Work — Whittier College
Using tools and analytics to bring new life to brand assets
Project Scope
The world continues to move faster and faster and brands have to keep up. With the speed of shifts in aesthetic and technology institutions might find their assets lagging behind. Is it time for a rebrand? Do we need to strip everything and start from scratch? Will this be expensive?
The answer may actually be no.
The problem
Whittier had a great brand, a recently updated website, and quality content. But no one was clicking or getting engaged with their site.
Whittier re-engaged with us to see what options they had to improve their site. Having performed a complete web redesign just two years prior, would they really have to go through a major overhaul all again?
The solve
While website design aesthetics may have evolved in two years, Whittier’s core brand remained the same. There was no need to reinvent the wheel for an already solid foundation.
The site required some visual work but more importantly a rethinking of the UI and UX design. We deployed tracking a heatmap tracking tool for a couple of weeks to gain some insight and consulted google analytics data. The major takeaways we discovered were that users didn’t scroll past the hero image/below the fold of the site, the buttons/iconography were not highly engaging, and hardly anyone was converting on a call out to make a deposit.
This data drove a new and strategically intentional web reskin.
What that actually means... We restyled and brought the new visual design to existing website components and modules saving Whittier time and money instead of developing from scratch. Addressing the site issues led to a more modern feel for the homepage that was dramatically shortened to serve up to users’ relevant content in a more meaningful way.
Some icons went back to being words and calls to action. And the ever-present 3 callouts of Visit, Apply, Deposit became Visit, Apply, Request Info. Using the same tracking tools, we watched. Interaction with the whole page jumped and conversions on Visit, Apply, Request Info saw more traction. The Whitter web UX was dramatically improved, and it was measurable.
Why it matters
By leveraging analytics tools with the right expertise, institutions can breathe new life into branded experiences in a much shorter and cost-effective timeline than the heavily involved and costly rebrand.
Diving into the deeper layers of data and measuring over time allows us, and the institutions we work with, to effectively pivot and strategize in more meaningful ways that ultimately save time and money. Brands have much longer lives than that of their supporting assets but with the right strategy and thinking those assets gain live longer and be more flexible.
