Presenting our new website, and why....

After a lot of work over the last few months, we formally launched our new website in early September 2017

As with everything we do, it was vitally important to us to work with people local to us in our community, so with this in mind we engaged with Open Door Internet and Webology.  Read more about both of these dynamic companies below.

So, a new website, we put it to Martin to tell you why…….

1.      Q: Lots of people had said how good the existing Sitting Spiritually website was, why the change and complete redesign now?

M: Because whilst the old website was visually appealing, very often people rang because they needed help, navigating through it.  My brief for the new one was basically keep the lovely images and the lifestyle it portrays, but make it a little bit easier to find your way around.

2.      Q: Who did you have in mind when you were working on the redesign?

M: Everybody really, 98% of our communication now is via email, and hopefully we haven’t appeared to cut ourselves off from traditional spoken communication.  But I have found the commonest phone call we get is from someone who is actually on the website.

3.      Q: What has changed in the online world for you since the launch of Sitting Spiritually in 2004?

M: So much!  The majority of people now seem to be happy to place orders online for several thousands of pounds and I don’t believe that would have bene the case even five years ago. The nice thing about being able to browse online is the fact that you can now build up exactly what you have in mind and see the cost and only commit to buy if you are happy to do so.

4.      Q: What was your priority for the new website & why?

M: Hopefully making the website clearer and easier to transact without losing our local heritage appeal.

5.      Q: Do you think the website offers an experience other comparable websites don’t?

M: Probably yes, but then we have always been at the luxury, bespoke end of the garden furniture market and I hope the new website reflects this.

6.      Q: What now, how will you keep the website fresh and new?

M: We have learnt over the years, when is the best time and place for new photographs and I believe we will be refreshing them on a frequent basis.

Also, as we exit Europe, the role of the local heritage brands, will I believe, become of higher importance to people and we feel this is reflected in the website

Any feedback that you want to give us, either good or bad, would be much appreciated.  Just email us here if you have any comments.

With our grateful thanks to Open Door Internet and Webology for all their work on the new website.

Sonder Digital (formerly Open Door Internet) state that they are on a mission to give every UK business an online presence they can be proud of. They provide professional, affordable websites paired with a personable and approachable service. They are a South West based website agency who specialise in website design, search engine optimisation, social media management, pay per click (PPC) and copywriting. Their range of digital services are designed to help companies establish their business online in a professional and cost-effective way. Contact Sonder on hello@sonderdigital.co.uk 01823 299 519  

Webology is owned and run by Charlie Barrett. Charlie has over twenty years’ research experience and is a specialist qualitative and user experience researcher. She has specialised in online media since 1999, and was, therefore, one of the first usability specialists in the UK.  Charlie’s user-experience work has been wide-ranging, including development from concept to execution, advising on the alignment of business objectives with consumer needs and behaviour. She has worked on projects for British Airways, the BBC, O2, Vodafone, Tesco Direct, Lexus, The British Library, Lloyd’s of London, Lloyds TSB, Nationwide, the RAC, Legal & General, Virgin Trains, BUPA, The Football Association JD Williams, Argos, Asda, Homebase, The Co-Operative, Unilever, DPD, Royal Mail and many others.  Charlie Barrett can be contacted at charliebarrett@outlook.com   07720 320874