The Saskatchewan government established “Creative Saskatchewan” in 2013 to stimulate the commercialization of creative products and to bring creative talent to the market. They offer grants to individuals to help better position creative industries to contribute to economic growth. Individuals undertaking creative industry projects and endeavours that include music and sound recording, screen-based media, visual arts and craft, publishing, and live performing arts are all encouraged to apply for grants through Creative Saskatchewan.
Creative Saskatchewan realized that in order to best cater to “creative industries,” they had to focus on revamping their website and integrate a grant management system that accepts applications and allows administrators to manage them. Additionally, their previous website failed miserably to reflect their identity, brand, and culture. Following is a screenshot for you to judge yourself:
Stay Creative, Saskatchewan!
Through a competitive bidding process, 2 Web Design was selected among a list of other reputable agencies across Saskatchewan. They felt that we provided the best value of services and direction to help them achieve their online goals. Justifiably, we were honoured to accept the contract and got working by setting a direction for the design. After some intense discovery sessions to capture the essence of Creative Saskatchewan, our work was welcomed by management. We refreshed the website with colours and layouts that emphasize and highlight artistry and creativity.
Information Architecture
Their old website – being a single pager – lacked depth and content, and, as a result, lacked information to engage their audience and fresh content to engage Google. We incorporated clear navigation to direct visitors to key areas of the website, including a Call-To-Action (CTA) encouraging users to apply directly for grants. The new site also contains a colour-coded events calendar to highlight Creative Saskatchewan and their partner events and workshops. The blog section provides a platform to educate and provide news to their readers and stimulates engagement.
User Experience
To be as trendy online as they are in person, we insisted that Creative Saskatchewan be built with responsive design to allow the website to deliver the best user experience regardless of the screen or device size.
We also assisted with the coordination, preparation, and integration of an external grant program to allow users to apply for grants directly through the website.
Success Stories
The “Success Stories” section is a crucial area of their new website. The ability for Creative Saskatchewan to share the success stories acts as social proof that demonstrates how they have helped “creative industries” be successful in Saskatchewan.
The newly refreshed website for Creative Saskatchewan is bursting with creativity in every pixel. Check it out for yourself and let us know how you think the team did!
