ROKKAN’s Interactive Redesign for Virgin.com Takes Corporate by the Lapels
Virgin is a brand so monumental, so alive with personality that its corporate home on the web needed to be more than a base of information. It needed to be an open community that brought together the energy and interaction of fans, the ever-developing Virgin companies, and conversations with Richard Branson himself.
ROKKAN unveils Virgin.com, a fully redesigned site alive with stories, conversations, and videos, all of which are continually being updated, commented on, and shared. It leverages Facebook Connect for fast, simple registration, but with a community all inclusive of the Virgin brand. The site is also a hub of connectivity for Virgin’s many distinct but related companies, more than 200 in all. In short, visitors to Virgin.com, whether passionate fans of the brand or simply curious, find not a website – but a world.
“We created a place online that responds to every aspect of this uniquely loved brand and its community of fans,” said Charles Bae, Executive Creative Director and Partner at ROKKAN. “It’s a bustling, ever-changing portal into Virgin and its more than 200 branded companies, illuminating what makes each one distinct, and what makes them all so recognizably Virgin – founder Richard Branson’s limitless delivery of market innovation, new thinking, and new energy.”
That means everything from Richard Branson’s creation of Virgin Galactic (the world’s first line of space vehicles – now accepting bookings), to his community projects in Africa, socially progressive investment strategies, resources for entrepreneurs, his passion for music which started it all, and much more.
Because Virgin has always embraced and learned from open conversations with fans, ROKKAN created the capability for interaction with Richard Branson and the brand itself in three ways: Everything on Virgin.com is open for comments and feedback, both negative and positive; Virgin employees participate in conversations and share personal stories; and site users pose questions to Richard Branson himself, letting the community decide which ones he should answer. He responds to the selected questions, and blogs regularly on Virgin.com. The goal is always to use fan feedback to make the brand better, stronger, and more responsive.
On top of the local community of fans, it’s about giving back – to users and to the planet. Virgin.com helps visitors keep up with the Virgin companies they know and get informed about the ones they don’t. They can watch inspiring Virgin-only video, like Richard Branson in conversation with Archbishop Desmond Tutu and other members of The Elders, a global peace organization co-founded by Richard; or a Q&A with Heaven’s Angels, Kenyans who deliver medical supplies via motor-bike, thanks in part to the nonprofit foundation Virgin Unite.
Catherine Salway, Brand Director of Virgin Group, adds, “ROKKAN, our development partners based in New York have done an incredible job helping us to create something unique and exceptional. Ultimately we’ll be recognizing and rewarding passionate users by giving them a platform to connect not just with the Virgin brand but with fellow brand advocates and Virgin fans, which is a first for a brand and a portal like ours.”
The technology behind Virgin.com is just as individualized and impressive as the creative strategy. Under the site’s hood is ROKKAN’s largest-ever implementation of their custom CMS tool: ROKKIT.
“ROKKIT is a custom-built version of Zend Framework, and it allows us to quickly incorporate emerging trends and practices while maintaining a consistent standard of quality in all projects that we execute,” said Akeem Philbert, Senior Developer at ROKKAN. “The flexibility of the framework allows us to quickly adapt not only to the specific needs of the Virgin company, but also to the needs of the community that they serve.”
Together, the site’s refreshing design, its custom technology, and the ability to connect with both company and fans alike, make browsing Virgin.com feel like something much bigger than just any ordinary corporation.
The Creds:
Web Design + Development: ROKKAN, NY/SF
Account & Project Management: John Noe, Nicole Rannou
Information Architecture: Chung Ng, Annie Wong, Vincent Au
Creative Direction/Design/Illustration: Charles Bae, Dina Castro Lindner, Vicente Silva
Technology: Jim Blackwelder, Akeem Philbert , Albert Rosa, Andy Prondak, Katarina Milkova, Jim Williams, Vora Vor, Ben van de Heever
Flash: Matt Wright, Emma Assin
About ROKKAN
With offices in New York and San Francisco, full-service interactive agency ROKKAN is a solutions-driven company with the right blend of creativity, energy, and innovation. ROKKAN works directly with clients and also partners with advertising agencies, delivering a wide range of strategic, creative, and technical solutions. From interactive, rich-media marketing campaigns to enterprise technical applications, ROKKAN is equipped for all client needs. ROKKAN’s core expertise includes: Digital Business, Brand Activation, User Experience Design, Traffic Generation, and Technology. Recent campaigns and websites include projects for Virgin America, Adidas, Jose Cuervo, Rockstar Games, Time Warner, UGO Entertainment and 2K Games. Visit www.rokkan.com to learn more.
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