30th June 2016

Interview: Will Perrens, who designed this page

Will Perrens is the man behind Zetteler’s branding and website. Without Will Perrens you wouldn't be reading this post, or visiting this website (cheers for that, by the way). So we should probably thank Will Perrens. Here’s to you, Will Perrens, web maestro extraordinaire.

The world of branding and web design is stuffed with tough questions, tricky decisions and research-led strategy (or ‘guesswork’, depending on your approach). Embarking on a project like website creation can be fascinating and fun, but it can often be intimidating too. Designers like Will help people like us (business owners, creative professionals, freelancers and bloggers) bring our work to a wider audience, with the considered grace and style needed to build relationships with potential clients, contacts and employees.

I asked Will (aka Atwork), and Sabine (aka Shabbers, Bean, Bin or Boss Zetteler) how you go about turning a company into a website, and from there, into a brand of sorts…

Sabine, how did you end up working with Will?

SZ | We went to Will because we’d heard great things. He worked on the rebranding and magazine design for food platform Toast (now known as At the Table), and with the team at the Flower Appreciation Society on their beautiful book. If you look at the Atwork website, what I like is the openness of their work. Saying it’s simple would belie the thought that goes into every detail and the extent to which they try to discover who you are, what you do and the rationale behind the business at large, before they start on a project.

Will, where do you start when creating a brand and website for a client? What was the starting point for Zetteler?

WP | Talking to Sabine, looking at the company and trying to understand how it works. You need to understand the subtleties of a company’s ‘personality’ in order to learn what makes it unique.

SZ | Yeah, it was great. He didn’t rely on a couple of chats alone; he came to see me at the office twice (he’s based in Devon, so this is a bigger deal that you’d think) and asked me a whole series of questions about the brand, which, up until that point, I hadn’t even asked myself. It’s funny that, through the process of trying to define the visual aspects of the brand with Will, I worked out a plethora of things about what the company should be and who I am as an individual too. It was a real turning point. So much – almost all in fact – of what we had done to that point had been about me and my personal interactions with people, but once that website went live and the business cards went out, it was going to change that. Having a website presents who you are as a company to people you’ve never met – and once it’s up there you can’t influence the conversation the way you can in person. It’s important to get it right. Our website is a means of sharing stories and news and it needs to be useful, otherwise it doesn’t work. And of course it’s not just the Zetteler ‘brand’ that’s at stake – the site has to support the missions and ambitions of all the clients we work with – it has to communicate, in the shortest time possible, what our clients are doing and why that matters. That was a pretty intimidating undertaking for me, but Will is cool and calm and he made it feel like it was safe to venture into this new territory.

How long did it take to create the Zetteler brand identity and website?

WP | The branding and the website were completed over the course of 10 months. The Zetteler project didn't have a deadline, so Zetteler could take as long as they liked to provide feedback or supply content between stages of design work.

SZ | It took ages because I couldn’t help feeling that developing an online identity was a luxury for us, as we were so busy doing our day-to-day work. Will was always ready when he predicted he would be and then I’d sit and agonise over the options he presented, sending them to people I trusted and scribbling over my printouts. It would never have taken so long if I’d managed to explore who I was and who the ‘brand’ was before we started. It was just me and a few freelancers I’d brought on board at that point, so major reflection hadn’t seemed necessary.

Can you give a brief overview of the inspiration that led to what exists now as Zetteler?

WP | The PR industry has an (often unfair) reputation for bullshitting! Sabine wanted to communicate her ethos of clarity and speaking plainly. This meant we followed a very stripped-back aesthetic, an approach built around utility and clean lines, which I guess has its roots in modernism.

SZ | Yes, my main brief was that I needed to communicate two things: absolutely no bullshit – just straightforward, organised thinking – and a sense of fun and creativity. Not an easy pairing. I had three options to go with and they were all really different. I think Will would probably have chosen a different one to me, but the final one is so clean and what jumps out at you are the beautiful visuals that we’re really lucky to have through our clients, and the excellent editorial we create with our freelance writers. It’s the perfect balance.

Will, how did you gather feedback and input from Sabine? How are your clients involved in the creative process?

WP | Face to face, over the phone, on email – in as many ways as possible! It's vital to have the client on board with the process. If the design doesn't work for the client, it isn't a successful project. You need successful projects to create new work.

SZ | Will was always there whenever I had a query, a suggestion or a new idea. He was great to work with.

What was the most challenging part of the project?

WP | Thoroughly testing a website is always a pain in the arse. It has to be done though.

SZ | And, no doubt, having a client who is forever changing their mind. Sorry Will.

What was your favourite part of the process?

WP | Presenting the initial concepts to Sabine. By that point you're quite saturated with your ideas, so it's really interesting to see how they're received.

SZ | My favourite moment was pressing ‘go’ on the website and sending it to everyone I know. We were inundated with positivity (I realise it would have been a bit harsh for my peers to tell me it was shit), but we were also bowled over by the number of projects and new clients that came our way when strangers were able to independently see a bit of how we work and who we work with. It transformed the way we work and how we communicate ourselves. It was the best investment I’ve made to date (well, after my miraculous team).

How was creating Zetteler's identity and site different from other projects you've worked on?

WP | I think Sabine and I appreciate similar design and imagery. Now and again, you get a project where it really clicks and you know what the client is going to like or dislike. This was one of them!

Were there any bespoke elements designed for Zetteler?

WP | All of it!

SZ | That was the only way to make it work, and we’re thoroughly delighted too.

What was your primary vision for the Zetteler website, do you think you achieved it?

WP | For Zetteler to communicate their professionalism and clarity. To create a blank canvas for them to show their sense of fun. The response has been good, so I think we achieved this!

SZ | What I also needed, which is why we changed the name of the company from Sabine Zetteler to Zetteler was to communicate that we’re a team. We do it together. There was no need to have my first name involved anymore and I didn’t feel comfortable with all our successes seeming like they were coming solely from me. There is a big difference there. The way Zetteler looks on the site, all in caps and super spaced out makes it feel like something a little more distanced from me. I don’t see it as my surname anymore; it’s an evolving brand and that’s given all of us a huge sense of freedom.

To see more of the great stuff Atwork has done, visit atworkportfolio.co.uk