Challenge
For over 40 years, BC-based Raven Rescue has built a hard-earned reputation as Canada’s go-to source for safety and rescue services, equipment, and training. Its team spans the whole of Canada and is unified by a vision to make Canadians safer, smarter, and more prepared to face the unexpected—whatever that might look like. Raven’s digital presence serves multiple purposes with an expansive offering and nationwide reach. As a marketing website, it educated existing and prospective clients and trainers on its various offerings – from courses and services to the rescue equipment it sells. But the website serves an equally crucial operational role in facilitating business transactions such as product sales, safety course sign-ups, and consultation. That said, over the years, with each iteration, Raven’s website transformed into a frankensite; a digital spaghetti of disparate technologies and platforms that eventually began to work against its brand equity and decreased operational efficiency. Raven needed a brand and digital reset, and boy were we eager to help.
Solution
A powerful brand looking to achieve new heights Knowing who you are and what you stand for is central to crafting a powerful brand and website. Luckily for Raven, their culture and purpose were never in question – they just needed a way to express themselves visually and digitally. We began with a visual refresh of the Raven brand, guiding its Leadership team through various concepts before landing on their final logo – an anagram, or capital “R”, that displays the silhouette of a raven in its negative space. This wordmark, paired with a bold typeface and vibrant colour palette, provided the bones of a broader visual language that communicates Raven’s strength, passion, and commitment to protection and safety.
Results
Untangling a technical nest of complexity More than just a new and improved digital brochure, Raven’s new website needed to facilitate business transactions and functions critical to its operations. The process began with a deep technical analysis where Massive’s team of strategists and developers dissected its various integrations, content, and functional and operational requirements. With its technical and operational needs clearly spelled out, we went to work architecting a technical stack built on WordPress (WooCommerce) with integrations to Hubspot and various best-of-breed booking, scheduling, and analytics tools. All roads lead to home With an offering spanning from equipment sales to training and rescue services, it was critical Raven’s new website provided a bulletproof user experience. Whereas the old website was a patchwork of three different digital properties, the new website brings Raven’s three divisions together under one unified roof. Through card-sorting and various UX workshops, we simplified the site’s complex navigation with clear nomenclature and intuitive categorization, allowing users to get to where they want to go in as few clicks as possible. Strategic use of colour supports user wayfinding, along with consistent tagging that facilitates filtering and toggling for equipment, training, and services. Raven’s expert trainers and technicians were brought centre-stage with a “Meet our Instructors” page and individual bios. Finally, custom post types and dynamic modules allow Raven to pull in similar or related content, products and FAQs, deepening user engagement, and boosting conversions. Designed to lead To the delight of Massive’s design and copy teams, Raven’s creative ambition matched its courage in the field. Of the various concepts presented, Raven chose the boldest; a confident and timeless design that marries the stunning imagery of Canada’s diverse wilderness with a vibrant colour palette and a modern, minimalist typeface. Naturally, the site’s design needed to present beautifully across all devices and browsers and adhere to accessibility and performance best practices. Together, these elements and conventions work seamlessly, elevating Raven’s brand to new heights and creating ample distance between it and its competitors struggling to keep up. The new Raven Rescue brand and website launched in the Sprint of 2022, and we couldn’t be happier to see it out in the wild.
Massive Media
Massive is a branding and experience design agency for companies with ambition. We partner with solution-focused companies to achieve clarity, messaging and the technologies needed to thrive in the wild. Whether the end product is a new brand, digital advertising campaign, website or digital product, our approach centres on deep cultural...
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