Second engagement: from brand strategy to website execution
My first engagement with Opinew produced the brand foundation — logo, color system, type system, and messaging strategy. The second engagement was about applying it. The existing website was misaligned with the new brand direction in almost every dimension: the visual language didn't reflect the new identity, the navigation structure didn't match how Opinew's target users think about review management tools, and the above-fold content wasn't making the value proposition clear within the first few seconds.
The brief for the redesign was specific: reduce the time it takes for a prospect to understand what Opinew does and why it's credible, restructure the navigation so it reflects user intent rather than internal product taxonomy, and produce a site that would work as a conversion tool, not just a brochure.
2nd
Opinew engagement — brand system applied to live product
1 mo
Research, design, and delivery — focused sprint
Full
Site redesign: navigation, hero, feature pages, brand application
Four problems making the website work against the brand
Navigation built for internal logic, not user intent
The existing navigation was organised around Opinew's product features — the way the team thought about their product, not the way prospects searched for a solution. Users trying to answer "can this tool handle my review workflow?" had to explore multiple sections before finding relevant information. Navigation redesign needed to start from user questions, not product categories.
Above-fold section didn't establish credibility
The hero section led with a product feature description rather than an outcome statement. Trust signals — client logos, review counts, social proof — were below the fold or absent from the critical first viewport. For a product in the review management space, this was particularly damaging: the product's value is credibility, and the website wasn't demonstrating it.
Dropdown menus were overwhelming
The existing dropdown navigation exposed too many options at once with no hierarchy between them. Prospects faced a wall of links when hovering over primary navigation items — creating decision paralysis rather than guided exploration. The redesign needed dropdowns that were scannable, prioritised by user need, and visually clear about what each section contained.
Brand system wasn't reflected in the UI
The visual language of the existing site predated the rebrand and hadn't been updated. Color usage was inconsistent, typography didn't reflect the new type system, and component styles were a mix of old and transitional patterns. The new site needed to be the canonical application of the brand system — the reference point for everything that came after.
The brand work established the vocabulary. The website redesign was the first time everything in that vocabulary appeared together — every decision was a test of whether the system held under real content and real user flows.
Four design decisions that defined the outcome
Navigation restructured around user intent
I mapped the questions prospects actually asked when evaluating review management tools — grouped them by intent (exploring the product, comparing plans, integrating with their platform) — and built the navigation structure around those intents. This produced a navigation that directed users toward answers rather than into a product taxonomy they didn't share.
Trust signals moved above the fold
Client logos, review platform integrations, and social proof were moved into the first viewport — not as secondary decorations, but as primary elements of the hero composition. The hero section was rewritten to lead with the outcome for the user ("grow sales with verified reviews") rather than a description of the product.
Dropdown redesigned for clarity and scannability
The new dropdown navigation uses clear visual grouping, descriptive labels, and reduced option count per menu. Each dropdown item explains what the user will find, not just what it's called. The visual hierarchy within dropdowns mirrors the priority of user questions — most common first, advanced options secondary.
Canonical brand application
Every component — buttons, cards, form fields, typography scales, color usage — was implemented against the brand system defined in the first engagement. The website became the reference implementation: the document that settled any future question about how the brand should look in a digital context.
What shipped
Navigation System
Restructured primary navigation and dropdown menus — organised by user intent with clear visual hierarchy and reduced cognitive load
Hero Section
Above-fold content rewritten and redesigned — outcome-led messaging, trust signals in the first viewport, conversion-focused CTA hierarchy
Feature Pages
Individual pages for core product capabilities with consistent visual hierarchy, benefit framing, and clear next-step actions
Brand Application
Complete implementation of the new logo, color system, and typography across every page type — canonical reference for all future digital production
A website that earns trust before it sells features
The redesign delivered a website that worked in two directions simultaneously: it communicated what Opinew was within the first seconds of landing, and it gave users who wanted to explore a clear, logical path to find what they needed.
The brand system — built in the first engagement, applied in this one — produced something more durable than a design refresh: a consistent visual language that Opinew's team could extend without starting from scratch for every new page or campaign. The website became the foundation, not just the output.