SM-RDT

brand strategy, copywriting, website design and build for award-winning international architecture firm SM-RDT

CREDITS –

Strategy, Copywriting & Design: Mark Fallows

Design & Build Lead: Elaine Shultz

Design: Victor Díaz

Photography: Arturo Arditti

Renders: Decc

Producer: Carolina Keller

The context

SM-RDT is a joint venture between a small architecture design firm and Arditti + RDT an international award-winning design firm with more than 40 years in business. They needed to create an identity and website that could showcase their firm’s mission and effectively communicate the quality of their projects.
The objective was to build their reputation and establish new prospects in New York, Los Angeles, and Houston.

The workshop

We kicked-off the project with a design workshop to discuss the main objectives and prioritize requirements.
The workshop also focused on getting a better sense of their essence, values, and work culture.
Some key learnings were:

Employees stay ten years on average at their studio; they develop a healthy family environment.
Sustainability and accessibility are at the heart of their design.
Most of their office buildings have terraces that promote humans to connect and as a source to shade sunny facades naturally.
They have a strong focus on reinventing how religious-focused spaces can build community and deeper connection.

The solution

We created a full resolution feature home carousel presenting different projects that capture the breadth of their practice.
While we kept the navigation minimal, the site is easy to navigate, and content is easily accessible from all site sections.
The site showcases the depth and variety of their international work. We carefully selected 70+ projects.

The project sections have flexible modules that can be swapped in and out, depending on the content and images. Some projects have more detail in the story, while others have a short paragraph.

Content organization and copy

We prioritized all projects depending on the client, the challenge, and popularity. Some of their buildings are iconic landmarks, so they deserved a larger story.

We worked during the pandemic; the Zoom meetings were very long!

Development

I led a team of three people.
We built the site in WordPress so the client could update and maintain the site easily. We initially developed the main structure and navigation, followed by the project templates.
Once the templates where set, we organized the other site sections.