Background

I.B.Tauris is an independent publishing house which was founded in 1983, with offices in London, New York and Melbourne and which is linked to warehouses on 4 continents and offering comprehensive international distribution. They specialise in the publication of both general non-fiction and new scholarly writing in the humanities and social sciences aiming to publish books that appeal to academics, area specialists, students and researchers as well as to a broad cross-section of general readers.

They currently publish about 300 new books internationally every year and keep approximately 3,000 books available in print either in hardcover or paperback editions – or both.  A large and growing proportion of their publishing output is also now available in electronic format through libraries and collections worldwide.

Problem

I.B.Tauris' existing website was developed by a specialist publishing CMS vendor back in 1989.  The CMS was significantly outdated and in the process of being replaced by the vendor. In such a competitive sector their website is regarded as an essential marketing tool which was outdated, lacking the modern functionality of a cutting edge website and fell short of competitor websites.

I.B.Tauris therefore entered into a competitive tendering process which resulted in Unified Solutions being awarded the contract

Solution

When I.B.Tauris came to Unified with a request to redesign their website, they had a big list of things they wanted to achieve. Specifically, I.B.Tauris wanted a PR tool that maximised their perceived size and market position, increased online sales improved and simplified user journeys and needed to ensure the site was search engine friendly and accessible.

With an outdated website and CMS, initially I.B.Tauris needed a replacement CMS that was robust, had a proven pedigree and roadmap for future development.  The new website had to improve their online presence, user experience and integrate with 3^rd party systems.

The project began with a research phase, exploring both business and user needs to ensure the solution would focus on delivering a great customer experience.

Informed by this research, Unified created personas and scenarios. These enabled the design team to define to a number of concepts that could satisfy established design goals in different ways.

Early testing revealed which concepts were favoured and these were refined through a series of rapid design/evaluation iterations resulting in a high fidelity prototype that demonstrated functional, structural and visual design guidelines ready for development.

By testing the design the team delivered an ecommerce solution that makes the process of finding and buying a book intuitive, simple and enjoyable. And that has generated a substantial sales uplift.

It was a tall challenge, but using our proven delivery methodology and collaborative approach that allowed us to deliver to a demanding deadline while still meeting I.B.Tauris’s high expectations

Results

A vibrant and inspiring new website that is already driving increased conversion

Working closely with the I.B.Tauris team, Unified helped to create a vibrant, inspiring and simple to navigate website that integrates seamlessly with 3^rd party systems.  Since launch, it has already delivered an increase in conversion rates.

The new site is visually appealing with a contemporary clean design and now facilitates increased marketing opportunities through clear cross-selling and up-selling. Unified also introduced an intuitive method for browsing which fits the customers' model of an ideal shopping experience and reduces the number of clicks needed to buy a product.

The new I.B.Tauris site offers:

Simple but clean visual appeal.

• Cross-links to help customers find related, relevant products more easily. For I.B.Tauris, these targeted cross-sells and up-sells increase the value and size of baskets.
• Intuitive navigation and improved shopping experience and reduces the number of clicks needed to buy a product.
• Content managed price discounts and special offers.
• Banner advertising.
• Recently viewed books with a thumbnail.
• Email subscription and automatic email alerts on the day a selected book becomes 'in print'.
• Social bookmarking.
• Sophisticated book search.