Village Center South Lake Tahoe

The Village Center in South Lake Tahoe is a well-established, centrally located shopping complex across from the Marriott/Heavenly Village. It features a wide array of boutiques, art galleries, dining, and services, including a Target. It is known for a European-style, pedestrian-friendly atmosphere with convenient access to nearby casinos and the Heavenly Gondola.

Journey

Before

After

Objective

Village Center South Lake Tahoe came to us with a mission to overhaul their aging site design with something more manageable that highlighted the shops and dining at the prestigious shopping center. We crafted a plan to bring them back into the limelight:

Develop a new brand that was mountain chic but approachable.
Redesign the website to emphasize the variety and uniqueness of the boutiques and shops.
Make it easier for customers to find their way around the center.
Improve search engine rankings and user engagement.

Approach

Our team started with the brand, working hand-in-hand with the client, who already had their own idea. We loved the idea, but the illustration was rough and lacking balance.

With minimal effort we were able to deliver a logo that unified the client’s idea with font choices and colors that appeal the the end customers.

After brand and design systems were established, we set to improving the website on every front:

We simplified the entire back-end system, removing the need for the client to add News posts. The focus became the shops, which are now highlighted on almost every page.
We added an interactive, mobile-responsive, 3D map of the center and the surrounding the roads to make getting around the center and understanding its layout and shop locations.
We improved the messaging for parking so that customers could better understand the difference between all-day and 2-hour parking options.
We contacted and hired a local photographer to add some authentic action and establishing shots that better represented the true experience of the center.
Along with these features, we also added a dedicated page for art galleries and murals and a tenant login page.

Impact

The shopping center loves the new site and brand:

The website now reflects the authority and beauty of this mountain village shopping experience with a focus on its shops.
The brand now has a style and a consistent set of logos and orientations to use across all media environments.
Each shop page is a great overview of what customers might find there and also includes several ways to find and get in touch with the shop.
Visitors can easily navigate to projects that match their preference and contact the firm on every page.
Due to its simplified, yet strategically architected design and SEO, traffic and engagement saw an immediate lift.

Results

Improved SEO and engagement within weeks of launch
Increase of Organic Traffic by 116%
Happier tenants reported more contacts through the website
Easier UX through focusing on customers main journeys

Gallery

village center website homepage showing responsive mobile design

village center map showing art locations

This custom logo animation shows the Village Center South Lake Tahoe logo flying into the scene with lighting effects. Created to be used for commercial openings for the shopping center and its tenants.