New Technologies for an Old Client
Purple Haze Lavender has been a client of InsideOut Solutions for ten years. Technology has changed a great deal during that time, and they have trusted us to keep their site up-to-date. Recently, they asked InsideOut to develop the third version of their site. They wanted it editable and upgraded to Web 2.0 technology so they could include enhancements such as blogs and web cams. They also needed fewer clicks to arrive at their online store.
Services Provided:
- Web Design
- Web Hosting
- Lavender Cam
- WordPress Blog Development
- Training
- Rack Card
- Product Labels
- Product Catalog
New Website
The web site we built for them four years ago was attractive, but the technology behind the scenes had become outdated. It was time to re-vamp the site and maximize search engine promotion. The front page was also redesigned to better showcase products and the new blog. Computer screens had also gotten larger over the years, so the makeover took advantage of the bigger screen sizes.
We set out to capture the same feel as the old site, but with more pizazz. The Flash animation features wonderful photos to show visitors that Purple Haze offers a great place to visit and shop. The Flash captures the essence of Purple Haze and tells their story: "A certified organic lavender farm located in Sequim, Washington, offering a superb line of natural lavender products, a fun a festive place to be." We also implemented a blog where the owner, Mike, regularly posts their news.
The last order of business was drawing more attention to the online store. Our solution: pulling one product at a time to appear on the front page. Every time you visit their home page, a different product shows up.
Product Catalog & Labels
A Catalog of Many Uses
The 20-page, 6" x 9" catalog has enough space to feature large, colorful photos and full product descriptions. 60# paper gives the catalog some substance without making the piece too heavy to mail economically. An initial print run of 40,000 allowed Purple Haze to offer brochures wherever their products were offered and whenever a request was made online.
The clean design on matte paper makes the piece easy-to-read and gives it a distinctive, classy look. The back cover has the return address and space for a label, saving the company the cost of an envelope. Recipients like to hold on to the brochure because of its attractive layout, intriguing quotes and useful information such as recipes.
Product Labels that Stick
Our label designs help distinguish each family of products. The designs have been in use for some years, allowing loyal customers to immediately recognize the brand, even at a distance.
For liquid products, the 2-color labels stay on no matter what is in the bottles. Oils, soaps, alcohol and water will not cause the labels to come off. We chose to print these labels on a poly substrate with poly laminate on top just to be sure. As often as possible, labels on dry products use recyclable paper and soy-based inks.
Solutions
InsideOut developed a fantastic new web site which fits the new standard screen size of 1000 pixels wide. The home page now has a beautiful Flash opening which really sells the farm, its products and the entire lavender experience. Access to their online store is just one click from three places on the front page, including a featured product.
We taught owner Mike Reichner how to blog. Now traffic to the site has increased because the ever-changing blog content boosts his search engine placement. The blog allows Mike to easily add content such as events, stories and photos without having to know any programming. Anyone can do it!
Lavender Cam
We helped install a new web cam to increase traffic from other sources and to get visitors to revisit the site. The Lavender web cam shows the fields and farm house at Purple Haze. It's one of the most popular pages on the site, allowing customers and fans to feel connected to the farm on a daily basis, even from halfway around the world.
Results
The most impressive part of the new site design is the #3 ranking in Google for the highly competitive term of "Lavender". This new placement in Google opened the flood gates to new visitors and visitations to the site have doubled. The site is now fully editable by the staff at Purple Haze and they make regular posts to their blog to increase their site's search engine placement, to highlight new products and to make announcements.
Purple Haze Lavender has seen a great improvement in visits to their web site. Not only are more people making their way to www.purplehazelavender.com, but they're also going to the the online store and buying products!
We have also continued to keep their print marketing up-to-date, with changes to their products labels and their widely distributed rack cards.
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