A few months ago, the NBC Industry Group contacted us inquiring about a redesign of their existing website.  While functional and informative, it needed a redesign to catch-up with contemporary design trends and best practices.  The navigation needed to be streamlined, the scrolling flash marquis needed to be removed, the design needed to be widened to utilize more of the page and the design needed to be updated to allow the NBC Industry Group to maximize their potential to recruit new members and better disseminate information to its existing members.

Our solution for the redesign:

• Improved the website navigation categories to be more intuitive and user-friendly. In the previous version of the website, there were several navigation category that needed to be improved; for example, “NBC Industry Group” and “Group Members”.  In each case, we renamed them using a more effective and intuitive title.
• Removed distracting animation from the homepage. Previously, there was a flash header that had animated slogans flying in from the left side of the screen, an animated logo containing an electron in orbit, and a vertically scrolling marquis promoting upcoming meetings.  Needless to say, it caused distraction and confusion among users.  We removed the animation from each of the three elements.  To address the flash header, we added a scrolling homepage frame consisting of five slides with background images and text overlaid on top to speak to the various groups NBC Industry Group serves.  We removed the animation from the logo and added an upcoming meetings callout dynamically pulling from the content management system (CMS) to replace the scrolling marquis.
• Promoted membership for prospective members. One of the major goals of the redesign was to attract new members.  To address, we renamed the former “Group Members” in the global navigation to “Membership” to be clearer.  Additionally, we added a “Join Us” callout on the homepage and every subpage for those that come to the website and those that look browse the site.  Lastly, we added pages to speak to the benefits of membership.
• Enlarged the amount of space being used for body content on each page.
• Improved the user interface of each form and implemented form validations. The website consists of three primary forms: membership application, membership renewal, and contact.  We improved the interface of each form and set-up form validations to prevent users from becoming members without providing accurate information and payment.  (In the previous version, a user was able to pass through each form by leaving all of the fields blank).
• Implemented a scalable CMS to manage all of the content. By working with our great friends at Vim Interactive, a team of skilled Baltimore ExpressionEngine Developers, the ExpressionEngine CMS was implemented to allow NBC Industry Group administrators to edit content, add new meetings — all very quickly and easily without any programming knowledge.

Overall, it was an incredible honor working with the NBC Industry Group.  They are committed to such an extraordinary mission and possess the most brilliant minds from all of the most respected companies and organizations in their industry.  Being Reef Light’s first non-profit web design project made it extra special.

Enjoy this before vs. after view of the homepage. 

View the redesigned website at www.nbcindustrygroup.com

About the NBC Industry Group:

The Nuclear, Biological, and Chemical (NBC) Industry Group is a non-profit association composed of 150+ companies, not-for-profit organizations, and consultants who support national and international chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, and explosive (CBRNe) defense activities.  In addition to military defense against CBRNe weapons of mass destruction (WMD), the NBC Industry Group interests encompass domestic preparedness against WMDs, the Chemical Weapons Convention and other treaties. Member organizations also are actively involved in CBRNe programs that include destruction of WMDs around the world.

During our analysis of the website, we noticed that there was limited content on the site and all of the search traffic was coming from brand name keywords, not a single local targeted or service specific keyword.   Unless the prospective customer knew “Spilled Milk Catering”, the DC catering company was invisible.  To address these concerns, we:

• Improved the site structure.   Geographic pages were added to speak to each of Spilled Milk’s target markets (Maryland, DC, and Virginia).  Additionally, specific service pages were added to maximize the search engine exposure of each of their individual service offerings.
• Researched and analyzed keywords.  Keywords were researched and analyzed to capitalize on the high local search volume and catering-specific keywords.
• Optimized the web content.  Using the keywords identified, keyword density was improved to build credibility and relevance in the eyes of the search engines.

In a short ten week span following our efforts, we’ve accomplished quite a bit.

• Improved total website traffic by 163%
• Improved the number of unique visitors by 207%
• Improved traffic coming from referral sites by 234%
• Improved the number of landing pages in which users entered the site by 120%
• Improved the number of page views by 146%
• Placed 24 keywords on the search engines radar that were not previously ranking
• Improved the ranking of the #1 desired keyword by 94 places in Google

It’s been a pleasure working with the guys over at Spilled Milk.  Since SEO is an on-going process, we haven’t completed the job yet but the results are headed in the right direction.  Lastly, if you have an event coming up, give them a shout.  Tell them I sent you and try the Three-Cheese Puff Canapes – you won’t regret it.  Yummmmm………

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Reef Light Interactive continues to make brands shine. We specialize in DC web design, brand identity, and search engine optimization for small businesses and international organizations, alike.  Get in touch with Reef Light Interactive today to discuss your upcoming project!

PSN wanted to make their website more user-friendly showcasing each of their three unique services: jobs for nurses, staffing solutions, and healthcare consulting. In addition to the top level navigation, links were added on the left and in the body. To maximize the staffing company angle, we suggested that three featured positions be displayed on the homepage for easy access.  Below is a before and after snapshot…

PSN is ecstatic about the new website and is looking towards the future. Feel free to browse around and tell us what you think!

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Reef Light Interactive, a Washington DC web design company, makes brands shine! We had a pleasure working with PSN; feel free to contact us to learn more about our web design and/or SEO services.