View on Desktop for an interactive experience.
Colorado Drinks
Colorado Drinks is a beverage logistics company that focuses on sourcing premium, family-owned wines and craft beers, and delivering them to distributors and retailers across the U.S. and Europe.
Type of Project
Web Design • Digital Design • Brand/Identity • Wordpress
Completed
January 2023​
Project Outline
​
This is the outline I follow for a website design project. On this page, I will focus on Phase 01 through Phase 03.​
​​​​​​
​​​​​
Phase 01: Define + Empathize
In this phase, we define business goals and success criteria for the website, identified challenges, and developed potential solutions. We also outline the target audience and conducted market research. ​
Phase 02: Ideate - Design + Branding
​
In this phase, we explore visual branding ideas for the website by creating and presenting mood boards to select a visual style. We also finalize the tone of voice for the brand. A high fidelity mock up is created of the website in Adobe XD.
​
​
Phase 03: Implementation
In this phase, we select the CMS, choose the domain, and set up hosting. The design is then built on the platform chosen.
​
​
Phase 04: Feedback + Testing
The website is QA'd on all viewports and feedback is given. The website page speed is also checked and any revisions needed We repeat this phase until the website is ready for final approval!
​
​
Phase 05: Completion
​
The client and I work together to create a plan for website maintenance and management. If clients wish to manage their website independently, I provide a "Pass-Off" document that outlines the website’s features and explains how to maintain it. I also have a session to educate them on the platform.​​​​​​​​​​​
01 Define + Empathize
This phase focuses on gaining a deeper understanding of the client’s business and specific needs. We define the business goals and success criteria for the website, identify key challenges, and develop solutions. We also outline the target audience and conduct market and competitor research. To ensure a thorough understanding of your business, I ask a set of tailored questions for every client. My goal is to ensure we're fully aligned and I have a clear grasp of your objectives. Additionally, we review CMS options and discuss which pages are essential. Using this information, I analyze how competitors in your industry are approaching their branding.
Proposed Solution
Colorado Drinks needs an SEO-friendly, mobile-responsive website built on an open-source CMS like WordPress. The site will be visually appealing and informative while clearly conveying their passion for craft beer and artisan wines. It will also showcase their expertise in supply chain management and reflect the purpose behind what they do and who they do it for.
The website must demonstrate their dedication to bringing high-quality craft beer and wine from family-owned businesses to consumers worldwide. Additionally, it will enhance their credibility with clients and potential business partners, while highlighting featured producers and their products. ​
Phase 02: Ideate - Design + Branding
In this phase, I focus on refining the messaging, overall tone, and brand portrayal that the client wants for their business. I integrate insights from market and competitor research while keeping the emphasis on how we want viewers to feel when interacting with the brand. The goal is to align the emotional experience with strategic insights.I frequently work with businesses that have little to no branding, often just a logo and a single color. The work done in this phase helps establish their branding foundation for the long term.
Brand Assessment
Colorado Drinks didn’t have an established brand or brand guidelines, only a logo available in black or white. This meant I was starting from scratch to build their entire branding. I asked a few questions to gain a deeper understanding:
​
-
What emotions do you want your viewers to feel when experiencing your brand?
-
If your brand had a personality, what keywords would you use to describe it?
-
What adjectives would you use to describe your brand?
-
What type of experience do you want to provide to your viewers?
Visual Experience & Keywords
The owners expressed a desire for the website to be image-driven, aiming to create a visual experience that makes viewers feel both delighted and reassured in their business. They would like their brand and tone of voice to be friendly, professional, and personable.
Established
Welcoming
Reliable
Personable
 |  |  |
|---|---|---|
 |  |  |
 |  |  |
|  | |
 |  |  |
 |  |  |
 |
Color Studies
I presented them with different color palettes to see which ones they were drawn to for their brand. From there,I then created mood boards based off of the color palettes chosen. ​
I had everything I needed to create mood boards.
Mood Boards
I presented mood boards for their website, each created based on the selected keywords and color palette. Each mood board includes a color scheme, imagery, keywords and phrases, shape/element ideas, and typography suggestions. We also looked at websites and brands that fit with theme of the mood board.
 |  |  |  |
|---|
Overall Brand
After thoughtful consideration, the "Organic & Airy" direction was chosen for its warm, inviting, and "home-grown" aesthetic. This style perfectly aligned with the company’s core values and mission. The owners felt that this branding approach reflected their deep connection to the natural origins of their products, showcasing the authenticity and care that goes into picking their clients.
It also highlighted their commitment to sustainability and environmental impact. The "Organic & Airy" feel encapsulated the essence of their client's products—rooted in nature, crafted with care, and made to evoke a sense of comfort and connection to the earth. This branding choice would not only resonate with their target audience but also emphasize their passion for quality, craftsmanship, and environmental responsibility.​
​
Key Components
-
Natural colors
-
Images focused in nature or structures placed in nature
-
Organic shapes
-
Sans serif fonts paired with handwritten fonts
​
I began on creating the visual brand for Colorado Drinks!
​
Color Palette
This color palette draws inspiration from nature while also capturing the essence of beer and wine. The dark green symbolizes the natural world, while the lighter green represents hops, a key ingredient in beer. The gold evokes wheat and white wine, as well as a sense of warmth and friendliness. The bright red symbolizes grapes, used in wine production, and the dark red reflects the richness and depth of wine.
Typography
​
Lexend Tera and Lexend Deca were both chosen for their friendly, approachable and professional feel.
They are also Google Fonts and are an ideal choice for websites.
​
The Signature was chosen as an accent font to give the brand a sense of personal touch. It conveys authenticity and gives an appearance of an organic, handcrafted look.
​
Graphic Elements​
​I designed two graphic elements for the brand and website. ​
​
The mountain element is meant to look like the Rocky Mountains, located in Colorado. ​
​​
The paintbrush element adds texture, reinforcing the "homegrown" theme.​
Mock Up
After developing the brand, I created the mock up of the website on Desktop. This was used to show them what the page will look like and get any feedback before implementing on Wordpress. We were able to work together to get an idea of how each page would flow and major adjustments were made. Additional pages were also added.
Phase 03 Implementation
This is where I take my mock up and make it come to life on Wordpress. As I said earlier, a lot of changes happen between the mock up and final product. Take a look and see what it looks like today.