June 2014 - SHD Interior Branding

21 brand new city buses just rolled in to Albuquerque. Studio Hill Design provided the concept and design work on the buses, including the new coordinated interiors. The new ABQ RIDE buses, managed by The City of Albuquerque Transit Department, are a big change from the previous bus designs.

“We felt this was a highly visible opportunity to help brand and promote Albuquerque.”

According to Sandy Hill of Studio Hill Design, “The city buses are large and they are everywhere. We felt this was a highly visible opportunity to help brand and promote Albuquerque. Working with ABQ RIDE, we selected 8 cultural icons unique to our city, and illustrated a different one on each bus, along with the tagline ‘Where You Want to Go.’ The illustrations will engage visitors and inspire them to see more of our city. Locals will be reminded of why this is such a special place to call home.”

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In addition to the cultural icons that are displayed on the sides of the buses, Studio Hill Design developed an entirely new color palette for ABQ Ride. The palette was chosen to enhance and coordinate with the existing turquoise used on the bus shelters and on the Alvarado Transit Center window trim. A modern, fresh lime green was selected and used as a natural complement to this classic New Mexican color. The lower section of the buses are detailed with graphics representing the streets and bus stops of a transit map and applied in highly visible reflective vinyl to keep our city safer.

A new, coordinating ABQ RIDE logo was also developed as a modernized, simplified graphic that is easier to read and works well on various applications including the bus shelters, print materials, and of course, the buses themselves. Catch the Ride!

An estimated 8 out of 10 consumers who are dissatisfied with the performance of a website are unlikely to return. While the reasons for their dissatisfaction can be as numerous as there are connections to Kevin Bacon, the number one reason is due to poor design. Poor design could mean that the site is simply outdated or it fails to reflect the core character of the business it was meant to represent. It fails to communicate. In other cases, the site might be difficult to use due to underlying technologies that slow the site down or generate an unreasonable number of errors. It could be poor architecture, meaning the site is difficult to navigate and find what you want quickly.

Here is a closer look at some of the numbers according to the Online Marketing Institute;

• 85% abandon a site due to poor design
• 83% leave because it takes too many clicks to get what they want
• 62% gave up looking for an item while shopping online
• 50% of sales are lost because visitors can’t find content
• 40% never return to a site because the content was hard to use

In addition to the obvious revenue that could be lost due to a poorly designed website are the potential costs of fixing such a site.

Often placing a “band aid” can be a far from ideal solution and can sometimes cost nearly as much as the initial investment. This leads to the inevitable conclusion that it is well worth your while to plan properly before designing a website and hiring a website design firm.

Here are some questions you should be asking your web designer before beginning your next website.

How much time do you spend planning and researching?
Designing a successful website requires planning and research long before a single line of code is written or a layout is considered. On average, Studio Hill Design spends 5 to 10 hours diving into the backstories and histories of our clients, learning about how they got to where they are and where they want to go. That might seem like a lot of time. But we take this knowledge and leverage the information into clear and measurable strategies that support our clients’ goals. We need to know who you are to take you to where you want to be. That is how we make good design. That is how we make successful websites.

Do you create wire-frames and site maps before designing a website?
Website wireframes and site maps are visual representations of where the content on your site will be placed. They don’t contain any design or content. They simply explain visually where content can be found. It manifests a mutual understanding between us and our clients as to the scope and expectations of the site. It clarifies and simplifies the viewer navigation experience. It presents an opportunity to consider additional value-added content. Wireframes and site maps are vitally important to creating a website that is useful to its audience and that accomplishes the goals that the research has identified, while staying on budget and on time.

How much do you charge for web design?
This might seem like an obvious question to ask, but the surprise comes in how you react to the answer you get. Website design that is results-oriented takes a generous amount of time and expertise. You might find an inexpensive web coder, but why would you trust your main marketing tool to someone without a design background? Studio Hill Design is a design and marketing company who understands how to make deep connections between you and your customers. Thoughtful website design is the key that helps our clients make that connection.

Is search engine optimization incorporated into the website?
The intent of a powerful, targeted and well designed website is for it to be seen. We incorporate search engine optimization (SEO) organically from the very beginning of the project to maximize every opportunity for search engines to find your site. Little details in the content and coding of your site make a big difference in your SEO rankings. Studio Hill Design can take this even further by offering you enhanced SEO options to drive even more traffic to your website.

So Now What?
Talk to Studio Hill Design. And talk to some web geeks. See who you feel comfortable trusting your company’s brand and reputation to, when you understand how important your online presence is. Then let’s get started promoting your company online and on target.

Month: June 2014

Albuquerque has a new Ride!

Is my website working for or against me? Get the website design you deserve.