Hornblower: Website Redesign

My Role:

Ux writer, brand strategist, copywriter

The Problem:

For a product-driven site, the hornblower.com website did not make shopping for products easy. It featured outdated language that didn’t align with where the brand wanted to go. Customers often had to click through to 9 pages before reaching a purchase button. It also wasn’t compatible with the new ticketing software we were rolling out across ports. So began the six-month long redesign, in which our team not only created a new website, but became expert foosball players as well. Because long hours require fun breaks.

Goals:

Create a product-focused website
Reflect the new brand guidelines
Eliminate long clickthroughs
Highlight market segments over port locations
Update imagery
Properly showcase the experience of Hornblower

The Solution:

One of the first things we tackled was the navigation structure. While the old hornblower.com featured the port locations, we knew the new navigation needed to immediately drive customers to their desired experience. The locations became a dropdown feature. We also added a “plan an event” button to the navigation, eliminating a long clickthrough process for customers who knew exactly what they wanted.

From there, we developed the content hierarchy and features of key pages, making note of a clear user path. Our goal was for customers to be able to make a purchase, or fill out a form, in three clicks or less — no matter where they landed on the site.

Once each key page’s outline was approved, I worked with the ports to write copy for their core pages. Copy needed to meet brand guidelines, while also noting the unique characteristics of each port. All messaging needed to focus on the experience over the features and have clear CTAs.

With copy approved, I worked with our design and dev team to make any final adjustments to design before we implemented.

Below you’ll find our old website homepage, snapshots from brainstorming sessions, template mockups, and finally, the new hornblower.com