartphones to their advantage, as well as designing a website that is accessible and essential to a smooth experience at the festival, Austin City Limits Music Festival is a perfect example of an effective and efficient web-to-mobile (i.e. ACL app) transition.

Austin City Limits is one of the most family-friendly, clean, and enjoyable festivals in the U.S. today. Whether you’re a family of four or a horde of college students, ACL caters to a universal need to be able to clearly navigate a festival environment. Some music festivals get a bad rap; between the amount of traffic and confusion they bring to a city, many townies frown upon the idea of hordes of concert-goers invading their city. ACL is not that festival and Austin is not that city. Between their clean website and apps as well as the festival itself, ACL is something to marvel at and, at the very least, enjoy.