Overview
As the Swinburne Solar Team undertook its' journey to build Swinburne University's first solar-powered race car, they approached me to help them get a website off the ground. The initial outcome was to create a one-page website that gave investors an easy way to support them without too much fuss.
The Problem
The Swinburne Solar Team is a student-led project and didn't have an enormous time frame for the completion of the website. It was crucial the site could be launched quickly without limiting the end design.
The Process
Due to the limited time frame with the project, it was important to move as quickly as possible through all stages of the process, especially the research phase. Although we butted heads over the importance of the research phase, I was still able to undertake just enough research to still be happy with the final outcome.
1. Discovery
To get the project started, it was important to work out what style might work best for Swinburne Solar Team. Through early exploration, it became obvious that a simple and bold style would be the best suited to their needs. A clean design would allow prospects to quickly find all relevant information needed to help support the project, while also allowing the website to be developed and launched quickly.
2. Plan
During initial discussions with the team, we began planning out the layout of the simple site. By the end of the meeting, we had all of sites elements planned out. The aim throughout this project was to move fast and adjust later.
Simple plan and sketch from the first meeting
3. Build
During initial discussions with the team, we began planning out the layout of the simple site. By the end of the meeting, we had all of sites elements planned out. The aim throughout this project was to move fast and adjust later.
3a. Design Guide
As with all projects, it's important to have a style guide in place to drive the project. Seeing as the project is a team within Swinburne University, it naturally made sense to use the red and black from Swinburne's styling.
3b. Prototype
As time was of the essence for this project, I didn't spend as long on the prototypes compared to my usual process. Nevertheless, it was still highly important to get a lo-fi prototype completed to guide the development of the project.
Prototype based on initial sketch
3c. Divi
The Swinburne Solar Team had previously been using a drag and drop builder for their website, so I wanted to keep the site consistent for them. Therefore, I opted for Divi - a simple drag and drop builder used for WordPress sites. This would allow the team to make changes on the fly in a way they were familiar with.
Final Design
The site is now live, and accessible to the public.