Editorial Web Design
The Real Debt Guy
Empowering individuals to take action when it comes to debt.
ABOUT
Impartial, fact-based information that makes a genuine difference in people’s lives. That’s The Real Debt Guy. No nonsense, no jargon. Just clear and simple information about debt.
The founder of TRDG has been studying, researching and providing information and fact-based opinions on debt to the general public for over 15 years. Genuinely passionate about helping people understand complicated financial issues and making a difference, TRDG wanted to create a hub of information where they could share knowledge with those who need helpful and clear insight.
Getting in touch with Abstrakt, we supported TRDG with their verbal and visual brand and made their idea a reality with a website that simplifies complicated matters - from straightforward, open and mindful design to slick, intuitive development. It was crucial that everything about The Real Debt Guy's branding, language, content and visual aesthetic put its audience at ease.
BRANDING
Honest information about debt? We got you.
The brand voice needed an open and friendly tone that felt human and familiar upon interaction. The Real Debt Guy’s empathetic nature needed to shine through, and their genuine desire to help and offer insightful information. No jargon came into play, and the brand voice rang with a warm, sympathetic understanding.
BRANDING
We found a clean and welcoming font in ‘Basic’ with soft curves that work in unison with a muted colour palette, which plays a crucial role in the brand and website experience. Each primary colour has a secondary hue used across the site to subtly direct the user journey between different sections whilst always being mindful of the audience’s mindset. The colours were chosen for their calm and soft scale to keep users focused on information in a soothing digital space.
#1F1630
#D6BAF9
#76DEE1
#6FBAFC
#FD605B
#F9D585
#FCFBF5
WEB DESIGN
Simplifying design with an intuitive flow of colour and pace.
The design structure handles like an editorial website. However, the colour leads with a more natural flow and doesn’t barrage users with too much information. We ensured that the dedication to calming a user down transitioned into the design, positioning mindfulness components throughout the website, so they had a point to escape and catch their breath if information ever felt ‘too heavy’.
In connection with the colour palette, bespoke ‘squiggles’ work in unison with colour to instinctively motivate users around the website in areas pertinent to their needs. Alongside the responsive brand logo, we designed mobile-first, meaning that the web design was optimised for mobile users, scaled responsively and was more accessible to a broader audience.
WEB DEVELOPMENT
Scalable and responsive and made for a content-first approach, The Real Debt Guy is built on Craft which empowers content managers with user-friendly interfaces, and customisable back ends. When it comes to TRDG, the backend structure is based on a series of relationships to deliver content intuitively to users. The biggest piece of functionality is the Budget Planner, which works by calculating a user's income and outgoings to give a precise financial overview.
One of the critical elements of the Budget Planner is its delivery of relevant content upon submission. Along with its ability to store the progress so that when a user returns to the website, they can continue where they left off. The entire website must maintain a mindful, helpful space - if a user feels the Budget Planner is becoming overwhelming, they can return to it later, and it will have stored their information to continue.
Alongside functionality, the journey through the website offers slick but subtle transitions across call-to-actions and muted gradients that lift content to encourage clicks. As it's such a content-heavy website, a focus has been placed on SEO, too, with separate tabs for metadata and clear heading structures throughout to improve search visibility.
They bring your idea to life in a way I could never imagine, and our overall experience has been amazing. Abstrakt combined my knowledge of the complicated subject of debt with my belief in mindfulness, creating a calming, safe and easy to use and navigate space. Their dedication to user experience has been a focus of every part of this project.
Oye Ayonrinde - Founder - The Real Debt Guy
Next project
Let's work together.
Get in touch