A Project to be Proud of...

Reenactment at Colonial Williamsburg, VA

Over the last ten years of developing products at Mobelux, one thing has proven itself time and again. If you do something really well once and put it out there, other people will want something similar.

In 2016, we took on a new kind of project with Montpelier where we built them a new platform - not a website - but a platform for their evolving content and storytelling needs. Although it was a challenging project, it will always be one that I am very proud of. It was our first historical site project and our first in helping define what we thought would work well for storytelling and engaging content.

Great projects open doors. The big door that would be opened was the opportunity to work with Colonial Williamsburg.

My wife is from this historical area. Growing up in Virginia around Williamsburg and Yorktown means something. Flags are a common staple on homes. Historical facts thrown into family discussions are the norm. Being a Patriot and appreciating all of the sacrifices that have been made for our freedoms is what comes from seeing and experiencing the hallowed grounds of Colonial Williamsburg and Yorktown. It is one of those things that makes Virginia special.

So when the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation reached out to see what Mobelux could potentially do for them, I was honestly giddy.

Here is the truth: Destination sites are facing tough challenges each year drawing families to their locations in order to stay profitable. Our nation's pinnacle of history is not immune to these challenges. On top of a lot of content, there were also multiple technology challenges that would need to get solved to help with budget and an ability to better support a team.

When we started work with Montpelier, one of the first challenges was getting them to cut. There were about 5,000 pages of content where really only two to three pages accounted for all of the traffic on their website. It was essentially a ton of content that nobody wanted to read or engage with. We convinced them to cut pretty much everything.

When we looked at Colonial Williamsburg, they had over 15,000 pages. The challenge with Colonial Williamsburg is that they serve very diverse audiences. Historical scholars, teachers, students, vacationers, to even the individuals that play the fifes. Yep, their sheet music is all there.

Our job at Mobelux? To challenge what currently exists and see if there is a better way. And then figure out how to build it.

Our company website highlights more of the specifics of how we helped modify their brand and built their website. What is more important to me though is that we were able to create real change that will help them moving forward for many years. Great design is functional and core and usually requires cutting. Simplifying is more challenging than most people realize.

I am grateful that Colonial Williamsburg gave us the opportunity to work with them. I look forward to the future of that relationship and how we will continue to help play a supporting role.