Integrated approach for a Successful Launch

Saving the launch of a startup by combining Design, Project Management and Webflow Expertise.

CLIENT

UP Ventures

TYPE

Contract

YEAR

2022/23

SERVICES

Project Management

Website Design

Website Development

Art Direction

The Situation

I was initially hired as a consultant on the UP Ventures (UPV) project, which was facing significant challenges just 6 weeks before its planned launch in early 2023.

UPV had engaged an advertising agency for branding, and a separate Webflow agency for website design and development. However, lack of direction, organization and miscommunication among parties had resulted in a website still stuck in the design phase — with repeated iterations having failed to capture the essence of the launch.

The advertising agency struggled to translate UPV's Brand essence into effective design instructions for the Webflow agency to follow, leaving UPV's Project Owner extremely dissatisfied with the website's direction.

With the launch date looming and the website still in an iterative mockup phase, there was an extreme sense of urgency to resolve the issues and align the project with it's end goal.

Original Designs by the other Webflow Agency

The Diagnosis

A series of pointed observations I made to the Project Owner gave a them a clear understanding for the first time in months, about where the process and the project had been going wrong.

Communication bottenecks

Too many feedback loops involving multiple stakeholders across the UPV staff, the advertising agency, and the Webflow agency was hindering progress. Mixed messages were being passed down to the Webflow team, increasing frustrations among everyone along the chain. Overall, they were trying to get a design finalized without actually defining the identity of the company effectively, and also without any content for the website across their different verticals.

Design misalinment

The Figma design created by the Webflow agency did not capture UPV's vision. Navigation, layout, and overall design did not reflect UPV's branding and style. Coming from a print background, the advertising agency couldn't explain their conceptual design in a language the developers could understand. Since the Webflow agency did not want to lose their contract, they kept providing iterations on the design, but none were to the satisfaction of the Project owner.

Lacking an expert Project Lead

Ultimately there was no single person in who could communicate across channels, effectively say no to bad ideas, while translating good ideas into design, without which, there could be no website.

UI Flows Implementation

New Process

To address the issue of inconsistent branding, I initiated direct communication with the advertising agency to gain a deeper understanding of UPV's brand identity foundations.

By providing clear feedback and guidance, I aimed to bridge the gap between the branding efforts and the website's design.

Additionally, I set up a guidelines document to ensure alignment with the website's visual elements, including typography, color schemes, and imagery — establishing a cohesive look and feel across all digital assets.

To mitigate communication bottlenecks, I eliminated the process of multiple entities providing feedback on the design and website functionality. Through regular personal check-ins with all stakeholders, including UPV, the advertising agency, and the Webflow agency, I became the single filter for this process.

Additionally, I leveraged project management tools such as Slack to centralize communication (instead of multiple tools like email and messengers) to ensure transparency and traceability. By proactively addressing this, I minimized noise, and brought about timely decision-making.

To address the issue of unnecessary iterations on the design , I took a hands-on approach by designing the website myself in Figma. By collaborating closely with UPV's team members, I gained valuable insights into their vision and requirements, allowing me to create something that resonated with their objectives.

By simplifying the design process and fostering collaboration, I was able to get key members of UPV's staff to contribute to the copywriting process as well.

Two weeks before the launch date it became clear despite all the help provided, the Webflow developers could not replicate the site to the quality of designs I had provided — functionality was their strength, not aesthetics and optimization.

I spoke with the Project Owner, got access to the agencies webflow account, and built my designs out into a beautiful, optimized, smoothly operating website.

Everything was ready 2 days from launch.
I delivered a website that accurately reflected UPV's brand identity and vision.

The day was saved!