Wield was tasked with designing an end-to-end solution that allowed the client to easily manage and grow his immense library of tutorials, but that would also allow his users to quickly and easily locate the information most relevant to their issue.
Sparky is the brain child of an automotive electrical specialist who saw a need for an online community of do-it-yourself-ers who needed a reliable resource for answers to common automotive electrical and air conditioning issues.
We first worked with Steve in 2007, setting up a basic html website and integrating it with his selected ecommerce platform, Nexternal Solutions to support his automotive electrical parts business. Over the years we provided website maintenance, marketing, and blog set up.
challenge
During the day, Steve was busy investigating and fixing automotive electrical issues in his shop, and by night, he was actively managing a growing community of do-it-yourselfers looking to address their own electrical problems.
As his online community continued to flourish, the needs of that community warranted a user-friendly and feature-rich platform that would enhance the user’s experience and simplify management.
After a failed attempt with another web development firm, Steve approached Wield with the task of taking Sparky’s Answers to the next level.
Over the years you have spoiled me by doing your job well and I was mistaken to assume others would do the same.
—Steve H.
strategy
Wield was tasked with designing an end-to-end solution that allowed the client to easily manage and grow his immense library of tutorials, but that would also allow his users to quickly and easily locate the information most relevant to their issue. From any page on the site, and from any device, users are able to search for an answer or ask a question—the two directions are clearly stated, easy to access, and clarify the intentions of the site upfront.
approach
We designed an intuitive search feature, based on the automotive industry’s standard search query, allowing users to select year, make and model. The articles are then dynamically sorted by relevance and displayed to the user. If they can’t find an answer to their problem, they can engage Sparky directly in a one-on-one session for a fee.
conclusion
The website is built on WordPress and utilizes a variety of 3rd party plugins that allow the admin to process payments, manage memberships, and publish more content. The site is integrated with responsive Ads by Google as an additional source of revenue. In a future phase, Sparky will encourage sponsors—members who can be either a company wanting to display their ads, or other mechanics, like Sparky, who have valuable information to share with Sparky’s growing user base.
We’re excited to part of Sparky’s growth.