Lisa’s Pet Care is a small business located in Cambridge, Ontario. Lisa needed help with the online presence of her business, and we decided to take this on as a class project during the Fall 2018 semester for our Web Development course (FASH4500/BUS2504). This page will be updated regularly throughout the semester, and references to the textbook will be added as needed (note: there will be no references to the textbook for the graphic design and photography components as these are beyond the scope of this course).
Lisa’s Pet Services will be used as a live, ongoing simulation for the duration of the course. By the end of the semester, our Humber team of students will deliver an information website using the WordPress platform (ref: Chapter 1: Web Templates and Content Management Systems).
The class collaborated with a small team of talented students on branding Lisa’s business and creating an information website for her (ref: Chapter 1: Web Design Roles). We would like to thank the following students for volunteering to help us with this project:
- Jacqueline Simpson: Graphic Designer
- Amanda Rice: Blogger & WordPress Developer
- Spencer Fu & Jonah Zapparoli: Photographers
Class Work (Sept 5, 2018)
The class worked in small groups on full analysis and assessment of Lisa’s current website. They started by researching websites of similar businesses in Ontario, and provided suggestions for Lisa’s future website direction in terms of strategy and content. Amanda complied the class suggestions in one document (view PDF) to be presented to Lisa in our upcoming meeting (ref: Chapters 2&3)
Initial Meeting with Lisa (Sept 10, 2018)
Amanda and Jacqueline met with Lisa to discuss the project requirements (ref: Chapter 3):
- Graphic Design: Jacqueline presented logo examples for local competitors in Ontario (Pet Care and Dog Walking Services) and explored modern trends in Pet Care logo designs
- Web Development: Amanda discussed various website styles and analysed competitor websites with Lisa, as well we the suggestions provided by the class
- We finalized a first draft of the Project Requirements Document with Lisa (view PDF)
WordPress Theme Recommendations (Sept 14, 2018):
We provided Lisa with the following suggested themes, based on our meeting above and some in-class research (ref: Chapter 4, Appendix C):
Lisa picked the “Verity” to be configured and upgraded her WordPress account to have access to the paid theme.
Information Architecture Design, class exercise (Sept 19, 2018)
During class, we worked in four small groups on the card-sorting exercise to produce initial storyboards, then the whole class worked as one large group to agree on the website architecture (ref: Chapters 3&4), which will be presented to Lisa during our next meeting (view image of final suggested structure)
Website Update (Oct 3, 2018)
The “Verity” theme was configured using revamped content provided by Lisa, based on our class discussions and Lisa’s feedback (ref: Chapter 4).
Keywords:
Lisa provided the following list of keywords to be used while creating content for the website: Dog Walker, Pet sitter, Cat sitter, Pet house sitter, Pet Care, Pet Services, Dog Care, Cat Care, In Home Pet Care, Vacation Pet Care, Cambridge, Ayr, Flamborough, Branchton, Preston, Hespeler, Galt, Glenmorris, Sheffield, North Dumphries.
Graphic Design (round 1): Presenting Logo Options and Colour Palettes (Oct 3, 2018)
Our graphic designer presented several initial logo concepts through a Skype meeting. Lisa asked for a simplified version of Westie head for the logo (with black button eyes & black nose), inspired by Lisa’s own Westie 🙂
Graphic Design (round 2): Logo Revisions (Oct 10, 2018)
Our graphic designer revised the logo based on Lisa’s feedback, and created options using a simplified Westie head, Lisa picked her favorite
SEO Poster Presentations in Class (Oct 10, 2018)
Lisa joined our class and met the students. Each group had the opportunity to discuss a topic related to SEO and provided Lisa with a “Tip Sheet” on how to increase traffic to her website (ref: Appendix D). The following topics were presented, with tips and handouts specifically for Lisa’s business:
- Search Engine Marketing – Google Ads (handout)
- Instagram – Business accounts (handout)
- Writing content for blogging and Social Media (handout)
- WordPress.com Site Stats – functionality, best practices (handout)
- Facebook & Twitter (handout)
- YouTube (handout)
- Referral links
Graphic Design (round 3), Oct 10: Final logo & Branding Assets
Jacqueline provided the final revised logo, and graphics of the characters only for the website
Blogging Strategy:
We’re working with Lisa on developing a long-term blogging plan:
Next steps:
- Photoshoot (with Spencer TBD)
- Business cards and flyer (graphic design)
- Blogging strategy for Lisa (ref: Chapter 6, Blogs) to be completed by Lisa
Testimonial from Lisa:
I can’t believe how far I have come since starting this journey with Hanadi and her class. I really didn’t know how or what I was doing but knew (or thought I did) where I wanted to go.
I had zero understanding or knowledge on how to create a webpage or purposefully use social media to help build and market my business.
The FASH 4500/BUS2504 class both developed my business website and my personal direction. The classes level of dedication to teaching me how to steer my on-line presence, my graphic design development and business goals were amazing. What a talented group of young people!
Hanadi’s experience steers the students through the curriculum using real life small businesses in need of help and creates a unique learning experience for both the students and the small business owner.
Thank you Hanadi, class of FASH4500/BUS2504, Jacqueline, Amanda and Spencer!
Much Love and Appreciation,
Lisa Rankin
Lisa’s Pet Care
Hanadi Alnawab 