PROJECT OVERVIEW:
The problem: To connect the average fashion-oriented/interested woman to eco-friendly clothing retailers in their local community that are both affordable and trendy.The solution: A database/directory and information centre in the form of a website that allows retailers to be listed and categorized and even advertised so that they can be easily found by consumers.
PROJECT GOALS:
1. Logo and Typography for "ECONNECTION"
2. Rough texture and color palette for the website
3. Site Map
4. Prototyping & Feedback
5. Next Tasks
5. Next Tasks
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GOAL 1: LOGO AND TYPOGRAPHY
My goal for the 'ECONNECTION''s logo to visually express the very 'connect'. I played with the idea of having knots or tied/tangled strings to show them 'coming together'. I felt that using materials that have to do with fashion (in this case string/fiber/stitching) and having those materials also convey that verbage would be really smart.
I also wanted my logo to be clean and simple to reproduce ad understand. My primary audience for this project was women, because they are the biggest fashion retail consumers and based off of the research I had found on general eco-friendly products, the most likely to by eco-friendly products.
Here are some of the best versions I experimented with during my design process:
The version I came to at this point in the design process is this:
SIDENOTE:
I created my own graphic for the background using the 'line blend' tool in Adobe Illustrator
and I am quite pleased with how it turned out.
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GOAL 2. ROUGH TEXTURE AND COLOUR PALETTE FOR THE WEBSITE:
I wanted to give a certain atmosphere and character to the "ECONNECTION" website that I will then try to emulate when I begin the design for my advertising for the site.
I wanted to display the 'safe', 'clean', and 'soft' appeal of clothing made from sustainable and eco-friendly clothing materials.
Originally when I presented my design problem to our class I used bamboo (one of the plant fibers used in some eco-friendly clothing) as my background texture and it was overpowering and somewhat cliche.
Original Rough:
The feedback I received on this very rough concept was that it was trying to be too mainstream and I needed to scale it back so it wasn't so in your face and bright. The feeling of 'eco-friendly' and doing something positive for the environment was not being communicated with bright pinks and heavy graphics. There was no consistency in its message at this stage.
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GOAL 3. SITE MAP AND CONTENT STRUCTURE:
Since this design is interface only and I will not be coding the structure of the actual site I made a very simple content map to show how the pages would be structured:
The main functions of the website are to search by location, category (type of clothing), or by material (hemp, bamboo, organic cotton) while also providing a search bar for quick access to very specific information. I also want to have a 'contact us' page for contacting the directory so that retailers can add their own business, a 'news' page that has articles and information about eco-friendly clothing and why purchasing them help both the planet and the individual.
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GOAL 4: PROTOTYPING & FEEDBACK
Here is where I am at with my current prototype of the website:
Feedback:
After posting the above prototype on facebook, I found a bunch of flaws in my design in-terms of whether it was a directory to other stores or selling clothing directly FROM those stores online. I hadn't really decided but I feel that I need it to be a directory only --- providing coupons and advertising space for retailers and their information to the consumer but not a site where you directly buy the clothing. The confusion of what you could buy from the site itself stemmed from me posting a shopping cart icon -- which implies that they could buy directly from the site -- and I had not thought through why I had put that icon there.
Another comment I received was about the reason behind removing the twitter and facebook links on my revised prototype. I originally felt that perhaps it didn't need any social networking assistance but on further reflection I realize that one directory linked to a variety of networking sites would only further the popularity of my site and allow people to share what they've found with their friends/family. I will need to find a way to have those icons mesh with the design of the site - perhaps even having an option to log into my site with facebook/twitter/google accounts because I've found that that feature has exploded across many websites, because it prevents the user from having to remember more passwords and usernames.
Feedback below:
Revisions:
Image 1:
(Removal of shopping cart &
addition of social media outlets)
Image 2:
(Change of the green for sale sign to be consistent with
the rest of the site's colour scheme/theme)
Other revisions need to be made still- such as having the page of the individual retailer's information include more images of the building, and their clothing -- perhaps with a small slideshow plug-in and the addition of a website link/contact icons for that retailer need to be added -- they were suggested to me by a close friend who is currently very eco-friendly and already shops at local eco-fashion retailers.
GOAL 5: NEXT TASKS
A: Creating more pages that outline the interface's functions. Doing a interface test by printing out each page of the site (in block element form) and having potential audience members navigate through the site -- Which will then allow me to create an updated and more complex site map. I am also considering creating a simple flash demonstration of the website in use if I have enough time.
B: Starting the roughs and production of the advertising campaign deliverables (poster and leaflet) and subjecting them to my audience for feedback and revision.
