Site-wide
Design System

Global CMS solutions | Branded Customer Decision Journey

Site-wide
Design System

Global CMS solutions | Branded Customer Decision Journey

OBJECTIVE

KitchenAid.com's
AEM Component-Based Site Redesign

Role | Lead Digital Designer

Starting in the spring of 2018, I had the opportunity to flourish as the Lead Designer of KitchenAid.com’s digital redesign, collaborating with our compact team of strategy, copy, and development specialists from conception to execution. We created an Adobe Experience Manager friendly, component-based design system that’s on-brand for KitchenAid’s iconic presence.

Agency | Aisle Rocket (Chicago, IL)

2019

Brand Needs | D2C Ecommerce

The highly anticipated transition of the brand into a digital experience should feel premium and relevant – but also respectful of the historic emotional attachment associated with the legendary brand. We created approachable digital brand guidelines via components that were:

a visual balance of color, aspiration, and emotion.
considerate of the brand’s future strategic needs and priorities.
empathetic, open-minded and ever advancing interpretation of client’s feedback.

Design

Nicole Engle
Chelsey Dever
Bob Sprecher

Copy

Jessica Farac
Aaron Adams

Development

Chet Farley

Strategy

Joe Brodicki

Account

Sarah Senour

Team Approach

Evolving and elevating the digital presence with a sensitivity that continues the story – thoughtfully oozing KitchenAid’s true identity on all devices.

Every piece of the design system was crafted to pass the storytelling torch. We equipped members throughout the corporation with non-constricting, cohesive templates to tell future brand stories: brand spotlights, product introductions, promotions/sales, and more.

View the live experiences for Kitchenaid brand, major appliances and countertop appliances

PROCESS

Enhancing Ability to Tell Digital Stories

balance color, aspiration and emotion with future strategic needs and priorities

designed with everyone in mind

Embracing Adobe Experience Manager with big picture understanding of the site’s story architecture, we created a design system that was considerate, motivated and empathetic of a brand’s future strategic needs and priorities.

Adaptable and cohesive storytelling across all high traffic points of site entry, unique to the brand: Brand homepage, Major Appliance sub-homepage and Countertop Appliance sub-homepage. We targeted team effort- with an appreciation for how the user relates to the product, mindful of the intention of all the hands that brought the product/brand to life along the way.

elevated with intention

With all aspects of a brand's dream-state in mind, we found balance through intuitive visual guidelines. Translating the brand’s digital presence with an open-minded and ever-evolving interpretation of client’s feedback; anticipating strategic brand and ecommerce goals.

Each component designed with intention to grow and enhance Kitchenaid’s ability to tell rich digital stories, annotated in guidelines used within the digital universe of the Kitchenaid brand. Approachable concepts like the Rule of Thirds act as a starting point for site messaging, intended to keep all tentacles of the brand visually rooted with the same goal in mind.

meaningful interaction

Playfully embracing the brand’s priorities with strategically placed interactions- increasing product knowledge at a glance.We planned resources and team effort around high impact points in the user journey; with KPI-adaptable, interactive storytelling elements.

Beautifully responsive components encourage interaction, as the viewer visually absorbs product features. Built with deep product understanding, features are highlighted with intention to resonate with brand loyalists and first time site-visitors.

RESULTS

Post launch metrics

DESIGN SYSTEM

+63%

Increase in user traffic

International digital brand guidelines and evergreen components successfully adapted to the rapidly changing industry landscape.

Over 2.5 million page visits

in May 2020 alone.

IMPACT

3rd in Prophet’s Brand Relevance Index

Prophet Brand Relevance Index, 2021

“Best in 'lives up to its promises', climbing to #3 from #6 overall"

"Many people think of it in terms of its iconic stand míxer, helping Americans bake their favorite recipes. But this pragmatic powerhouse turned customers into budding domestic gods and goddesses who appreciate all its offerings, from coffee roasters to major appliances.”

What makes a brand relevant?

“Our research finds that this exceptional achievement – a constant balance between evolution and authenticity – is no accident. Four undeniable forces drive these brands: they are customer obsessed, ruthlessly pragmatic, distinctively inspired, and pervasively innovative.”