www.ilevel.com
HORNALL ANDERSON DESIGN WORKS
The people staring out at you from the iLevel website can’t seem to stand still. In fact, they look like the men and women you might see fidgeting in line at the grocery store—idly shifting their heads or adjusting their jackets. But here all this motion serves a bigger purpose than passing time. The slight movements make these characters seem truly alive, even though they’re set against simple line drawings of houses and trucks. It’s all part of creating an immersive, 3D environment where people can experience a relatively new brand.

This site plays an important role in the launch of a branded business from Weyerhaeuser—a launch that brings together different segments of the company’s residential wood products business under one umbrella. Hornall Anderson Design Works partnered with the company on the entire branding process, but the iLevel website proved to be an important part of the puzzle: It’s where many people first encounter the brand. As such, the site needed to grab attention with something more compelling than text, so the project team decided to turn the target audience into the site’s stars.

The featured individuals—ranging from home buyers and builders to a design professional—actually step forward on the site and talk about what iLevel does for them. Hornall Anderson created scripts and worked with actors to make these characters come alive in a way that’s realistic and engaging. As you watch the testimonials, you can learn about how the brand saves time or just helps a homeowner avoid squeaky floors. “It’s pretty hard for me to relate to an I-beam, but it’s easy for me to relate to a person,” says Jamie Monberg, interactive creative director.

This personal approach also helped the site appeal to a diverse target audience without making the project seem disjointed or unfocused. “How could you build one experience that felt like it was created for each of these people?” Monberg asks. With this design, users can simply start with the person who represents them. But no matter where you start exploring the home page, you’ll uncover important information about iLevel. Roll over a house, and you’ll highlight a roof or flooring solution. A simple click of the mouse takes you to detailed product information. This environment allows users to truly interact with the brand and gives them a reason to dig deeper to learn more about iLevel’s extensive offerings.
Michelle Taute