IBOS Association has been featured in the SpinDogs BARK publication, in an article highlighting the portal and its functionality.
The article was originally published here on page 56.
CASHING IN A NEW WEBISTE
IBOS is an international banking alliance that provides connectivity for key corporates looking to expand beyond their borders. With an advanced online platform, IBOS provide local banking services on a global scale. Through collaboration and connectivity, IBOS have created a network with some of the largest banking corporations in the world and continue to gain more memberships.
With an already established business offering and growing brand awareness, IBOS approached us with the hopes of streamlining their digital presence to provide an improved UX (user experience) and ultimately encourage more users to become bank members. Overall, IBOS needed a new website that would present them as global market innovators and clearly communicate their vision to potential clients.
PROJECT STATEMENT
Reflective rebranding At Spindogs, we start every project with a discovery meeting to brainstorm our ideas and receive direct feedback from the client. It’s this initial connection with our clients that enables each of our projects to go off without a hitch!
IBOS were looking to start from scratch with a complete rebrand that could be implemented across both their website and a pitchbook. Previously, their design was outdated and lacked imagery due to the nature of IBOS being weighted towards digital opposed to visual.
To get started, we considered different ways we could present IBOS’s position as a global brand within our designs. With their original warm-toned colour scheme in mind, we quickly landed on using images and videos displaying city sunsets and sun rises from around the world. This idea not only created a more visually enticing design, but placed IBOS at the centre of global destinations. Through the imagery, we were then able to pull a range of warm shades that we could implement as a colour palette across the website and promotional material, creating a consistent visual identity for users to instantly recognise.
Simplified domains
Before we could begin building a new website for IBOS, we needed to assess their current website structure and identify key issues that needed to be resolved. Originally, IBOS had two websites, with their public facing website and member system operating on two separate domains: ibosbanks.com and ibosassociation.com. However, as each domain presented a different brand name, clients began to perceive them as separate brands and businesses.
Instead, we suggested using ibosassociation.com as the core website domain and moving the member system onto a subdomain called members.ibosassociation.com. In doing so, a clear brand identity was established, making for a more straightforward user experience going forward.
Flexible multisite
At Spindogs, we always review our clients’ requirements before recommending a CMS (content management system) to implement. In doing so, we can be confident that the CMS platform we use will continue to meet their needs and enable them to reach their future goals.
For IBOS, it was important they had an easy-to-use system that they could regularly access to update their content. As they effectively had two websites, their public facing site and their member system, we recommended building a WordPress multisite. This would allow IBOS to log in to one central system to update the content on both sites, without the hassle of juggling two separate CMS platforms. But, that’s not all!
To make updating their websites as straightforward as possible, we even built a customisable text page with a wide selection of flexible blocks, enabling IBOS to continue creating dynamic pages and content once the project was complete.
Optimised content
One of the key objectives of the new IBOS website was to clearly present the mission of IBOS as a brand. Previously, their website lacked clear direction and it could be challenging for users to fully grasp the purpose of IBOS in the banking industry.
To help reposition IBOS, we agreed to write keyword-rich content for the main pages of the website. This would not only enable users to immediately understand the IBOS offering, but also improve the overall SEO (Search Engine Optimisation) performance and visibility of the website, driving more organic traffic to the IBOS platform.
CHEQUE OUT THE HIGHLIGHTS
Pitchbook
For IBOS it was vital they had a professional pitchbook to present to potential clients. Previously, their pitchbook lacked brand personality and failed to create an enticing visual experience for users.
Implementing the sunset imagery and colour palette we’d created during the redesign process, we were able to create a pitchbook that aligned with their new brand identity. Using an image from a different location at the beginning of each section, the pitchbook took users on a journey around the world, signifying the global reach of IBOS and what clients could achieve in becoming members of the IBOS network. The pitchbook also opened with a sunrise image and ended with a sunset image.
As the pitchbook had large amounts of informative text, we created a set of icons to accompany relevant content to increase the visual experience for users.
Members map
One of the key areas on the IBOS website was the members map, which displayed the geographical range of their clients. On the previous website, this map wasn’t immediately visible on the homepage and risked going unnoticed by users. Instead, we built a more visually engaging members map that can be accessed on both the homepage and on its very own subpage.
As IBOS effectively has two websites, we were able to connect the members map on the public facing site to collect data from the member system, automatically updating the map to display their global network. News function During the design and build of their new website, IBOS requested a News feature that would enable them to keep users and members up to date on company and industry developments. Using WordPress, we were able to add a News page that could be easily accessed through the CMS. Within the News feature, we included additional functionality which meant IBOS could tag an author to a post, link related articles and add category filters.
ACCOUNTING FOR FUTURE DEVELOPMENT
With Spindogs, the end of your project doesn’t have to mean goodbye, as we will continue to support your business and website to reach your future goals!
For IBOS, we have continued to implement their new and improved branding across various promotional materials and documents, including their Annual General Meeting document, Ultimate Beneficial Ownership guide and Account Opening guide. With our continued support, IBOS have been able to consistently deliver visually engaging content to members that’s reflective of their brand identity.
