ROLE
Founder, Director of Product & Experience
TEAM
Director of Product & Experience
Creative Coordinator
Stream Managers
TIMELINE
3 months
"...[Alexi] was incredibly encouraging, was always receptive to my input, and adeptly guided me through taking on projects while still allowing me to learn independent, creative problem solving. I acquired skills...at an exciting pace. I will always be thankful my first manager was so knowledgeable and supportive!"
Sarah Cassidy
Creative Coordinator at MidWay Music Speaks
Porch Parties
A Concert From a Local Artist's Front Porch
Experience Strategy + Design
Market + User Research
Digital Strategy + Design
Vision Development
Customer Acquisition
Brand Building
Innovation Strategy
Porch Parties is a multi-city, cross-platform concert series that blended live and virtual experiences. Streaming from artists' front porches across the U.S., the series supported local musicians while engaging new audiences through social media during COVID-19.
After MidWay decided to pivot to virtual experiences, I recognized an opportunity to expand beyond our Midwest footprint and build a national audience. I conducted rapid discovery (guerrilla interviews, digital ethnography, competitive research) and launched Porch Parties - a free, multi-city hybrid series (8 cities, 25 artists, 6,000+ attendees) - to test digital event viability, support artists, and validate assumptions before the festival launch.
The series served as an MVP testing ground where we observed audience behavior in virtual/hybrid environments, identified artist needs and pain points, and upskilled our team for the pivot ahead.
KEY RESULTS
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6% national brand visibility lift
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Validated product-market fit for digital experiences
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Established the audience foundation for scaling nationally
KEY LEARNINGS FOR THE VIRTUAL FESTIVAL
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Attendees were significantly more likely to engage when they felt a personal connection to the artist - informing our decision to feature artist bios, behind-the-scenes content, and direct artist-fan interaction in the festival experience
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Optimized stream length to combat digital fatigue - reduced average set times from 45 to ~20 minutes, preventing audience drop-off.
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Facilitated conversation drove engagement - moderated discussion, artist context, and interactive features reduced passive viewing.
