Overview
A simple Google search of "massage therapy near me" would show you the largest and most popular massage clinics on the first page. Majority of people would choose one of the first few results and move on. Which makes it very difficult for independent medical therapists to be discovered and compete with larger organizations. The Arts of Healing website redesign would put a small business on par with larger clinics in terms of visual presentation, while SEO-optimization and other changes would make it competitive in search engines and improve client growth.
The Problem
With a large number of massage and therapy businesses competing for clients, there is a huge challenge for any small businesses to stand out, both in terms of search engine algorithms and service offerings. I was approached by the owner of The Arts of Healing, a local therapy massage practitioner, who wanted to have their website improved and modernized to reach more potential clients.
How might we showcase the value of Arts of Healing massage therapy to potential users so that more of them would discover it and choose it over the competition?
The Solution
The redesigned Arts of Healing website is built to stand on par with much larger businesses in terms of branding and service marketing. It follows the best content design practices for websites in its particular niche, and communicates the unique value of Arts of Healing in an informative and user-friendly way.
Client Requirements
During a live consultation with the client, I got to know the business, what is the brand language that the client wants to communicate with the website, and what improvements they are looking for. Importantly, I also analyzed every page of the website and suggested other areas of improvement that could make the website even more effective in appealing to potential vistors.
Heuristic Evaluation
As I was talking with the client, I quickly realized that their major concern was that they were using GoDaddy website builder, which had many technical limitations that did not allow them to add many important elements that are required for websites of this type. The technical limitations also caused lots of instances of poor user experience, such as confusing site navigation and inconsistent graphic design.
Visual Design Inspiration
To make sure that my client's massage business website is consistent with industry standards and client expectations, I gathered design inspirations by looking at most popular massage clinic websites in the same local area and noting down any website elements that should be included into my client's site. By doing so, I made sure that my client's website is on par with industry standards.
Improved Sitemap & Content
After looking at how other massage therapy websites are structured and understanding what elements should be on every page, I adapted a similar but simplified structure for my client's website, as per client's requirements. The overarching goal of such websites is to inform the visitor about the business, the types of treatment that the business offers, and finally to bring the visitor to the contact page.
At this point in the process, I saw the limitations of client's current website builder. And thus we chose to migrate the website from GoDaddy web builder to Framer. That allowed me to vastly improve the page layouts, graphic design and make the website fully responsive. I also took time to elaborate upon the website branding, improving colour variance, upscaling the brand logo and expanding typography choices.
Final Solution
By working closely with the client and accomplishing their goals of redesigning and improving the website, it was finally ready for delivery. This redesigned The Arts of Healing website promotes the small massage therapy business to potential visitors by showcasing the unique value that this business can provide. While the SEO-optimized content, user-friendly website layout and professional graphic design makes the website competitive and on par with bigger players in the industry.
A User-Friendly & Responsive Website
Landing Page - Before and After
Pricing Page - Before and After
Treatment Info Pages - Before and After
Takeaways
As a designer tasked with improving a website, ongoing and constructive dialogue with client is paramount. Even if a client is content with minor adjustments, it's beneficial to exceed their expectations by proposing further improvements. This ensures that client's business is showcased in the best possible manner, and is on a path to growth and success.
