Parkersburg Utility Board

In order to best serve Parkersburg’s 32,000 residents, we overhauled PUB’s old website and restructured the whole thing based on the principles of UX (user experience) design. This involved much deliberation on how to organize the flow of information available to customers, which ultimately included quick links, full, and partial menus for preferential navigation. We also updated the look of the company, starting with significantly simplifying their logo.

Logo Design
Impactful brands will exemplify the following in their logo: simplicity, scalability, relevance, uniqueness, and wittiness. PUB’s old logo was more like an illustration, combining too many elements into one, which made it hard to grasp. Our thinking was that when it all “boils” down to it, water is the source of the business. We infused the symbolic water droplet into the “P” in PUB and chose a soft, modern font and a bright blue to complete the brand’s look.

Website Design and Development
Because PUB is a public entity with thousands of customers wanting to take control of their utility accounts, creating a seamless user experience for them by providing direct customer service tools was our ultimate goal. The challenge, however, was to organize and display the board’s abundance of information provided to customers in a logical and efficient manner. This involved strategic deliberation for both functional and visual purposes. After determining the best organization methods, we incorporated bright primary and secondary color blocks filled with text to make for a fun, eye-catching engagement for users.

The new website not only looks refreshing but is a relief for PUB employees as well. Implementing automation wherever possible has significantly improved PUB’s operational efficiency as a whole.