Cake Bite Girl

About this project.

Cake Bite Girl was created and developed in a short time span of 4 weeks. It started as a passion project and grew into a fully developed ecommerce website. In addition to creating Cake Bite Girl itself I managed all operations including the creating and producing of product, marketing, and client communications.

My main goal was to communicate the product through various channels such as social media, press (radio and tv), and the website itself. I started by offering many options that included custom requests. After seeing how this played out I realized I needed a more streamlined approach. I turned to UX processes to navigate how the consumers were taking to the product and what worked best.

The major project we created was an ecommerce website that ran on an ASP.NET Core nopCommerce web application platform. This allowed for on the spot editing for making changes to product and special offers. I was able to edit pricing, create seasonal products, and track visitors to the site.

Challenges

• See the website from different perspectives (UX designer, product owner, marketing)

• Step back from the product to execute and manage UX

• Selling a food product with no storefront

Branding and Packaging Design

The logo design was inspired by modern typography and design. I wanted to make it fun with an elegant twist to align with varying target markets. The logo had to resonate with the casual gift giver and large scale party planner. Most importantly it had to communicate what the product was. Cake pops were very popular at the moment, but not so much the cake bite. I wanted to make sure it conveyed both confections.

My main goal with the packaging was to make sure it was sturdy while elegant. Many of our cake bites were traveling a long distance and needed to look perfect upon arrival. I worked with several box companies and created our own signature packaging.

Leveraging My Design Skills

One of the most groundbreaking features of our product was the use of an edible ink printer. This allowed for me to combine my knowledge of color, visual design, and typography while using design programs to accurately depict company logos and illustrations. This took a few trials to figure out the mechanics of the printer itself plus the physical application onto the cake pops and bites. This was huge to share with our clients. It allowed us to expand our services to offer company logos on the actual product at events, gifts, and trade shows.

I also was given many requests for characters, specific designs, colors, and custom packaging. This was a great opportunity to use my design skills to create something special.

Marketing the Brand

The biggest driver for getting the word out was simply word of mouth. I connected with the local restaurants, special events, and partnership opportunities all over Chicago. This resulted in tv and radio spots, trade show appearances, and relationships with local cafes and shops.

Some of the most highlighted include:

• Spot on WBBM’s Made In Chicago series

• Appearance on Windy City Live

• Participated in Chicago’s Baconfest

• Featured in Skirt Magazine Chicago

• Partnership with local cafe Dolce Casa Cafe in Chicago

• Showcased at the Dr. Suess Gallery at WaterTower Place, Chicago

Getting the Word Out

We knew we needed a website to showcase the product. Word of mouth was working well, but we didn’t have a place that people can order from. We were able to partner with a local coffee shop that allowed for orders to be picked up when purchased on our website. About half of our orders came from corporate clients, and the other half were private customers. Most of the communication was through email or by phone for large scale events and orders.

Our corporate clients included:
Google
Abbott Labs
Maven Wave Partners
WBBM Newsradio
Cusp Retailer
Urban Pooch
Park Hyatt
Spanesi
BaconFest
Biogen Labs
Mac & Mia
Dolce Casa Cafe
UBS Financial
50CAN
NBC’s Chicago Fire

Developing the personas

As the product grew and more people started to order, I found there were overlapping needs. I was able to identify patterns in ordering style, custom requests, and business to consumer needs. I developed personas based on these needs to better predict sales.

Developing the ecommerce website

While I was busy creating the actual product I realized the need for an ecommerce website to give the customer a faster way to order. I had developed a product base with signature flavors and styles and quickly realized that having a go to line of product made it easier to market.

With this in mind I staged all the cake bites and pops for photographs. My goal was to keep a consistent style to the product for the website. I then created a simple checkout process that allowed the user to choose cake flavor, coating, and toppings.

Refining the Checkout Process

As I was growing the business, I noticed that photos were everything. I did not have a brick and mortar location, so I had to rely on photographs to showcase the product. I took all of my own photos which gave me control over all the touchpoints on the consumer end. Rotating photographs on the homepage welcomed the viewer in. The product was photographed in the exact packaging that it would be shipped in. This gave transparency and trust that lead to more orders overall.

Designing and Writing the Marketing Pieces

To address all of our customers, different packages were developed based on those needs. For some of our users, they needed information quickly and may not have time to explore all the options. This is when printed pieces came into play. As we got to know our customer base, we were able to tailor our approach. This included marketing materials to hand out at meetings, planning the website to target the needs of online shoppers, and assessing how we take on custom work.