Halfpenny Management
Project Details
Illustrator
Photoshop
After Effects (Lottie)
Company Staff
Leasing Offices
Introduction
Halfpenny Management, a trusted Philadelphia-based property management firm since 1976, faced a challenge with their outdated website. Despite their reputation for quality service, the website didn’t reflect their expertise or modern approach.
Additionally, their lack of a content management system (CMS) led to inefficiencies in property updates and hindered user experience.The goal of this redesign was to modernize the brand’s visual identity, streamline the content management process, and create a user-friendly website that better served their clients and leasing teams.
Skills Involved
Challenges
The previous website lacked cohesion, with inconsistent design elements that impacted user experience and brand perception.
Limited resources and time meant we had to prioritize the most critical features based on user feedback.
Solutions
To address the lack of a content management system, I designed a scalable, modular system that seamlessly integrated with a CMS. This allowed leasing teams to manage property listings independently while maintaining brand consistency across the site.
Given the time constraints, we focused on the most requested features. This included improving property search functionality, simplifying navigation, and making property details more accessible. We prioritized features that would have the highest impact on the user experience.
Impact
Business Goals
Optimize Internal Operations
Without a CMS, property listings had to be updated manually, which was inefficient. I designed a scalable system that streamlined content management, ensuring consistency across listings and client communications.
Facilitate a Smooth Transition
Halfpenny Management needed a digital presence that better reflected their modern, client-first approach. The previous website lacked structure and cohesion, so we rebuilt the visual identity from the ground up to emphasize expertise, transparency, and efficiency. The transition to the new CMS required careful planning, and we simplified the process to ensure that stakeholders could adopt it easily.
User Goals
Prioritize User Needs
Given the outdated site structure, we focused on launching the most impactful features first. Property pages were prioritized, while additional features such as unit listings and filtering tools were rolled out in later phases.
Improve Information Accessibility
The previous site made it difficult to navigate property details. We made key information—such as unit availability, pricing, and amenities—easy to find. Stakeholder feedback post-launch led to further refinements, such as increasing the visibility of pet and parking policies.
Defining the Problem
“How can we redesign Halfpenny Management’s website to strengthen brand identity, streamline content management, improve user engagement, and enhance user experience with limited resources?”
research
Competitor Analysis
Identifying and evaluating the strengths and weaknesses of Halfpenny’s competitors.
- Missing Property Search: Competitors had more robust search features, leading to better engagement and less frustration.
- Accessibility Issues: The previous site lacked accessibility features, excluding users with disabilities.
Content Audit
We reviewed the existing site’s content to determine which elements were effective and which needed improvement.
- Poor Responsive Design: The site was not optimized for mobile, leading to poor engagement and search rankings.
- Inadequate Word Count: Pages had fewer than 300 words, affecting search engine visibility.
Card Sort Exercise
We conducted a card sort exercise to understand how users wanted to categorize website features.
- Neighborhood Guidelines: Users wanted easy access to neighborhood guidelines, which were previously missing.
- Prioritizing Easy Search: Users preferred simple search features over interactive maps.
ideation
Customer Profiles
We created customer profiles to guide design decisions and better meet user needs.
Findings
- Implement visually appealing filters and sorting options.
- Use color codes and icons to clearly indicate unit availability.
- Provide additional visualizations of properties to help users make informed decisions.
reflections
Simplifying Explanations to Clients
Explaining technical terms to clients sometimes led to misunderstandings. I learned to simplify the language and ensure clear communication to minimize confusion and avoid unnecessary revisions.
Designing for Ongoing Adjustments
Stakeholders requested changes that were outside of the CMS scope, which required revisiting the design system to accommodate these static elements. This taught me the importance of designing with flexibility in mind.
The Importance of Additional Assets
While my main role was in design, I found that collaborating on additional assets—like photography—was essential to the redesign’s success. Visual assets played a major role in establishing a polished, cohesive look.
design system
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