Client
Fig Magazine
Services
Website Design
Photography & Illustration
Founded in 2005, Fig magazine is an enthusiast’s guide to local shopping, dining, arts, and community in the small cities across the country. Created by Fig Industries, the magazine tells the stories of places, people, and experiences through four creative issues each year, as well as a dedicated social media and online presence for each location. In 2024, our team launched a new website for Fig with improved design features, new content strategy, and optimized user experience to reach more people with our mission to lift up all things local.
Research & Strategy
As we identified the need for a revamped Fig magazine web template, our team took the same thoughtful approach that we offer our own clients. This included a complete audit of our previous site—determining what was and wasn’t working, reviewing metrics, and redefining our goals. A few objectives at the top of our list included increasing article readership, increasing newsletter subscriptions, and establishing the right back-end framework for adding future sites. After researching current best practices, identifying key features needed, and sourcing inspiration, we were ready for the design phase.
Design & Scaling
With our sights set on growing the number of Fig franchise cities, we took a thoughtful approach to designing the new website structure so it could scale up based on the size and tenure of each Fig location. We used our flagship location—Lancaster, Pennsylvania—as the model and took a content-forward approach to our design. The homepage now features collections of articles that reach a broad range of interests, rooted in our pillars and allowing users to easily find stories that resonate with them. Our new article pages include easier-to-read formatting, a scrolling newsletter call to action sidebar, and related stories linked at the bottom of each page.
Two important new features are our magazine issue pages, which now have their own hub for each season, and a revamped event calendar showcasing local community events. All of this is anchored by eye-catching hero banners , custom illustrations for call to action boxes throughout the site, and the introduction of a custom Fig icon throughout.
Refinements & Outcomes
As we launched the new site for Lancaster this summer, we now have the foundation to establish a strong online presence for our current and future Fig locations. With our intentional front- and back-end design, all Fig locations have the tools they need to reach target audiences and continue growing. Since the June 2024 launch of figlancaster.com, we have already seen an increase in engagement, including a 93% increase in quarterly page views and a 100% increase in quarterly newsletter subscriptions.