GiGi's Bridal 2013 Website Case Study

The Overview

GiGi’s Bridal is a small boutique style shop located in downtown Fairfield, CA. The business specializes in wedding apparel including; Bridal Gowns, Brides Maids Dresses, Mother of The Bride Dresses, Flower Girl and Special Guest Dresses. GiGi’s Bridal also sells various Accessories including; Veils and Jewelry.

Other types of events that GiGi’s provides apparel for include Quinceañera and Sweet Sixteen celebrations.

GiGi’s Bridal has been open for over a decade and has a steady stream of customers. It does not, however, compete with larger chain stores.

The Challenge

I was brought on to remedy a poorly executed website. Nothing about the existing site met web design standards. There was no clear artistic direction, content was dated, and current web design trends were not employed. There were even some vendors and dresses featured on the site; that GiGi’s Bridal no longer dealt with or offered.

Furthermore Guadalupe Ochoa, owner and Operator of GiGi’s Bridal, had no access to her own web server. The domain was registered and owned by the previous web designer. Guadalupe had no contact information with which to reach the previous web designer. This presented a significant logistical problem I had to resolve.

The Solution

The website needed updating. Simply changing content and updating lists would not be enough as the site failed to engage an audience. I needed to start completely from scratch and deliver an aesthetic that could accomplish this.

The Process

Below is the plan for the site development:

§ Conduct a preliminary interview of the client’s goals and establish an accurate needs assessment.
o  The needs assessment informed me of the look and functionality that Guadalupe wanted. She showed me some examples of competitors and what she would like to see reflected on her own website.
(Approx development time: 1-2hrs.)

  
§ Purchase a non-exclusive licensed website template that met most, if not all, of the desired visual and interactive elements for the client.
o  Non-exclusive template licenses usually cost less than $100, exclusive template licenses range from $1,000-$3,000. Based on the needs assessment I was able to offer the client a choice from 3 different templates.
(Approx development time: 4hrs.)

§ Customize template to fit the desired color scheme and content layout, using the 960 grid.
o  During this phase I manipulated the CSS style sheet, which affects the entire website; setting font type, header style and many other visual elements. 
(Approx development time: 15-20hrs., 30hrs including proofs and revisions)

§ Establish a standard page layout and add content.
o  The page layout was handled through applying the 960 grid. I requested content from the client. In most projects it is the responsibility of the client to provide that content, but Guadalupe had a difficult time. She supplied a handful of books that contained images. I scanned and downloaded, from the internet and vendor websites, over 100 images. I resized the images and created thumbnails for them to deploy in a JQuery powered FancyBox gallery viewer.
(Approx development time: 80-90hours)

§ Design a functioning contact form that allows clients to select the date of their event.
o  Using JQuery and a calendar Plugin from the JQuery website, I was able to develop and deploy a working contact form that would allow GiGi’s Bridal to gather and organize website generated leads more effectively.(Approx development time: 6-7hours)

The Result

This project was finished with great success. The client was extremely pleased and now, proudly shares her website with customers.