Our team was recently called in to help a Canon USA business division implement a customized batch of web pages. The product and marketing teams needed to showcase a line of new imageRUNNER ADVANCE MFP devices, expected to roll out to market imminently.
Over the eight-plus years we’ve collaborated with Canon teams, I can’t think of a device or related solution we’ve invested more time working on than the Canon imageRUNNER ADVANCE. So, the Spark Creative team was quite excited for the opportunity to apply our expertise to the challenge.
Expect Technology To Be Tricky
Having implemented custom website template solutions for Canon USA before – I must admit we realized the job was unlikely to be smooth sailing. Without getting into proprietary details, both the back-end and front-end of Canon’s corporate site (the website template) feature a unique combination of technologies that don’t always allow the most straightforward development solutions. To be honest, this is not wildly out of the ordinary. But, we had to be ready to address the unpredictable complications that might arise from combining customized technical solutions with their systems.
Be Willing To Roll Up Your Sleeves
Before we settled into our first briefing with Canon stakeholders, we knew that a website template-related initiative would require trial, error, research, brainstorming, and tenacity on our part. (Luckily in this case, the client lead agreed to let us factor a bit of this into our Statement Of Work. Very appreciated, indeed.)
Consider High Level Issues Your Client Needs Solved
Next, Canon’s Imaging Systems Group wanted their web visitors to clearly see and be able to navigate five main areas of imageRUNNER ADVANCE device features. The big challenge there was Canon’s corporate website template was – to a certain extent – a fixed proposition. While there are a multitude of sidebar choices and dropdown menus along the main horizontal navigation bar at the top, nearly all of them are spoken for. There was no practical way for us to add new subsections to the actual website template submenus without a lengthy, internal approvals process. So, the briefing team asked us to work around that constraint.
The remaining requests weren’t as critical. But we’re usually inclined to deliver a comprehensive solution, so we pressed on. Both the Canon imageRUNNER ADVANCE product team and marketing team had interest in a slideshow that would convey main benefits of the new MFPs. They also had a product video they wanted to play once the slideshow was finished. Phew!
Aim For Simple Solutions To Challenges
As it turned out, those last requests really helped push us toward a solution. After the briefing, as we traveled back to Brooklyn via Long Island Rail, the brainstorming led to an interesting idea:
“What if we could design and program a slideshow element that would serve dual purpose as a sub-navigation element?” This could be a way to deliver what both client teams wanted while working independently of Canon’s corporate website template.
Now, you might be thinking … that sounds like a lot to squeeze into one website element! And it is. But Spark Creative’s internal development team has run up against just about every site challenge out there. They assured me we wouldn’t be “over-promising.”
Spark Creative’s “Slideshow Navigation Element” solution in place for Canon imageRUNNER ADVANCE web pages
Deliver Value Clients Won’t Find Anywhere Else
Fortunately, the Canon client teams liked our idea — and believed it could work with their systems. For handy reference, we dubbed it the “slideshow navigation element” and began generating design concepts for it.
As the project proceeded, there was certainly a nominal level amount of give-and-take between their team and ours. But all things considered, the engagement went quite smoothly. We completed our work well-ahead of the launch date — and that gave their internal developers plenty of time to evaluate the final pages. Once the pages were in their testing environment, we were able to help them resolve a few minor bugs, and they were published live to the main Canon USA website template.
A closer look at the “Slideshow Navigation Element” the Spark Creative team designed and implemented
Contact Us To Learn More
Questions about this case study? Would you like to hear more about how we can help make your creative, business, and strategic ideas a reality? The Spark Creative team’s 20+ years experience creating video, interactive, and web projects gives us a unique perspective on web development that will result in deliverables that make a real difference for your business.
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