The brief

Everten, an online homewares retail outlet, wanted to

• rethink how they used their website to communicate with customers
• improve the usability of the site to make shopping a more pleasant and engaging experience customers would be happy to repeat
• change the emphasis from a lowest price market position to a more desirable high-quality lifestyle market position by appealing to and capturing the attention of ‘foodies’, amatuer and professional cooks/chefs

The approach

To achieve this, Bea Pierce;

1. Developed a strategic approach and communication method specifically designed to speak directly to consumer emotion and move away from a purely functional aproach
2. Undertook a rebranding exercise, developing a new logo, tagline, colour scheme and iconic devices
3. Developed an information structure and navigation design that;
   1. made searching for products and using the shopping cart prominently accessible and easy
   2. allowed a range of different options for featuring products, special offers and promotions
   3. improved usability by providing multiple methods for accessing products while minimising click-throughs and backtracking.
4. Developed a visual style for the site that communicated the high-quality, desirable nature of the products, while ensuring that the existing images in the 6,500-product strong database would not need to be reformatted
5. Suggested new ways to communicate and present information to more effectively engage potential customers, including;
   1. offering meaningful and relevant additional information to add value to the customer experience
   2. integrating social media channels into the site to provide dynamic, instant access to updates and offers, opportunities for promoting giveaways and special offers and facilitating increased customer loyalty

The end result

“Bea's ability to understand both the elements of great design as well as the practical commercial side of your business meant she was capable of producing the highest quality of work. Her creativeness, professionalism and ability to get to the detail of our project means I will find every opportunity to hire Bea for future work. If you require a reference with regard to her professionalism please do not hesitate to contact me.”

Referee: Hal Pritchard, CEO, Everten