Case Study: Blog Redesign
Overview
Scalefast, an eCommerce payment platform serving AAA game companies, was rapidly growing and attracting an impressive new client-base including Square Enix, Sega and Wizards of the Coast. Leadership had identified the significant impact of the Scalefast blog site on the company's visibility and customer acquisition and wanted a full redesign of blog pages.
Company
Scalefast
My Role
Web Designer
Frontend Developer
Key Skills
Visual Communication
Graphic Design
UX Design
HTML/CSS/PHP
Business Requirements
Scalefast's main goals for the redesign was to improve readability, streamline the authoring process of its large archive of blog posts and convert more users to book demos with the company through the blog post pages. The blog was a main source of SEO value for Scalefast and we wanted to use that to our advantage.
The existing template and authoring workflow required scalability and improved ease-of-use for web authors. Since blog content was so important for search visibility, authoring efficiency was key to creating more and better content.
My Role
Working in a team of two with the PM, I was in charge of most aspects of the redesign including competitive analysis, user research, wireframing and development.
Competitive Analysis
Scalefast's growth was on-par with most of its closest competitors but what set it apart was its impressive portfolio of AAA game studios including Sega and Square Enix. The company's valuation nearly doubled in a few short years and a fresh round of funding enabled the company to expand its digital footprint.
Original blog content was the main driver in the company's search engine visibility and a linchpin for its strong presence in the industry's digital space. The blog however lacked a cohesive design and the existing design was clunky and difficult to read and manage by authors. Competing companies were simply doing it better.
Wireframes
After competitive analysis and user interviews, mostly conducted with company stakeholders, I created a set of wireframes to share with leadership. The wireframes were then iterated on based on feedback. I also created prototypes within the CMS test compatibility and ensure the new design was working as expected.
Implementation
After the low-fi wires were approved by leadership, I developed the template over the course of several weeks and deployed it to the site. I authored a detailed user guide for content authors as well to ease the transition to the new template.
Results
For the next several weeks we conducted an A/B test, comparing the new treatment with the previous one. We found that users spent up to 200% more time on blog posts with the new design and the new blog template was funneling users to the sign-up page, contributing to a large uptick toward the conversion goal.
Since Scalefast's blog was a main driver in SEO value and regularly occupied the top spot in Google searches, blog posts were the entry point for many users. And because a CTA was now situated in the blog template, it became an effective driver of customer conversions.