Middletown Downtown Business District
Middletown, CT
The Downtown Middletown website was commissioned by the Middletown Downtown Business District Board of Commissioners. The previous site was nearing 15 to 20 yrs old and needed a branding overhaul that included a streamlined, easy-to-use Business Directory and cart system to sell their DBD Gift Cards. The Board had a solid idea of what they needed the website to do and communicated what made their downtown special. We worked as a team to develop the brand strategy and, with ss+d acting as the Creative Director and developer, set off to implement their vision.
THE WORK
+ Logo Design
+ Graphic Design
+ Responsive Website Design
+ eCommerce
+ Business Directory
+ SEO - Search Engine Optimization
+ Technical training
+ Embed 3rd-Party Loxi Events Calendar
+ Social Media Connection
+ Squarespace Setup
Main Requirements:
Create a logo.
Ability to sell the Downtown Middletown Gift Card on the Squarespace Commerce platform.
Create an organized and dynamic Business Directory representing the businesses that collectively comprise the MDBD.
The colors, fonts, logo, imagery, and feel of the brand would represent the eclectic + diverse city of Middletown.
Connect social media accounts and display an events calendar.
Provide basic SEO and deliver a responsive website that looks consistent on different viewing devices.
TIME TO…
Branding Goals
COLORS + LOGO INSPIRATION
The City of Middletown is a lot of different things.
Represent the industrial roots.
Represent the Connecticut River.
Represent the punk/grunge side.
Represent family-oriented activities.
Represent their designation as one of the most romantic Main Streets.
Represent the diversity.
Rolled into...
A hip logo + website that served everyone.
Responsive Web Design
Access at your desk or on the go.
The welcoming Home page of the Downtown Middletown website features a nice sunny shot of Main Street, displayed here on three different screen sizes. Desktop vignette photo by sadler studio + design and the beautiful banner photo is by Sandy Aldieri, owner of Perceptions Photography for Downtown Middletown website.
Business Directory
The Downtown Middletown website is a fantastic example of using the Squarespace platform in a nontraditional way as a business directory. This only works because of how we structured the directory and that there are just under 200 businesses that belong to the Downtown Business District. The Board wanted the Directory structure to be clean, simple, and organized. We put a lot of effort into building a brand and user interface that would make people excited to visit downtown Main Street.
BUSINESS DIRECTORY LANDING PAGE EXAMPLE
CUSTOM SIDE NAVIGATION WITH DROPDOWN
INDIVIDUAL BUSINESS LISTING WITHIN THE DIRECTORY
Member businesses line Main Street, and those located on the streets that intersect it would need individual listing pages. These pages would include their address, website, phone, and whether they accept the Downtown Middletown Gift Card. These pages would be shareable to different social media platforms too. Get the word out about how awesome Middletown is for families or date night! Businesses that accepted the gift card would need links to purchase a card on the site.
An eCommerce Website to Sell Gift Cards
The MDBD has a Gift Card that needs to be showcased on the Home Page with a call to action to buy one. The call to action button leads directly to the product listing page. The product listing page would display the gift card and the necessary additional information the company supplying the gift card required of MDBD to explain to the purchaser. Every business in the directory that accepted the card would be linked to this listing page. The gift card can be assigned different dollar amounts and includes a form to designate who to ship the card to if it’s a gift.
