The Before: Shopify Blues and a Brand Mash-Up
Picture this: Structure Health & Wellness and Ampersand CBD decide to tie the knot. Great idea, right? Two companies, one obsessed with wellness, the other slinging premium CBD—sounds like a match made in hemp heaven. Except their old website, built on Shopify, was a hot mess. Imagine a garage sale where half the stuff doesn’t work, and the other half’s labeled wrong. That was their digital storefront. “It never worked right,” they’d groan. “It’s like we paid for a Ferrari and got a golf cart with a flat tire.”
They weren’t wrong. Shopify’s great for some, but for Structure Formulations, it was a straitjacket. Navigation was a nightmare, the checkout process felt like a tax audit, and the design? Let’s just say it screamed “generic” louder than a knockoff purse at a flea market. Plus, the merger meant a rebrand was non-negotiable. They needed a site that could flex with their new identity—something bold, cohesive, and ready to charm the socks off their target audience: educated, middle-to-upper-class women who don’t mess around when it comes to quality.
Enter the dream team: Fat Dog Creatives (that’s me, waving from the design desk), Shannon Communications, and One Dog Solutions. We weren’t just building a website; we were crafting a digital phoenix. Shannon took the reins on the rebrand, One Dog tackled the e-commerce backbone, and I got to play artist and architect, designing the look and building out the static pages, blog, and archives. The result? A WordPress site with WooCommerce magic woven in, plus a 3D mockup tool in the works that’s about to make jaws drop. But let’s not get ahead of ourselves—first, the why.
The Why: Marketing Isn’t About Yelling, It’s About Whispering to the Right People
Seth Godin would tell you that great marketing isn’t about being the loudest—it’s about being the most relevant. Structure Formulations didn’t need a megaphone; they needed a siren song for a specific crowd. These aren’t bargain-bin shoppers. They’re women with degrees on the wall, money in the bank, and a nose for authenticity. They want products that feel like self-care, not snake oil, and a website that doesn’t make them dig through clutter to find what they need.
The old Shopify site? It was yelling at everyone and connecting with no one. The new site had to whisper elegance, clarity, and trust. It had to say, “Hey, you—smart, savvy lady who deserves the best—we’ve got you.” That meant an upscaled, feminine aesthetic that didn’t skimp on polish, paired with a user experience so smooth it’d make butter jealous. And it had to sell CBD tinctures, balms, and tonics like they were the holy grail of relaxation—because to this audience, they kinda are.
The How: WordPress, WooCommerce, and a Dash of Creative Swagger
So, we ditched Shopify like a bad habit and went all-in on WordPress. Why? Because WordPress is the Swiss Army knife of platforms—flexible, customizable, and tough enough to handle whatever we threw at it. WooCommerce slid in for the e-commerce piece, turning the site into a lean, mean selling machine without the clunkiness of the old setup. No more “where’s the cart?” or “why won’t this load?” moments. This was about flow, baby.
I started with the design. The vibe? Think Anthropologie meets a spa day—soft creams, earthy greens, and pops of gold that scream sophistication without being snooty. The typography’s clean but curvy, like a yoga instructor who’s secretly a badass. It’s feminine, sure, but not in a “pink glitter explosion” way. This is upscale feminine—confident, timeless, and just a little luxe. The kind of aesthetic that makes you feel like you’re treating yourself before you even hit “add to cart.”
Then came the build. Static pages for the about-us story, product philosophy, and FAQs—check. A blog with archives that actually work, so they can share their CBD wisdom without it vanishing into the ether—check. The structure (pun intended) was key: intuitive navigation, fast load times, and a mobile experience that doesn’t make you want to chuck your phone out the window. Shannon Communications kept the brand voice sharp and consistent—warm but not woo-woo, professional but not stiff. Meanwhile, Ryan Waterbury at One Dog Solutions was cooking up something extra: a white-label 3D mockup tool. More on that in a sec.
The Glow-Up: User Experience That Actually Works
Here’s where Kathleen Madigan’s “let’s cut the crap” energy kicks in. A website’s only as good as the people who can use it without swearing under their breath. The old site? A maze with no cheese. The new one? A straight shot to bliss.
- Navigation: Top bar’s got your essentials—Shop, About, Blog, Contact. No scavenger hunt required. Hover over “Shop,” and a dropdown spills out categories like Tinctures, Balms, and Pet Treats. It’s like a menu at a fancy restaurant—everything’s right there, no flipping pages.
- Product Pages: Clean layouts, big images, and descriptions that don’t ramble. You’re not reading a novel; you’re buying CBD. Ingredients, benefits, usage—bam, bam, bam. Add a review section, because these women trust other women’s opinions more than a slick ad.
- Checkout: One page, no tricks. Fill in your info, pick your shipping, pay, done. No “surprise” fees or endless redirects. It’s so easy you could do it half-asleep after a glass of wine (not that we’re suggesting that).
And the stats don’t lie. Since launch, bounce rates are down, time-on-site’s up, and cart abandonment? Way less. People aren’t just visiting—they’re sticking around and buying. That’s the power of a site that respects your time and doesn’t treat you like a lab rat.
The Secret Sauce: That 3D Mockup Tool
Now, let’s talk about Ryan’s awesome contribution—the white-label 3D mockup tool. This isn’t live yet, but it’s coming, and it’s gonna be a game-changer. Imagine this: Structure Formulations works with businesses to white-label their CBD products. Normally, that’s a slow dance—emails, mockups, revisions, tears. Ryan’s tool lets clients see a 3D version of their custom packaging in real-time. Pick your bottle, slap on your logo, tweak the colors—boom, there’s your product, spinning on-screen like a digital Barbie doll.
For the user (aka the business owner), it’s instant gratification. For Structure, it’s a faster process, fewer headaches, and a wow factor that screams “we’re ahead of the game.” It’s not just a tool; it’s a statement: We’re not here to mess around. We’re here to innovate.
The Result: A Site That Sells Soul, Not Just Stuff
Seth Godin loves tribes—people who rally around a shared vibe. Structure Formulations’ new site isn’t just a store; it’s a clubhouse for women who value quality, clarity, and a little self-love. The upscale feminine aesthetic pulls them in—those soft tones and luxe vibes whisper “you belong here.” The user experience keeps them there—fast, friendly, and frustration-free. And the rebrand ties it all together, blending Structure Health & Wellness’s holistic roots with Ampersand CBD’s premium edge into something fresh yet familiar.
Sales are climbing, sure, but it’s more than that. It’s the emails from customers saying, “Finally, a site that gets me.” It’s the repeat orders from women who feel seen, not sold to. It’s the buzz around a brand that went from “eh” to “oh hell yes” in a few short months.
The Takeaway: Build It Right, and They’ll Come
Here’s the Godin-Madigan mashup truth: People don’t buy products; they buy feelings. Structure Formulations’ old site felt like a chore. The new one feels like a treat. We didn’t just redesign a website; we redefined an experience. Fat Dog Creatives, Shannon Communications, and One Dog Solutions didn’t just slap a Band-Aid on a problem—we built a whole new beast. And with that 3D tool on the horizon, Structure’s not just keeping up; they’re setting the pace.
So, next time you’re scrolling structureformulations.com, pour a glass of something nice and raise it to a team that turned a merger mess into a masterpiece. Then buy some CBD balm—your shoulders deserve it.