Case Study

The Client

Silk Label Books, NY

Defining the Project Goal

The original website had not been updated since the website launch in the early 1990s and the site was not maintained. The project goal was to give the site a welcoming, modern look with functionality of browsing or finding a specific book and purchasing it. The owner wanted to simplify the site so maintenace would be minimal; posting new books and removing those that go out of print.

Defining the Purpose of the Website

The main purpose of the site is for authors to have an internet presence to sell their books.

Defining the Audience

The audience for the website is readers who are looking for a specific book, books written by a specific author, or readers just browsing. The majority of the visitors will be following a link provided by an author.

The Process

Step 1. Review books that were listed for sale to verify that offered books were not out of print. After culling the out-of-print books, the remaining books were organized into categories, gendres, and authors. Review for stale content, such as a book about Presidental candidate Obama being NEW!! Organize files for each book: cover image, price, order code, author, genre, series, and a brief description of the book.

Step 2. Design front page. The front page is a single-page design organized by categories. The first section is by title which allows information to be a single click if the visitor knows the name of the book. This also aids the casual browser. Next is the authors section. Clicking on the authors name brings up a list of his or her available books. Third is a listing by genre, which is geared for the browsing visitor. The last section is the series category.

Step 3. Design the secondary pages. The secondary pages are the books. The book page is a three-column design consisting of a column of the cover, book title, author, genre, series (if applicable), order code, price, and add to cart button; the middle column is the book description; the right-hand column is the publisher's contact information. The secondary page is based on a template so the appearace remains consistent from book to book.

Services for this Project

Modern, responsive website design, image optimization and size standard, editing of description copy, shopping cart, page template design for easy site updates.

Marketing

Marketing of books by this publisher is generated by the authors themselves. Marketing material provided to the authors are fliers, postcards, and bookmarks. Press releases are occasionally written and sent out for new books.

More Information about this Project

For more information on this project, please feel free to reach out at jean@jperlee.com.