Project Scope
Web Design (WordPress)
Client
Global Patent Group, LLC
Website
globalpatentgroup.com
Constant UX team
John as Project Lead
Janet as Lead Web Designer
The Project
Global Patent Group (GPG) is an American law firm specializing in pharmaceutical and biotech patents. While they had built a solid reputation and client base through direct relationships and referrals, their online presence did not reflect their accomplishments.
The main challenge was to transform their existing website into a professional, informative and trustworthy asset to their brand.
Chris, a patent attorney with the firm for over 3 years, took the lead on behalf of GPG to address the current website issue. John connected with Chris, developed a strategy, and lead the project to the finish line. Janet designed and implemented the new website.
Old homepage
The Challenge
The existing website needed a dramatic overhaul in terms of design, content, and information architecture. We decided the best course of action was to build an entirely new WordPress site from scratch, salvaging what was necessary from the old site.
Limited Input
The GPG stakeholders were on board with this plan, but could only provide limited input or assistance when it came to new content, design ideas, palettes and branding. The Constant UX team’s task was to extract as much information out of Chris as possible and work independently to see the project through.
Limited Assets
Since GPG didn’t have much in the way of media, blogs, and press items, another obstacle was to develop a valuable, informative site that was not built on fluff or redundant content.
The Process
Our process starts with two main questions: what does the website need to accomplish, and who is the audience?
- Chris informed us that they were not looking to capture traffic and gain leads from the web. Their website was simply meant to reinforce trust and communicate their expertise to potential clients – almost all of which are direct referrals.
- GPG’s audience consists mainly of pharmaceutical companies and biotech firms looking for legal assistance to protect their intellectual property. They essentially need to see that the law firm has the right personnel and specialization to answer their needs.
Choosing The Platform
We chose WordPress as the platform for the new website since it provides a powerful, easy-to-update content management system. As a WordPress expert, Janet is able to use the platform to create versatile designs to suit any brand.
The stakeholders at GPG were concerned with having complete control over updating their site. A WordPress install answered that need as well.
Brainstorming
To get some bearings on the aesthetic direction the new site should take, John brainstormed with Chris and looked over some example sites from top law firms around the U.S.
Many larger law firms have content-heavy websites and focus on communicating prestige. As a more specialized science-based law firm, we decided that GPG needed to build trust by properly communicating their fields of expertise and highlighting their team’s backgrounds.
Wireframing
With Chris’ guidance, John developed a clear site structure focusing on GPG’s key services. By re-purposing and enhancing the existing content, John also crafted the contours of the site’s text.
With the site structure and general content outline done, we synthesized a few design ideas from our brainstorming sessions with Chris. Based on John’s wireframes, Janet then generated a few mock-ups to illustrate her vision for the site.
Design & Implementation
Overall, Janet’s design balanced dark, rich tones with creative use of whitespace, images and text boxes.
With a few minor changes from Chris and the GPG team, Janet secured a final version of the design and built the site on the Constant UX development server. John concurrently worked on finalizing the new web copy and corresponding with Chris throughout the process.
Content Before Design
It’s important to note that we believe in developing the site’s verbal message before creating a visual template. What do you need to say to your users? Once we have determined the site structure, we need to get a good idea of the copy that’s going to live on each page.
New homepage
New about us page
New mobile homepage
The End Result
Once the website was done, we transferred it to GPG’s hosting and launched the site. For a few weeks thereafter, we monitored the site closely and addressed any issues or changes that Chris communicated to us.
The process went quite smoothly from start to finish, with any challenges addressed in a reasoned and decisive manner. Chris’ open communication and responsiveness to our questions was invaluable in keeping things on track.
In the end, the GPG team were extremely happy with the final result. We succeeded in providing them with a website they could be proud to show their clients and prospects.
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