CabKing gets a facelift

Neer Patel wanted to update his CabKing website to appeal to CabKing customers (rather than CabKing dealers). He also wanted to increase visibility and interest for lapidary, which is the art of transforming stone and minerals into gemstones and jewelry. Of course, I was more than happy to take on the challenge.

Step 1: Update the logo

before

The original logo and brand identity did not make a positive first impression. The line work was imperfect and asymmetrical, which conveyed poor quality and faulty workmanship. And while the crown spoke to the “King” part of the brand name, the original logo didn’t obviously communicate what the CabKing cabbing machine does, which is to make cabochons (dome-shaped gems known as “cabs”).

after

I wanted the new logo to better symbolize the CabKing cabbing machine. I kept the gold, five-point crown from the original logo but replaced the diamond crown points with oval ones and the angled junctions with rounded curves. (Can you find the six cabs embedded in the new logo?) I removed the blue texture fill and simplified the brand color palette to gold, black and white for a more elegant and timeless feel. The solid, slab serif typeface, rather than the outlined sans serif, also suggests the sturdy build of the machines. The rebranding also gave us the opportunity to resolve the brand name, which was being used as two words and as one word. We decided to focus branding and marketing efforts on “CabKing,” which had better SEO traction than “Cab King.” The capitalized “K” in the new logo is consistent with the how the product line appears in print and online for instant name recognition.

Step 2: Update the website

before

The original website was essentially an online catalog where dealers could buy CabKing cabbing machines and parts. The design was outdated and didn’t instill confidence in customers.

after

The new e-commerce site is built using WordPress and WooCommerce. It features a totally responsive layout so it works well on all devices. The redesigned website also has a bunch of new, user-friendly content to appeal to existing and potential CabKing customers, like graphics showcasing the CabKing’s features, an online product registration form and a FAQs page for additional customer support. Website traffic has been steadily increasing since the redesign’s launch.