Project Details
Design / Custom CMS Development
Background
Swanton Berry Farm was in need of a makeover for their online presence. They needed a new website that was worked on different sized devices and allievated them of common questions phoned or emailed by customers. Since seasonality of produce and hours of operation change frequently, they needed a simple way to update their website from any device with an internet connection.
Up until now, all of their brand assets had been created non-digitally. This allowed us to design signage for the website, bringing the farm-chic feel into the digital realm.
Down the road, they wanted to sell their jams online so we helped set that up too.
Experience Guide
Information Architecture & Layout
Our focus for the layout was to present information customers were looking for along with content Swanton wanted to highlight. We boiled down the layout to farm locations, hours of operation, current produce, and links to the four most important aspects of Swanton's business: U-Pick, Jams, Farmstand, and Farmer's Markets. All other content previously written was moved to the footer for those looking to learn more about the farm. This allowed us to prioritize visual real estate for content that the majority of website visitors were seeking.
Typeface, Colors, & Texture
We selected a font, lots of texture, worn color pallete and bold signage to match the feel of the farm. We picked a serif font that emboded a traditional typeface with playful curves for our headings. We paired our heading font with a clean san-serif font for readability and constrast. When designing signage, we played with the type-form and colors to further tie the branding up.
E-Commerce
Swanton wanted to sell just their jams online, so there was no need for a full fledged e-commerce platform. To keep with the simplicity of the projects requirements, we implemeneted a simple javascript shopping cart that was proccessed directly through a pre-exisiting Paypal account. We also customized the shopping cart with an aligorithm discounting system based on the number of jars ordered. Inventory is managed through a simple toggle switch in the content management system.
Custom Content Management
To maintain website speed and simplicty we developed a custom content management system. With a few clicks or swipes, admins can change the status of the two farm locations, update availability of jams, and manage users accounts from any internet connected device.