Web Design Case Study: Facet Architects

Case Study

Since 1958, Loren’s Sanitation and Recycling has been a beloved provider of waste services to Marion County neighborhoods. New ownership sought to honor this history while bringing Loren’s into the modern age. They engaged us to guide them through the rebranding process, as well as creating a new, more useful website. But what started as branding and web development for a single business evolved into a much bigger task: to unify a family of companies under a parent brand and represent them in a multifaceted website—without overcomplicating things.

Along with a united brand design, Apple Tree needed a website that would seamlessly serve the unique audiences of not just one, but four companies. This would require advanced functionality, such as a tool to help users find their local hauler, plus simplified content management that allowed common text to be edited in one place (rather than page-by-page) while accommodating occasional deviations.

Apple Tree Companies logos North Marion and Wheat

The Brand Identity

Once we learned Loren’s would be operating as one of the Apple Tree family companies, we quickly shifted gears. After offering strategic and creative options, and carefully considering the client’s goals, we designed a flexible identity system while leveraging the iconic power of the apple tree symbol.

Apple Tree Companies montage branding

Making the Complex Simple

When it came to their website, we took four separate businesses and created one seamless experience. In the administrative tools, we were able to reduce overwhelm and save the client time when updating, taking advantage of commonalities while supporting variations in each haulers’ service details.

Apple Tree Companies illustrations

Apple Tree Companies North Marion container sizes

Apple Tree Companies Loren's container sizes

Custom Features

In Marion County, where you live determines your garbage hauler, and most new residents don’t know who that is. Further, Apple Tree operates multiple such companies in the county. This created a situation where website visitors were expected to already know who their hauler is, or risk gathering inaccurate information. So we created a custom tool that geolocates users and directs them to their hauler’s website. This gives a more personalized experience while minimizing exposure to the complex site architecture.

Apple Tree Companies web phone find hauler

Crafting Words and Images

Throughout web development, we worked closely with the client to determine what content was most useful and important for their customers. Using this information, and the knowledge we gathered during our branding process, we provided polished copy for every page and created custom illustrations to help convey essential details. We also arranged professional photography of the haulers in action and at community events to help visually represent the authentic, local personality integral to the Apple Tree companies.

Apple Tree Companies web values animation

Apple Tree Companies web callout organic

Apple Tree Companies montage art photos

Lower 3 photos: Damian Byington

Results

We were able to implement a complex set of redirects from multiple sites, helping ensure pages don’t lose organic search ranking.

In the first 2 months after launch, the site saw:

3416

new users

235

form submissions

68%

engagement rate

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Apple Tree Companies

Brand Refresh, Website Redesign

Challenge