In this blog we share with you how we used Leverice to plan, execute and launch our shiny new website.
We started with a very simple structure and gradually used some of the unique platform features, as we moved through the different stages described below.
Background
Our previous website was around a year old and no longer reflected the platform accurately and our vision for the future. We had used an external agency to build our old website and it was simply taking too long to update it. Hence, with the new website we made the decision to bring it in-house.
Stage 1: Lot of Brainstorming
We started with a blank sheet of paper and had a series of brainstorming sessions with the team. ‘New Website’ sub-channel was born and we used the whiteboard feature initially to agree on the key points. We even spent 2 hours on one of the Zoom calls to pick the right colors!
New website sub channel is born
Stage 2: Fundamental Design and Structure Decisions Made
Over time as some of the fundamental decisions were made, we expanded the structure and created a channel tree for the main sections of the new website.
Leverice allows you to select messages from an existing channel and easily move them to a new channel, or spawn a new channel from them when you think they touch on a subject that will involve more than a one-off question and response. You can add/remove team members for that particular sub channel. This ensures messages are relevant to the topic being discussed and avoids distracting other team members.
Select messages and create new channels/topics
Stage 3: Creating Content and Page Layouts. Inviting External Specialists to the Workspace
Bulk of the design for the new website was prepared by our very own talented Vasili. He is a self-proclaimed perfectionist and likes to create several different concepts, which sometimes makes it harder to decide, because they are all so good!
Credits list for content is long and we also used some external specialists. Ilya deserves a special mention here for his extensive SEO work.
Leverice makes it really easy to invite external partners to your internal workspace. Partners can use native mobile apps, web or thick desktop client interfaces.
Bulk invite users, Mobile app iOS, Android
Stage 4: Build, QA – Let’s Get Work Done
Once some of the key design decisions were made, our web developers started working on building the new website out in parallel.
We used Leverice for our regular planning meetings with the team and kept progress and action items updated in a central place.
Development effort was led by soft spoken and supremely talented Anton and well supported by Nikita.
Create regular meetings and manage agenda items
Stage 5: Feedback, Review and Launch
As we got closer to completion, we decided to invite some of our pilot customers to give us feedback on the new website. We also had to review LinkedIn, Social media accounts and existing marketing materials to see what changes would be needed to make it a consistent brand experience across all channels.
Marketing campaigns were planned to announce the launch of the new website.
Final special shout out for Ekaterina, who easily juggles multiple projects, always with a broad smile!
Create relay batons and manage your tasks
Outcome: Using Leverice, We Were Able to:
- Effectively communicate as a distributed team working across different time zones
- Invite external specialists to the right topics for their contribution
- Store relevant documents in the right place for everyone to access
- Plan regular meetings and track progress
- Track Development and QA activities with the JIRA plugin
- Engage our customers for valuable feedback
- Keep everyone aligned and fully informed on the context throughout
