This likely resonates with many founders and small business leaders: once V1 website is launched, it’s onto running the organization! Then one day you look at the website, and you no longer see the organization looking back at you through the screen. Content updates, conversion optimizations, and marketing automation opportunities haunt you on every page.

A year+ after their founding, our partners at Glen’s Friends were in this very spot. 

Phase 1: Site Audit. When you have an existing website and traffic, it’s critical to understand the current environment, as well as future goals, to design a refreshed site that will work for all intended users. We began by thoroughly reviewing each page, piece of content, and clickable action on the site. We reviewed traffic and conversion data, and analyzed user behavior on screen. This enabled us to identify what’s working/what’s not, gaps, and opportunity areas. We also audited websites of others in the category for benchmarking and inspiration, noticing conventions users may come to expect within this space. From there, we drafted the Site Requirements for Website 2.0. 

Phase 2: Information Architecture. We take what we learned from the Site Audit to build a new blueprint for the website including a site map, content recommendations for each page, SEO recommendations, and key actions. In this phase we identify everything that will be on the future website, how it will be navigated, and what content needs to be created. It’s important to be very clear about user experience and creative expectations during this phase to ensure the future build meets your expectations. An online whiteboard tool such as FigJam, (pictured above) enables clear communication, collaboration, and feedback during this critical phase.

Phase 3: Design & Build. This is where our partners at Creative Salt shined! Using the blueprint and content document developed in Phase 2, they built a beautifully designed website: glensfriends.org

We are so thrilled with the design, and how it enables Glen’s Friends to more effectively communicate with their audiences.