The Penguin Speakers Bureau (PSB) connects Penguin Group’s award-winning authors to audiences through speaking events. From Pulitzer Prize–winning journalists and bestselling novelists to leading economists and controversial columnists, PSB’s roster includes some of today’s most influential authors.
Our relationship with PSB began in 2011 when we first redesigned and developed their website. We worked with PSB to improve ways to browse speakers and topics, to provide clear information about each author, and to announce upcoming speaking events.
Fast forward two years. PSB’s list of speakers has grown, featuring almost 300 authors! With this increase in content, the PSB team approached us in January to refresh their site. Challenged (and excited) by the large amounts of content, we aimed to architect new designs to better support more material in a clear and compelling way.
Revisiting the Content Management System
From the beginning of the project, we knew it wasn’t enough just to update the front-end of the site. So we began by upgrading ExpressionEngine, the content management system, and auditing our previous build.
We identified ways to ease the content management workflow by stripping away old technology, such as Flash video players, and implementing new features like a photo cropping and editing tool. We also pinpointed structural elements and content relationships that needed to remain consistent to keep development lean and to minimize content repopulation. The insights gathered in this process helped inform our design decisions and iterations.
Modern Means Content First
In rethinking the designs, we approached modernization as going hand-in-hand with better readability and improved access to content. To do this, we simplified the application of color, chose the reader-friendly Open Sans font, embraced white space with an open layout, and brought images and videos to the forefront.
We were even given some wiggle room to explore lock up variations to the PSB logo (the placement of the name in relation to the iconic Penguin mark). Our final iteration moved away from the two-circle branding of the previous website, embracing a more minimal treatment of the name next to the Penguin mark.
The Individual Speakers Page (see example here) was by far the most challenging layout to restructure. The page needed to include the author’s biography, featured book cover, testimonials, media kits, press mentions, speaking topics, and a clear call to action to “Book the Speaker.” With each iteration, we worked with the PSB team to explore and establish a clear hierarchy in a non-cluttered way that encourages engagement.
Keep on Flying Penguins
It’s been a joy to continue our relationship with PSB and to help complement their efforts to best showcase Penguin’s most in-demand voices. We hope that our design decisions will continue to help propel PSB forward as they keep on growing.
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