Mark Brooks

Project Purpose

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Completed the design and development of a brand-new website for renowned illustrator Mark Brooks—built as a central hub that unifies his portfolio, blog, subscription experience, and storefront into one cohesive platform. With a combined social reach of 250,000+ followers across multiple channels, the primary goal was to bring Mark’s audience (and client needs) into a single destination that supports discovery, engagement, and monetization through a structured membership model.

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• Unified Mark’s multi-platform audience into one “home base” experience
• Implemented a multi-tier subscription model with exclusive content and premium benefits
• Designed a high-end portfolio with intuitive galleries, navigation, and categorization
• Created custom After Effects video headers for all portfolio categories
• Built a daily blog for updates, insights, and community engagement (comments/sharing-ready)
• Delivered a multi-level eCommerce store with subscriber-only product access
• Transitioned the entire platform to Shopify for flexibility, scalability, and easier operations
• Integrated payments, user management, and subscription management workflows
• Optimized performance and responsiveness across devices
• Conducted thorough QA/testing to ensure a smooth, reliable launch

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The final website functions as both a premium showcase of Mark’s work and a robust commercial platform—supporting fans with fresh content and exclusive access, while giving Mark a scalable system to manage subscriptions, releases, and sales in one place.

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Scope of Work:

Multi-Tier Subscription Service:

• Develop and integrate a multi-tier subscription model offering various levels of content and benefits.
• Include features such as exclusive content, early access to releases, and premium benefits.
• Set up payment gateways and user management systems for seamless subscription management.

Online Portfolio Design:

• Design and implement a visually sophisticated online portfolio with high-quality images.
• Design custom video headers in After Effects for all portfolio categories.
• Create an intuitive gallery layout to showcase Mark’s artwork in detail.
• Incorporate functionality for zooming in and exploring pieces, with clear navigation and categorization.

Daily Blog Section:

• Develop a blog section for regular updates, insights, and stories about Mark’s work.
• Implement content management features for easy blog post creation and publishing.
• Include options for user interaction, such as comments or shares.

Multi-Level eCommerce Store:

• Set up an eCommerce platform to offer both general and exclusive products.
• Integrate product catalog management, shopping cart functionality, and secure checkout processes.
• Develop a system to manage exclusive product access for subscribers.

Platform Transition to Shopify:

• Migrate the existing website to Shopify for enhanced flexibility and robustness.
• Customize Shopify features to fit the specific needs of Mark’s portfolio, blog, and eCommerce operations.
• Ensure smooth data migration and integration of new features.

Overall User Experience:

• Optimize the website for performance and user engagement across all devices.
• Ensure seamless integration of all features to provide a cohesive user experience.
• Conduct thorough testing to identify and resolve any issues before launch.

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Challenges:

• Our user studies revealed that the onboarding process for Mark's subscription service was confusing for new users. Specifically, it was not immediately clear that users needed to first create a Shopify account and then proceed to purchase their membership tier. Additionally, some testers encountered issues where they signed up for Shopify using one email address and then subscribed to Mark's website using a different one, further complicating the process.

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