Pioneer DJ has been a long-time client of the Brainyard. Recently we were asked to redesign their website, www.pioneerdjusa.com. The old website was designed utilizing both HTML and Flash. We decided on this go-around to eliminate the need for flash on the website and focus more on usability and ascetics of the site. So we first started a new background graphic and site layout. We focused on featuring larger rotating banners, promotion of images and new products, and informative content on the right side of the homepage. This information included items such as featured videos, latest news, Twitter feeds, and events. We also spent a lot of time organizing the product section of the website, making the user’s experience that much easier and informative. What we ended up with was cramming a ton of information into a visually engaging and easy to use website for both customers and industry professionals.

Pioneer Electronics, with the marketing prowess of the Brainyard, have always been on the cutting edge of electronics and DJ equipment. Recently Pioneer DJ took even their own ingenuity and concepts a step further with the help of the Brainyard by creating a truly unique product…a compact and universal DJ Controller known as the DDJ-ERGO. Brainyard was instrumental in their global marketing campaign by creating ads, web banners, etc. With over 1,000,000 views on YouTube, this product launch received nothing but positive accolades from it’s peers. With features such as USB power plug-n-play, Virtual DJ LE Software installed, pulse control, and personalized user interface, the DDJ ERGO is well ahead of the curve in the DJ industry.

After almost a year and a half in development, we launched the much anticipated Fender Custom Shop website. Known as the home of the flagship custom guitars from the famed Fender brand, the Custom Shop is home of some of the most exclusive and spectacular instruments on the planet. “We had a challenge to make the site easily accessible but still incredibly deep for the fans of these guitars and guitar makers,” says Glen Hall, resident Brainyard web guru. “So we studied the user behavior and preferences to carefully craft the experience they really care about,” Hall adds. We had to connect the user interface to a rather elaborate enterprise back end at Fender that manages complex databases. Perhaps our biggest challenge and proudest moments are when no one ever ‘sees’ that stuff. But knowing that this intricate set of data is interwoven to support the user experience is like a great song – sheer art.

Being that we’re all musicians at the Yard, this was a labor of love (or as Trevor puts it ‘labor of lust’). We fought to stay on track for what we knew the visit wanted to see and feel about the brand. In the end, we created a site that on the surface appears simple and creative yet it is deep in its content and information. What we hoped for has happened. People come in for a visit and stay for coffee. And like a great coffeehouse, they keep coming back.

At the start of the project we went out to the new-old New Hartford, CT factory where the flagship Traditional Series line is being built. When you see the tooling and machines that still exist that made some of the most recognized guitars on the planet, you harkens back to the time where music was the voice of a nation, of the world. Our job was to make sure that the classic nature of the products and the brand was not compromised. So we set out to build a website that had not only function and appeal but heart and personality representative of the grand Guild name.

Right away, you are struck with the sheer classic beauty of the instruments and Guild’s unwavering commitment to quality and style. “That’s what I like most about the site…it’s not overstated or ostentatious” says Trevor G, the Yard’s senior web designer. Yet you can navigate your way to any need you may have even if you are a long time owner or a newbie looking for information. Videos, stories, insights populate the site in a manner that appears more like a conversation than a one-sided soliloquy. Check it out …and never stop making music.

The artist campaign features Kaki King, who in 2006 Rolling Stone named as the sole woman and youngest artist honored on “The New Guitar Gods” list.  And, Gus G., heavy metal guitarist who currently tours with Ozzy Osbourne and his own band Firewind.  Check out their interviews on ElixirStrings.com.

See these ads in guitar mags and websites on newsstands everywhere.