Background and Objectives
Following on from previous work, Weedon Direct, a subsidiary of The Weedon Group, approached us here at Eon Visual Media to redesign and update their website to make it more visually appealing and improve speed and performance. Additionally, Weedon wanted some SEO and PPC ad support to allow them to really capitalise on their new website.
Their aim with this website was to capitalise on the rise of e-commerce due to COVID-19. With the world on lockdown, The Weedon Group wanted to explore new ways in which their customers might like to purchase products. We took this into account, alongside our previous work for The Weedon Group when changing the design, interface and navigation of Weedon Direct.
Website Design & SEO
Our development, design and marketing teams began by doing a full audit of Weedon Direct’s existing website, social media and of competing brand e-commerce sites. Each department was able to use their insight and expertise to collate a list of ideas.
We identified web page design elements that we wanted to implement into the new website to streamline the user journey. The intention was to give it a more standardised and familiar e-commerce feel. We planned to achieve this by creating visual consistency across the website, stylising Call to Actions (CTAs) and adjusting the layouts of product categories. Moreover, the design team put together webpage concepts that improved the user flow, simplified checkout and created more opportunities for upselling. These structural changes were complimented by the suggestions for areas in which bespoke images could be utilised to improve the user experience.
Concurrently with the designing of the website, our SEO experts began conducting their keyword research, collating copy optimisation suggestions, and reviewing their internal linking. SEO was an essential part of this project as it can greatly increase the visibility of a website, increase traffic and subsequently, sales. Of course, to track and measure the progress and success of this project, our SEO experts set out a list of KPIs and aspirational targets.
These ideas were then discussed and prioritised depending on the client’s budget, the proposed timescale and which activities would produce the best results. We put together a strong proposal that would have an immediate positive impact on Weedon Direct. Using a phased approach, we were also able to create a roadmap to further ensure future growth over the course of the project and beyond
Proposal
After presenting the concepts, the client gave feedback which included reintroducing the more prominent green coloured theme to create a tie between the new design and the old. This would enable returning customers to still associate this website with the Weedon Direct brand. Once these designs were signed off by the client, the work was passed across to our development and SEO teams.
Development
Firstly, the development team updated the product table on one of the pages to allow clicking into any of the pricing cells or inputting a quantity on the end column for each of the box sizes. Weedon then had a mini-basket show up at the bottom that allowed a user to add them to their basket when they were done. This helped to simplify the user journey, reducing the steps and clicks necessary for the user to make a purchase.
Secondly, the development implemented the website redesign. The development team used a combination of PHP, JavaScript, CSS and HTML to implement some of these design changes. All the content remains editable in the WordPress CMS where Weedon can change just about anything and easily add new pages too.
Finally, the development team added the WP Rocket (cache) plugin, removed the slider from the home page and removed duplicate references to Google Analytics and other scripts, which greatly helped with the page speed. As a result, user engagement and retention has improved, leading to an influx of sales for Weedon Direct.
To capitalise on these changes, we reviewed their current Google Ad activity and suggested ways in which these ads could be optimised. Furthermore, we worked with Weedon to set up a new search ad campaign to increase paid traffic and sales.
Outcome
The changes that we have implemented have positively impacted their website and SEO analytics. We were able to greatly improve the page load speed of the site, especially on mobile with our focus on mobile-first design. Weedon Direct now rank higher for a larger volume of keywords. As a result, their average position, number of clicks and engagement rate have all increased. This increase in relevant traffic has contributed to Weedon Direct tripling their sales!
We are extremely proud of the work that we have done over the course of this project. If you are interested in our services, get in touch, or give us a bell at 01482 484850.