Trex Academy
A much needed refresh for Trex’s online DIY hub featuring videos and helpful tips for those building outdoor decks.
Client
Trex
Year
2023-2024
Services
• Web Audit
• SEO Strategy
• Design
Notes/Credits
Created at Material+
CD / Diana Saez
Copy / Anne Parin
Audit & Refresh
Trex Academy is a microsite within the trex.com site curated towards the builders and DIYers of the world.
The space is a hub of information for getting started, beginning to build and adding finishing touches to decks using or planning to use Trex materials.
The opportunities were (almost) endless when it came to this refresh. Storylines were buried, visuals were inconsistent and it was clear there was content users weren’t interacting with or using based on analytics. Our updates included a data-backed content refresh, curation of consistent visual treatments and alignment of SEO to messaging throughout. With these updates, our team was able to outline, execute and deliver an experience that aligned both analytics and prioritized the user.
Breaking It Down
Website Audit
Backed by analytics data and click rates, the web audit showed that users spent the most time on the video hub watching clips. One of goals was to streamline how they got there.
Flow & Outline
The previous flow had users leaving the pages 9 out of 10 times. Our goal was to weave in a storytelling aspect from thinking of building, prepping for building to finally doing the work to keep them engaged. We were also very intentional with our CTA decisions to ensure we'd be moving them further down the funnel.
Art Direction & Design
The site lacked ADA compliancy, consistent CTA and headline treatments and was using outdated photography. By streamlining type treatments, using consistent modular applications and combining content we cut the fat from the pages while leaving an intentional visual flow.
.
Moving into the design phase, the team was limited to web modules that were pre-existing to the site. We got creative with when and how these modules were used and streamlined the treatments to offer an updated look and feel that would be easy on the development team.
Influencer and DIYer reviews around easy installation and helpful online tools were incorporated as a relatable reference for users.
The rest of the main Trex site offers a plethora of planning and building tools from estimating material costs, building deck templates and even using virtual reality. We incorporated these tools in the planning phase to aid users in visualizing what their dream deck could look like.
While Trex’s main products are decking and railing, they also sell lighting, fencing and more. Knowing users would be planning the whole vision of their deck, we took this opportunity to tell (and show) them that the possibilities were endless with these add-on products.
