Revamping an old digital front-office

Whilst many firms might consider themselves ‘digital’ and ‘online’, users’ expectations of technology are constantly evolving. Which means the definition of good online experience is also changing.

Leigh Day, a firm of solicitors which represents those whose human rights have been breached, recognised it was at a crossroads. Continue with its long-standing digital office front, or embark on a revamp to match users’ new expectations. The UK law firm chose the latter road.

“We knew what we wanted to achieve, but needed help executing our vision. Our partner had to set us up for the long-term, rather than for the project’s short timeline. And that’s exactly what Manifesto did. They instilled confidence in us to take over what they had built, really taking the time to share their insights with us.” Helen Dewar, Head of Information Services & Website Editor at Leigh Day

Bringing justice to the customer experience

Leigh Day’s brief for Manifesto was to create a new digital experience which would do justice to its brand, one which focuses on the individual and their unique circumstances.

The law firm wanted to stand out in the sector. By simplifying its user experience (UX), Leigh Day knew it could create a deeper trust throughout the organisation.

In addition to UX, Leigh Day wanted to improve internal use of its digital back-office by moving its .com over to a new Umbraco CMS. That way, it could enable internal teams to create, and maintain, a far more effective and efficient editorial process.

Building foundations to last

From the very beginning, Leigh Day clearly set out its priority for this project. Manifesto needed to make sure it got the foundations right. That way, the law firm would be able to move into continuous improvement cycles post-launch. One of the cycles Leigh Day intended to kick off post-launch was the consolidation of its standalone microsites into one main site.

To achieve this, Manifesto invested three months’ resources into the discovery phase. This included a series of workshops and user surveys all of which helped Leigh Day build, refine, and prioritise a backlog of features, both for this project and for ones which lay beyond. By using this insight, Manifesto could deliver the most value to both external and internal audiences.

With foundations always front-of-mind, both teams could shape Leigh Day’s new information architecture and key users journeys with focus.

Manifesto used atomic design principles, designing a collection of modules – now live in a full pattern library – which worked in conjunction with Umbraco. That way, Leigh Day’s site would remain flexible around content creation and new, integrated user journeys designed to drive real engagement and action. The team also worked very closely with Leigh Day’s SEO agency, to balance what looks good on a page vs SEO best practices.

The launch is just a beginning

For Leigh Day, this project has set a blueprint for the way it approaches all future digital projects. With Manifesto’s guidance, the law firm has adopted the mindset of iterative delivery and learning, to create truly future-proof solutions designed to stand the test of time.

Following a quick break, which will see Leigh Day gather some data post-launch, the law firm will be back to deliver new features and iterative improvements over the next few months together with Manifesto.

How this helps us on your project

We partner with organisations to deliver strategic change over long-term projects. Being platform agnostic means we’ll always recommend the right tools, processes and technologies to solve your challenges. If that means Umbraco, our expert team can help your organisation implement the CMS to reinvent your digital presence. This will allow your team to publish content with ease, supporting business goals, and delivering engaging experiences for your users.