Main Street Engineering
Challenge
Better Neighbourhoods, a neighbourhood consulting firm in St. Catharines, Ontario, was experiencing rapid growth, especially in the engineering arm of their business. Despite this growth, many prospective clients were unaware that engineering services were offered, and the firm had a minimal presence on Google for local engineering firm searches. In early 2023, Better Neighbourhoods embarked on a journey to brand a new sister company, Main Street Engineering. This move aimed to continue the growth of the engineering business and allow the core team to focus on Better Neighbourhoods’ primary offerings: consulting and urban design. Main Street Engineering hired F3LT Design to develop a logo and brand identity. Sarah, F3LT’s founder and creative director, drew upon the rich history of Better Neighbourhoods’ founder, Glenn Barr, and the vintage charm of St. Catharines’ Main Street to create an engineering brand that reflected the company’s heritage and services. The tagline developed was, “Meet us at the intersection of thoughtful engineering and good urban design.” In the summer of 2023, Sarah approached us to begin working on the website for Main Street Engineering. She wanted a website that would relate to Better Neighbourhoods while establishing its own identity and standing out among local engineering firms.
Solution
We began by reviewing the competition and thoroughly identifying the brand with Sarah to understand its core essence. We interviewed Dan and Adam to understand why Main Street Engineering exists and how it serves the community. We were seeking their unique value proposition and a way to communicate their value in a way that would be reflected in meeting them in-person and working with the firm. Once we understood the project’s direction, we broke it into steps and got to work. First, we created a detailed sitemap and chose a strategy for the build. We decided on a “values relate to services” approach to leverage keywords in our messaging and highlight Main Street Engineering’s strong core values and unique approach. Designing the Website Next, we selected several inspirational websites from large European firms and local firms to develop a unique design that would fit into the local engineering landscape of Southern Ontario. Drawing inspiration from large firms sets our standards high, enabling us to deliver a best-in-class website. Using Adobe XD as a design space, we could iterate as we worked through it collaboratively, reaching a final product everyone agreed was aligned with Main Street Engineering’s goals and vision. With the design approved, we worked closely with Sarah to develop the web copy. We engaged Dan and Adam to provide the necessary details and used their direction to fill in the rest. Using their words for the values and about us content was crucial, but we also used our interview notes to create engaging keyword-rich web copy. Developing the Site We developed the website on WordPress using Elementor, ensuring all meta descriptions and accessibility details were in place. The site was optimized for speed and featured accessible hover animations, an interactive services section, and an interactive process section for how Main Street Engineering works on the contact page. Specific Features Highlighted Interactive Services Section: The website’s services section is interactive, allowing users to explore the range of services offered by Main Street Engineering dynamically and engagingly. Hover Effect on Buttons: The hover effect on buttons enhances the user experience by providing immediate visual feedback, making the navigation intuitive and user-friendly. Interactive Process Section on Contact Page: The contact page includes an interactive section that details how Main Street Engineering works, providing potential clients with a clear and engaging overview of the project process.
Results
Main Street Engineering now enjoys a website that represents their values and core brand message as well as stands out against local competitors and elevates their brand image.
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