Objective
Sociable Media was tasked with creating a new website for SheetHarbour.ca. The website overhaul was the catalyst for establishing the Chamber’s updated brand image. The client wanted the website to showcase the attributes of the local community: businesses, lifestyle, recreation, service clubs, and economic development opportunities.
In addition to the overarching directives of the client, Sociable Media was also tasked with devising a user-friendly Calendar of Events section and establishing a WordPress training regimen for staff members to ensure a base-line level of website self-sufficiency.
The Client
The Sheet Harbour & Area Chamber of Commerce & Civic Affairs is the voice of 50+ businesses, supporting its members’ success and championing community prosperity for almost 85 years. Sheet Harbour and area is home to approximately 5,000 people and located in Nova Scotia, Canada.
Solution
Assessment & Research
The initial step for the team was organizing a discovery session with stakeholders to review the area’s best qualities and assets, essentially: What sets Sheet Harbour apart from other communities. This discovery session was also beneficial for gauging an in depth understanding of the needs and expectations of those visiting the website.
User Experience (UX)
Sociable Media wanted to establish a level of website functionality that was fully adherent to the preferences of the typical website user. The team then developed an Information Architecture Structure (hierarchical organization of pages) for the website to monitor page performance. After establishing the organization structure, a layout of each page and the direct functions was created to outline overall page design
Search Engine Optimization
The Sociable Media team conducted extensive keyword research to maximize website reach and performance. Using SEMrush, we gained new ideas for content, based on exactly what the audience would be interested in and found looked into search volumes.
Content, Maintenance, and Quality Assurance
The content that was used for this new site needed to be of the highest quality so as to truly convey the best aspects of the Sheet Harbour Community. To achieve this, Sociable Media established a media production project and led the creative direction for the entire production process. In addition, local residents were sourced to provided testimonials that represented different ages and backgrounds in the Sheet Harbour area: seniors, students/youth, families, and business-owners.
To ensure the health and future success of the Website, Sociable Media provided a ‘cheat sheet’ for Sheet Harbour employees to optimize content pages in the future. The key to a successful website is consistent and well-directed attention to detail that requires a basic level of self-sufficiency.
Upon the website’s completion, the Sociable Media team conducted an extensive series of tests. This was done via repeated tests of site’s functions and accessibility on a range of modern browsers and devices (desktop, tablet, mobile).
Results
New brand incorporated with professional photography
The character and brand of the community is now evident, along with its assets and strengths
Average monthly visits to website 2,000, an increase of 400%
Top search ranking for Sheet Harbour in Google and Bing
“How-to” document and website training provided
Created a responsive website that will adapt to screen sizes (for example; mobile, tablet, and desktop), on the WordPress content management platform