Partnership
Brand, website and digital product, built by one team.
See how Partnership worksStudent accommodation · Ireland · 2018–2019
How a College Cribs website refresh became a new app
College Cribs is an Irish search service for rooms and apartments for students and landlords. The client asked us to refresh its brand and website. The result was a new app that we designed and built from the identity through to the final line of code.
- Client
- College Cribs
- Industry and country
- Student accommodation · Ireland
- Years
- 2018–2019
What we did
- Identity, colours, illustrations and icons
- Review of the previous website
- Information architecture and user journeys
- Interface design
- Front end (Vue.js) and back end (Ruby on Rails)
01
A home with a student address
Users already knew the house-shaped logo, so we kept it and gave the house an academic cap. The new identity says at a glance: student accommodation. Green, a colour the brand had been associated with for years, remained the main colour; purple added youthful energy.
02
The brand in the background, listings up front
Students look for a home near their university, not just anywhere in the city. The search therefore shows listings around a selected university, with a map and filters that answer students’ questions. We also made it easier for landlords to add listings, while amenity icons answer common questions for them.
The brand is present without getting in the way. Listings take centre stage, and icons and illustrations help students check amenities quickly.
03
From identity to code, all in one team
Our developers built the app: the front end in Vue.js and the back end in Ruby on Rails. Designers and developers worked as one team, so what we designed worked the way it was meant to.
“We couldn’t have been happier working with HS. The new branding is beautiful and the website is truly top quality. The feedback we hear most about the website is how good it looks and how easy it is to use – something that takes effort and skill to get right.”
Ed ThurmanCollege Cribs co-owner, Ireland
Working together
Facing a similar challenge?
Rebranding
Refresh a brand while keeping what customers already know.
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See also
Good Sheet · 2020–2023
A business finance app we conceived and built ourselves
Brand, UX, user testing, front end and back end, all in one team.
Mobipol · since 2021
After 30 years, a Mobil distributor found its own voice
A generational change, a new identity, a website and an online shop. The manufacturer valued the rebrand and stayed with Mobipol.
Contact
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