Redesigning a Restaurant Website With More Powerful Copy

The Project

Jake, a client of mine, was struggling with their online presence and user experience. I was tasked with redesigning his restaurant website to fix these problems. This project involved completely overhauling the website and redesigning it in Figma, before building it in Wix.

What Wasn't Working

The original website was struggling to portray a professional appearance as well as have clear and meaningful copy (such as a mission statement and strong about section). My goal in this project was to design and build a website that would rework the businesses internet presence. Below are some screenshots of the website when I first started the redesign process.

The Landing Page

The Footer

The About Page

How I Approached a Redesign

Jake, the owner of the restaurant had a clear goal: Redesign the website so that it was more professional and would be easier to find in google search.

With this in mind, I started coming up with design layouts. I researched other restaurant websites to see how they their webpages were laid out and considered what would work best for Jake's restaurant.

Once I had a design layout that I was happy with (A header image with a mission statement + call to action), I started to create a mock-up. I discussed with Jake his goal for a mission statement, and we settled on "At Greek Island Grill, we aim to serve the highest quality Greek food in sunny Arizona". This would be the text that goes in the Hero section of the website.

Redesigning the Footer

The footer of the website is often important. It is the first place users tend to go to whenever they get lost, or are looking for business information (contact information, social media, location info, hours). The current footer shown above included good information, such as the hours of the business, the location, and a phone number. They also had some sales text in the footer, but I think that copy is better moved somewhere else, as the footer is mostly a utility section for users, and not a selling area.

Here are some things I chose to add to the footer section of the website:

• The footer section of the website should contain all the same links that are in the navigation at the top of the page, this makes it so that the user doesn't have to completely scroll all the way back up the page to navigate to the next section.

• The social media links

• The email address

• The business logo

Once I knew what needed to be removed and added to the footer section, I got started on the redesign.

Rewriting the About Section

A strong about section can separate a mediocre business from an excellent business. Letting your customers know about who you are and your goals gives them something to relate to on an emotional level. Jake is a veteran of the United States, a father to two children, and the brand new owner of the restaurant. These are all things that can be included to help customers connect with him and his business. The original about section that Jake wrote was in third person, and I wanted to make it first person so that it feels a bit more personal and direct.

The following copy is the improved about section for Jake's website:

Hi, I’m Jake Keating - the dynamic force behind Greek Islands Grill.

I purchased Greek Islands Grill in 2023 with a mission to bring authentic Greek food to the San Tan Valley area. Before becoming a restaurant owner, I served in the Navy for five years and am a proud veteran of the United States. Me and my wife have two beautiful children and when I am not at the restaurant I love spending time with my family.

At Greek Islands Grill, we make all our food from fresh ingredients, and serve our customers with a smile on our faces.
Stop by Greek Islands Grill located at 270 E Hunt Hwy Suite 9 to try out our delectable Greek Islands food.

Results

Jake's new website design brings a fresh approach to his web presence. Customers can now navigate the site easily, find information they are looking for, and relate to the owner. These changes should result in a more successful physical business, but only time will tell!