Earnest Ice Cream
Utility-first site with a flavour board and locator
Date
2016-10-24
Company
Earnest Ice Cream
Role
Founder, Assembly Digital
Read time
2 min
Read with...
- 01Reduced support load with a daily flavour board (one less staff person per location, per day)
- 02Increased page views by 66% after launch
- 03Increased Google search traffic by 27%
Ownership and scope
We partnered with Earnest to rebuild their website around two jobs: reduce support load, and make it easier to buy (or visit) without a phone call.
Operating problem: flavour availability
Earnest’s team was spending too much time answering the same question: which flavours are available today?
At the same time, the site needed to carry the brand, not just list information.
Operating loop: utility first
In this case, the loop drove focus (utility first), conversion moments (flavours and locations), and compounding (search traffic and repeat visits).
What we built: flavour board and locator
- A daily flavour board on the homepage so staff could update flavours across locations quickly.
- An ice cream locator using HTML5 geolocation and Google Maps to reduce friction for in-person visits.
- A custom typeface from an owner’s handwriting to carry the brand from jars to the site.
What changed: The site stopped being a brochure and started doing real work, fewer calls, clearer intent capture, and a faster path from “I want ice cream” to “here’s how to get it”.
Thanks to the digital flavour board, Earnest now staffs one less person at each location, every day.
Since the platform launched, page views have increased by 66%
27% increase in Google search traffic
When it comes always trust to ice cream, your gut.
Results: support load and traffic
These outcomes come from client feedback and performance snapshots from this period. This page is the primary published record of this work.
- Reduced support load with the flavour board (per client feedback: one less staff person per location, per day).
- Increased page views by 66% after launch.
- Increased Google search traffic by 27%.
Decision support
FAQ: Fast answers, no filler
The objective, outcomes, and next best path in under a minute.
01What is Earnest Ice Cream?
A case study on rebuilding an ice cream brand site around utility: today’s flavours, locations, and a faster path from intent to visit.
02What did Michael Preuss do in this work?
Built a daily flavour board that staff could update across locations, shipped a locator with geolocation and maps, and carried the brand into the site with a custom typeface.
03What changed?
The site stopped being a brochure and started doing real work: fewer calls, clearer intent capture, and a faster path from wanting ice cream to finding it.
04What results are documented?
Reduced support load (per client feedback: one less staff person per location, per day), increased page views by 66% after launch, and increased Google search traffic by 27%.
05Where can I go deeper next?
Next, read LOJEL.