Case Study: Tourism Vancouver Website Redesign
...but your place is a bit of a mess. That's (kind of) what Tourism Vancouver faced as February 2010 rapidly approached. We had been in touch with the organization a few times, and our work for other tourism regions and destinations seemed to resonate with them. As a result, they eventually decided to pick up the phone and start a discussion with us.
Our first challenge was presented by the legacy content management system (useful, but in ways limiting) and the existing information architecture. While both the technology and overall content had to remain intact, we needed to find a way to make the site more usable and a better representation of the city.
As it stood, the site was hampered by a number of obstacles. It was hard for some to read and employed a “less than intuitive” approach to navigation. This resulted in all users, regardless of requirements, being pushed into the same areas. Worse yet, if they clicked on the wrong button, they’d find themselves completely lost.
Like many other digital properties, the site felt a little like a collection of pieces cobbled together, as new opportunities and concerns arose over the years. It worked, but we knew it could be made to do so in a much more elegant and extensible fashion. We also needed to design the site in a way that would accommodate prominently placed advertising.
In spite of the challenges presented by some legacy elements, we were convinced that a good hard look at the site’s information architecture (IA) would prove revealing. We also had a strong belief that the existing content could be maintained largely intact, if it were simply better organized.
smashLAB began the process with an overall assessment of the site, working to pinpoint issues and determine workarounds that could be achieved economically. Meanwhile, all of the site’s content was catalogued and reviewed in an effort to structure it more simply and establish an intuitive web experience for visitors.
Wireframing took up a disproportionate amount of time on this project. The vast amount of content (coupled with functional requirements) necessitated organizing the site in a way that would adapt to varying requirements and audiences. If you visit the site today, you’ll see the result of these efforts: type size helps identify the relative importance of content; labeling of information is blatantly clear; navigation is highly responsive; and microsites (e.g. Travel Trade) are no longer confused with the primary property.
At the same time, photographic selection and treatments, color usage, and visual standards are all carefully considered. Doing so allows the site to integrate successfully with the organization’s brand standards and—more importantly—convey the spirit of this vibrant, active, and visually spectacular city!
The final Tourism Vancouver site brings the organization’s web presence in line with their brand identity, while maintaining their existing technology. Meanwhile, it upholds a vital sensibility as a result of the liberal application of dynamic color, as well as the vivid and diverse photographs employed throughout.
Darren Johner, Tourism Vancouver’s Manager of Digital Marketing, provided us with a tremendous project testimonial, and we’re very happy about that. Truth of the matter, though, is that few people are thinking about us when they use a site like this. (Frankly, that’s just the way we like it.)
Our efforts were concentrated on making the revised Tourism Vancouver site as seamless as possible for the end-user. This means a site that is clear, well organized, and easy to navigate. The new site achieves all of these objectives.
“smashLAB did a fantastic job understanding our goals & objectives, and delivered a new site design that improves usability and captures the beauty and diversity of Vancouver...”
—Darren Johner, Digital Marketing Manager
Tourism Vancouver