ABR Project Spotlight: SIGMA OEM

May 23

Redesigning the SIGMA OEM Website

SIGMA OEM has been a respected offshore manufacturer of castings and other components for 35 years. The SIGMA OEM website had become an amalgamation of the different visions held by various leaders that had run the division over the years, reflecting the different, and often conflicting priorities of each. This created a chaotic message based on outdated technology, and did not accurately reflect the well-respected $60MM global business enterprise.

The need for a redesigned website

The company website needed the redesign because:

The site had not been updated in about ten years, so the technology was outdated.

Even minor adjustments were impossible because ongoing updates had not been conducted and the template was discontinued.
The site was extremely text heavy, with few design elements.
The navigation and design were not very user friendly

The goal of the SIGMA OEM site is twofold: to provide a resource for customers once a sales contact has been made, and to educate prospective customers about SIGMA OEM’s products and services.

ABR Tip: This situation is not uncommon with successful B2B companies that do not sell directly from their website. Companies that use their websites as more of an “online brochure” don’t always realize the importance of keeping their site fresh and up to date with content, design, and SEO trends.

Enter ABR Creative.

We met with Executive Vice President Mitchell Rona to understand his vision.

His main goal was to create a clean, organized site that he could refer prospective and current customers to as a resource and a reaffirmation of SIGMA OEM’s business operations, process, and the breadth of their offerings.

Kathy Searles, Head of New Product Development “From the beginning, we knew this would be starting from scratch. We were able to meet with the ABR Team and convey what we wanted from the site and they translated that into a well-designed site with clear messaging.”

The Solution

We created a visually pleasing website that broke up dense copy to make it more palatable for the reader.

Because SIGMA OEM’s products are all made from proprietary designs, they cannot be displayed publicly, which made visuals a bit of a challenge.We created graphics to depict SIGMA OEM’s processes, materials, and service models, integrated animations to showcase their advantages, and used short, crisp copy in varied font sizes, styles, and colors to display the information.

We created a concise navigation and a friendlier user experience. If prospective clients have to hunt around for the information they need, they are unlikely to stay on your site.

By building the site in Squarespace, we ensured that SIGMA OEM has a lot of opportunity to use the site for marketing purposes.

We helped SIGMA OEM develop a blog to keep their clients updated on their products and the industry as a whole.

ABR Tip: Many B2B companies don’t realize how important a blog can be to SEO (search engine optimization). According to a recent article by Hubspot, “Companies with blogs produce an average of 67% more leads monthly than companies that don't blog. (DemandMetric)"

When it comes to B2Bs that don’t sell products online and their basic information doesn’t often change, websites can easily become stagnant. A blog can help to keep the site fresh and relevant. According to Liz Cortes, Local Business Strategist, in an article for Linkedin,

“First and foremost, blogging allows businesses to consistently produce fresh and relevant content. Search engines like Google prioritize websites that provide valuable and up-to-date information to their users. By regularly updating your blog with new content, you signal to search engines that your website is active and relevant, which can improve your search engine rankings.”

A “new” fresh design for SIGMA OEM

SIGMA OEM was very happy with the end result, as were we!

Searles commented: “ABR Creative did a great job displaying a lot of information in a visually clean, digestible way. They were responsive, turned things around quickly, and offered creative solutions to address our need to protect our customer confidentiality around the products.”

Check out the website in its entirety at www.sigmaoem.com.

If you think your website it due for an update, contact ABR Creative for a free consultation!