The Client

Loopwheels are a proud British manufacturer of a world-class innovation in wheel technology. Based in Newark, Nottinghamshire, the globally renowned team design and manufacture shock-absorbing wheelchair wheels with integral suspension which make their customers’ ride more comfortable, and reduce back pain and fatigue.

Loopwheels were looking for an expert WordPress agency to support them in re-imagining their website for the future. Managing Director Gemma Pearce had attended a WordPress workshop delivered by Rob Gregory via the East Midlands Chamber.

After the event Gemma was keen to proceed with a rebuild project with Magnifica as Rob had displayed deep expertise in how to make WordPress work for a business like Loopwheels.

The Challenge

Loopwheels’ previous website had become dated and in need of a refresh. The website was built on the WordPress CMS platform – however there were performance and management issues with its setup, which had grown organically over several years.

Having an over-reliance on multiple plugins and a page builder theme, the website had a legacy feel both in terms of the front-end and the way that it was administered. It was time for a completely new website!

Our Process

1. Discovery and planning
The planning stage consisted of a series of workshops, site audits, information architecture design sessions, as well as the development of hi-fidelity wireframes and prototypes. We also produced acceptance criteria and technical specifications meaning the website was meticulously planned.

Agreeing a blueprint for the site and a roadmap for how the project would be brought to life removed risk and gave all parties the confidence to get started.

2. Design / UI
Using the interactive wireframes, the design phase layered in brand elements and colours to the agreed website prototype. Once this was reviewed and signed off, the build of the site could begin.

3. Content page templates
Building on the wireframes and designs using a custom WordPress theme, we developed a set of page templates. We ensured each area of the site is catered for. Developing reusable components and hooking into the global styles system of the new full site editing tools meant the site would be easily maintainable in the future.

We were sure to remove any reliance on page builders or unnecessary plugins at this stage, instead focusing on the native WordPress theme structures and approaches.

4. Ecommerce page templates
As expert WooCommerce developers, we were able to configure and build page templates for the shop area of the site. This included category pages, product pages and the checkout and payments flow.

5. Homepage
The website homepage should always come once the other content types and areas of the site have been completed. This way it is clear what linked content from other areas should be included and promoted from the homepage.

Working with the Loopwheels team, various visual assets were selected to drive customers towards taking actions that moved them into the right area of the site to answer their questions or serve their needs and interests.

6. Decision tree functionality
Having a range of products to suit different needs and uses a tool was developed to help customers with the question “Which Loopwheels should I buy?”. A simple wizard style feature was developed that included branching logic with links to associated product pages.

7. Retailers area
A key feature of the new website was to allow customers to find a retailer near them. With lots of distributors and retailers around the world it was important to show this in a map view, but also list the contact details for each.

8. Testing and deployment
Once the site was fully developed, and content and assets migrated from the old website, it was deployed to live domain. This stage included setting up the necessary website backups, SSL certificates and hosting resources.

Launching a new site can be risky . . . however we were sure to map all old pages to new ones using the necessary 301 redirects. We also set up Google Analytics and Google Search Console.

The Results

After a successful and problem free launch, the Loopwheels team reported that the site was much easier to manage and update. Fewer errors and administration issues lead to more content being posted.

Over time changes have been made to further improve and optimise the customer experience across the site. A lasting relationship has been established and we look forward to supporting Loopwheels as they continue to thrive online.