CSRB Case Study
In the world of web development, success and sustainability are often seen as competing concepts.
We tend to think of successful websites as being interactive, bold, comprehensive, and filled with engaging elements such as videos and infographics. And we see sustainable sites as being smaller, plainer; as having less ‘oomph’. Well, our work with CSRB might make you think differently…
Making the shift to sustainability
Personal data protection experts CSRB had a beautiful, attractive website that excelled in instilling trust with their customers. But following a period of significant growth, a few changes were needed to keep the business website up-to-date. Sounds simple, right? That’s what we thought!
But there was one massive caveat: The new website also had to be incredibly sustainable.
CSRB saw the need to redesign their website as a fantastic opportunity to make some eco-friendly transformations. And that meant seeking out a new development partner. While they had been really happy with their previous developer, an agency with three decades of experience helping businesses grow through creative graphic design, it was time to take the next step. Managing Director Chris Burn envisioned a ‘fast loading, clean, dynamic, brochure-style website’.
Ultimately, they had reviewed all of their services, and wanted to market them in a more simple, back-to-basics format that would showcase their partnerships as well as their eco-conscious nature. The challenge? Demonstrating competence, credibility, and integrity without relying on rich media.
So which brave web development company took on this huge challenge? Well, it could only be us.
Soto already had a distant relationship with Chris. We’d been supporting his sister’s health & safety training company for years, and had been running in the same networking circles for a while.
“I already knew what Soto was capable of, and wanted their expert knowledge on the whole web package, not just the outward-facing interface. I wanted advice and support with page load speeds, SEO, design, page layout, copy, and of course the sustainable elements of the new website.”
Building sustainability into the very core
We started by focusing on the structure of the site. We had to choose a lightweight framework that would not only load quickly – consuming less energy per view – but still maintain a user-friendly backend. The natural choice was Elementor, which meant we could build super light pages.
With the foundations in place, we then developed a style built around the idea of basic line drawings. Not quite as simplistic as stick people, but certainly along the same lines! And this was one of the most exciting parts of the entire project for us. Usually, limited imagery is seen as a bad thing. But we were able to put a positive spin on it, using the style throughout the entire site to give a professional finish, reinforce the brand and its values, and really drive home this commitment to sustainability.
“We saw the new vision for CSRB on a test site, got to experience the change in loading speed, and saw a carbon report on the new site in comparison to the old. Once we’d taken a look through everything and signed off on the project, we quickly had a launch date for the new CSRB website!”
Developing a low carbon leader
Within six weeks, we’d created a site that not only sent the right brand message, but also promoted trust and integrity without having a notable impact on the planet. The end result was a site that had a page weight of less than 510 KB, and was responsible for just 0.378g of CO2 per page view.
Wondering if that’s good? It’s not just good… it’s lowwwcarbon good.
Lowwwcarbon is a website that celebrates the best low-carbon sites on the web. And we’re absolutely thrilled to say that CSRB’s new site met the criteria to be featured in the showcase!
While we’d been anxious to ensure CSRB’s clients would still feel they could place their trust in the company, we needn’t have been worried. We were delighted to hear that, when Chris asked a new client, “Why us?”, the response was, “Your website gave the feeling that we were in a safe pair of hands.”
“CSRB consider Soto to be more than just a supplier. They’re a knowledgeable and specialist trusted partner, and they’ve fast become a key part of our commercial and sustainable growth plans.”
