Challenge Summary
Ferguson is looking to rework their corporate website. This page is considered the "Gateway" into their company and they are looking for new and exciting ideas, designs and concepts from the Studio Community.
Ferguson is a leading distributor of plumbing supplies and pipes, valves and fittings (PVF) as well as heating and cooling equipment (HVAC).
In this contest, you will be designing two (2) web page for Ferguson based on the the provided direction and any feedback in the forums.
This contest will be run in the Studio Tournament format. Please read the contest specification carefully and watch the forums for any questions or feedback concerning this contest. It is important that you monitor any updates provided by the client or Studio Admins in the forums. Please post any questions you might have for the client in the forums.
Tournament Format This Studio competition will be run as a two-round tournament with a total prize purse of $2000. Round 1 At the end of Round 1 on April 7, 2009, Ferguson will choose five (5) Round 1 winners, each will win $50 and a Design Review. These winners and any member who had a passing submission in round one will be eligible to compete in Round 2 for the additional $1750 in prizes. Round 2 Round 2 will start with the announcement of the Five (5) $50 Round 1 winners and their design review from Ferguson. ------------------------------------------------------------------ We are now in Round 2 - if you did not submit to Round 1 you are not eligible to compete in this contest. Congratulations Round 1 Winners on your $50 Prizes: 19044 - sweetpea 19095 - mahestro 19118 - lunarkid 19131 - RatsOnParade 19132 - Elizabethhee Round 2 Project Comments/Updates 1) DO NOT copy anything from the current Ferguson.com site - this is to be a COMPLETELY NEW DESIGN (no images, no logos, ignore the current site) 2) IMPORTANT This site needs to appeal to the female homeowner profiled below. "We want to appeal to the emotional and lifestyle aspirations through rich media and engaging designs with these customers; drawing them in to design entire rooms, not simply to replace fixtures" 3) The Location Directory is also very important - we are changing the name to Locations Finder please apply to your design. 4) Locations Finder needs to start out with having proximity text: "There are XX locations in your area "Find your local Ferguson" (refer to this site for functions (Example (right-hand column)). 5) Only use the Ferguson logo - remove the "a Wolseley company" tagline 6) Simple and clean - more white space 7) All designs need more "Wow!" 8) Check your spelling before submitting ------------------------------------------------------------------ Overview This contest is to design a new "Gateway" for Ferguson.com. One of the main goals is to drive more traffic to the Ferguson stores/showrooms by allowing Ferguson.com users the ability to find showroom locations quickly. Stock Photography Watermarked comp photography from istockphoto.com is allowed in this contest. You must follow these instructions or your submission will fail screening: 1) You must include a completed Third Party Content worksheet. It belongs in your Submission folder/zip file -- NOT your Source folder/zip file. 2) Only use photos, and only use them from iStockPhoto. Other iStockPhoto artwork is not allowed. 3) Be sure to keep the watermark intact. If the image is cropped in such a way that the watermark is not visible, please be sure to include the entire image in your source files so we can see that it is a comp image from iStockphoto.com. Contest Deliverables Tournament Round 1: Gateway_Design1.jpg = Your proposed design focused on the Homeowner/Consumer/Remodeler Gateway_Design_Notes.txt = Any proposed interactions/features/functions Tournament Round 2: Gateway_Design1.jpg = Final and finished submission. Locations_Finder1.jpg = Secondary page showing your Locations Finder design. Gateway_Design_Notes.txt = Any proposed interactions/features/functions Source files must be built as layered Photoshop PSD files or layered Illustrator AI files You must submit all requested deliverables to be considered for prizes - you may submit more pages if necessary to show your design Gateway Requirements: 1) Drive more traffic to the Ferguson showrooms. 2) Redesign through the eyes of the Homeowner/Consumer/Remodeler - But not alienate the professionals. 3) Incorporate a "Locations Finder" (Example (right side of page)). 4) Has to have a Wow! Experiece on the page 5) Entice the user deeper into the site 6) Clean design - brevity, relevant, credible 7) Your design needs to be customer-centric, not product-centric Business Goals: Business Goal 1 - Drive traffic to showrooms and counters Business Goal 2 - It's about the "experience" not a "product" Website Goals Homeowner Goals: - Find products easily - Find out where to purchase products - Interact with a showroom consultant Professional Goals: - Easily find products for specifications, availability, purchase - Get location specific information - Contact a sales associate Investors/Media/Associates: - Get updated corporate information Visitors to the side include: - Homeowner/Consumer/Remodeler - Professionals (HVAC, Waterworks, Commercial, Residential, Industry & Specialty) - Suppliers - Investor - Career-seeker - Associate - People curious about Ferguson The Homeowner The Homeowner is a retail customer and is most likely to be an "attached" consumer. An attached consumer is a customer who has an established relationship with a Professional (builder, contractor or designer) and has been referred to a Ferguson showroom to select products. Although many customers are traditional "DIY" (Do-It-Yourself) customers, these customers fall under the "DIFM" (Do-It-For-Me) umbrella. Traditionally the majority of purchases have been for new construction, although the remodeling market is growing quickly. Ferguson wants to capitalize on the opportunities available with remodeling. Homeowners generally visit a showroom when they are contracting semi-custom to custom work. They are looking for the latest fashion, but want to balance fashion with function. They equate quality with price, and feel the need to "keep up with the Joneses". Homeowners are easily led by a professional - they usually want what the contractor recommends, or will defer to a designer. Most Homeowners lean toward traditional styles that are influenced by regions such as the Old South, or New England. Most often, a woman, married or single, who owns a home valued at $350k and above, has the most interaction in the showroom, and is the "decision maker". We want to appeal to the emotional and lifestyle aspirations through rich media and engaging designs with these customers; drawing them in to design entire rooms, not simply to replace fixtures. The Professional The Professional category comprises of builders, remodelers, plumbers, architects and designers. Builders and remodelers are looking for quality products that are readily available with value they can sell their customer. Architects and designers typically look for high-end products to appeal to the discriminating homeowner. Other professionals in different industries include: - HVAC - Waterworks - Commercial - Residential - Industry & Specialty - Engineers Site Navigation Top level navigation is displayed when the user lands on the page. Secondary navigation appears when the user interacts with the page, and takes the user to a landing page. Products - Homeowner/Consumer/Remodeler - HVAC - Commercial - Government - Industry & Specialty - Residential - Waterworks Services - Apply for Credit - Process Services - Integrated Supply Showrooms - Locations Finder Corporate Information - About Us - Careers - Press Room - Contact Us Our Suppliers - Big Hammer Data Collection Initiative - Corporate Freight Program - National Independent Rep Advisory Council (NIRAC) Website Messaging EDIT: New Messaging See this forum post - Website Messaging Design Considerations - Research! Research the client and their competition. - Showing an intuitive interface. - Creating a clean, simple and professional website design. Sample Gateway Pages (that we like) Sample 1 - The executives like this Sample 2 - A competitor to our professional side Sample 3 - The executives like this because of how they present the breadth of products and services offered Sample 4 - clean home page with clear calls to action Sample 5 - like how they've put rich media/videos up front - lots of Wow! on this page Sample 6 - A great landing page with good branding Sample 7 - Clean design Sample 8 - Appeals to the showroom client base Sample 9 - Role-based site
Tournament Format This Studio competition will be run as a two-round tournament with a total prize purse of $2000. Round 1 At the end of Round 1 on April 7, 2009, Ferguson will choose five (5) Round 1 winners, each will win $50 and a Design Review. These winners and any member who had a passing submission in round one will be eligible to compete in Round 2 for the additional $1750 in prizes. Round 2 Round 2 will start with the announcement of the Five (5) $50 Round 1 winners and their design review from Ferguson. ------------------------------------------------------------------ We are now in Round 2 - if you did not submit to Round 1 you are not eligible to compete in this contest. Congratulations Round 1 Winners on your $50 Prizes: 19044 - sweetpea 19095 - mahestro 19118 - lunarkid 19131 - RatsOnParade 19132 - Elizabethhee Round 2 Project Comments/Updates 1) DO NOT copy anything from the current Ferguson.com site - this is to be a COMPLETELY NEW DESIGN (no images, no logos, ignore the current site) 2) IMPORTANT This site needs to appeal to the female homeowner profiled below. "We want to appeal to the emotional and lifestyle aspirations through rich media and engaging designs with these customers; drawing them in to design entire rooms, not simply to replace fixtures" 3) The Location Directory is also very important - we are changing the name to Locations Finder please apply to your design. 4) Locations Finder needs to start out with having proximity text: "There are XX locations in your area "Find your local Ferguson" (refer to this site for functions (Example (right-hand column)). 5) Only use the Ferguson logo - remove the "a Wolseley company" tagline 6) Simple and clean - more white space 7) All designs need more "Wow!" 8) Check your spelling before submitting ------------------------------------------------------------------ Overview This contest is to design a new "Gateway" for Ferguson.com. One of the main goals is to drive more traffic to the Ferguson stores/showrooms by allowing Ferguson.com users the ability to find showroom locations quickly. Stock Photography Watermarked comp photography from istockphoto.com is allowed in this contest. You must follow these instructions or your submission will fail screening: 1) You must include a completed Third Party Content worksheet. It belongs in your Submission folder/zip file -- NOT your Source folder/zip file. 2) Only use photos, and only use them from iStockPhoto. Other iStockPhoto artwork is not allowed. 3) Be sure to keep the watermark intact. If the image is cropped in such a way that the watermark is not visible, please be sure to include the entire image in your source files so we can see that it is a comp image from iStockphoto.com. Contest Deliverables Tournament Round 1: Gateway_Design1.jpg = Your proposed design focused on the Homeowner/Consumer/Remodeler Gateway_Design_Notes.txt = Any proposed interactions/features/functions Tournament Round 2: Gateway_Design1.jpg = Final and finished submission. Locations_Finder1.jpg = Secondary page showing your Locations Finder design. Gateway_Design_Notes.txt = Any proposed interactions/features/functions Source files must be built as layered Photoshop PSD files or layered Illustrator AI files You must submit all requested deliverables to be considered for prizes - you may submit more pages if necessary to show your design Gateway Requirements: 1) Drive more traffic to the Ferguson showrooms. 2) Redesign through the eyes of the Homeowner/Consumer/Remodeler - But not alienate the professionals. 3) Incorporate a "Locations Finder" (Example (right side of page)). 4) Has to have a Wow! Experiece on the page 5) Entice the user deeper into the site 6) Clean design - brevity, relevant, credible 7) Your design needs to be customer-centric, not product-centric Business Goals: Business Goal 1 - Drive traffic to showrooms and counters Business Goal 2 - It's about the "experience" not a "product" Website Goals Homeowner Goals: - Find products easily - Find out where to purchase products - Interact with a showroom consultant Professional Goals: - Easily find products for specifications, availability, purchase - Get location specific information - Contact a sales associate Investors/Media/Associates: - Get updated corporate information Visitors to the side include: - Homeowner/Consumer/Remodeler - Professionals (HVAC, Waterworks, Commercial, Residential, Industry & Specialty) - Suppliers - Investor - Career-seeker - Associate - People curious about Ferguson The Homeowner The Homeowner is a retail customer and is most likely to be an "attached" consumer. An attached consumer is a customer who has an established relationship with a Professional (builder, contractor or designer) and has been referred to a Ferguson showroom to select products. Although many customers are traditional "DIY" (Do-It-Yourself) customers, these customers fall under the "DIFM" (Do-It-For-Me) umbrella. Traditionally the majority of purchases have been for new construction, although the remodeling market is growing quickly. Ferguson wants to capitalize on the opportunities available with remodeling. Homeowners generally visit a showroom when they are contracting semi-custom to custom work. They are looking for the latest fashion, but want to balance fashion with function. They equate quality with price, and feel the need to "keep up with the Joneses". Homeowners are easily led by a professional - they usually want what the contractor recommends, or will defer to a designer. Most Homeowners lean toward traditional styles that are influenced by regions such as the Old South, or New England. Most often, a woman, married or single, who owns a home valued at $350k and above, has the most interaction in the showroom, and is the "decision maker". We want to appeal to the emotional and lifestyle aspirations through rich media and engaging designs with these customers; drawing them in to design entire rooms, not simply to replace fixtures. The Professional The Professional category comprises of builders, remodelers, plumbers, architects and designers. Builders and remodelers are looking for quality products that are readily available with value they can sell their customer. Architects and designers typically look for high-end products to appeal to the discriminating homeowner. Other professionals in different industries include: - HVAC - Waterworks - Commercial - Residential - Industry & Specialty - Engineers Site Navigation Top level navigation is displayed when the user lands on the page. Secondary navigation appears when the user interacts with the page, and takes the user to a landing page. Products - Homeowner/Consumer/Remodeler - HVAC - Commercial - Government - Industry & Specialty - Residential - Waterworks Services - Apply for Credit - Process Services - Integrated Supply Showrooms - Locations Finder Corporate Information - About Us - Careers - Press Room - Contact Us Our Suppliers - Big Hammer Data Collection Initiative - Corporate Freight Program - National Independent Rep Advisory Council (NIRAC) Website Messaging EDIT: New Messaging See this forum post - Website Messaging Design Considerations - Research! Research the client and their competition. - Showing an intuitive interface. - Creating a clean, simple and professional website design. Sample Gateway Pages (that we like) Sample 1 - The executives like this Sample 2 - A competitor to our professional side Sample 3 - The executives like this because of how they present the breadth of products and services offered Sample 4 - clean home page with clear calls to action Sample 5 - like how they've put rich media/videos up front - lots of Wow! on this page Sample 6 - A great landing page with good branding Sample 7 - Clean design Sample 8 - Appeals to the showroom client base Sample 9 - Role-based site
Please read the challenge specification carefully and watch the forums for any questions or feedback concerning this challenge. It is important that you monitor any updates provided by the client or Studio Admins in the forums. Please post any questions you might have for the client in the forums.