Gallery: Landing Pages

This is a landing page for Muskoka Woods, a summer camp located on the shores of Lake Rousseau in Ontario, Canada.

Founded by two Toronto natives, this Christian non-profit seeks to help children become accustomed to a range of outdoor and hands-on activities they wouldn’t otherwise have the opportunity to try.

What did we do?

For this landing page, the Chinese version was not a direct translation of an existing page. Rather, it is a new page written specifically for the Chinese market and drawing key points from various places on the English website. This is a high-ROI activity for a starter-level budget.

Planning

First, we considered the concerns potential parents would have about their children attending a camp abroad. We broke these down into a clear five-step sequence:

1. Safety
2. Value
3. Logistics
4. Pricing structure
5. Enrollment Process

Having this information in Chinese on one page allows key family members to immediately gain interest in the camp even if they can’t read English.

Text Mockup

Next, we created a text-based mockup in Google Docs. The content was drawn from the English Muskoka Woods website. Our team reviewed the full site and selected the information most relevant for Chinese parents. We then reorganized and translated the material to match the structure and logic of the new Chinese landing page.

This stage allowed us to align on content direction before moving into visual design.

Design Mockup

After that, we created a full design mockup. This features the words, colors and design elements used on the final page. Once confirmed, we converted it into HTML and HTML for the Muskoka Woods team to use.

WordPress Conversion

The conversion to a fully functional WordPress page was done by a developer at Muskoka Woods.

What Does This Post Teach Us About Marketing on Chinese Social Media?

Have English Content Already Prepared

When Muskoka Woods came to us, they already had an English website, which made it easy for us to transcreate (our process of localization and adaptation) it into Chinese.

Keep Branding Consistent Across Cultures

Brands should be aware that some of their target audience in China can read English. They should also assume that some of their Canadian audience can read Chinese. 

By maintaining the same color scheme and font across both their English and Chinese websites, Muskoka Woods doesn’t appear like two different companies. Sure, the wording may alter voice somewhat, but everything else “feels” the same.

A common challenge for all brands, regardless of industry, is maintaining consistent branding in different countries.

This is why having self-awareness and a clear set of values from the beginning is essential for global marketing.

Visual Impact

Languages differ, so even if something is translated, it may not carry the same tone or meaning that customers in China are accustomed to. Conversely, people shopping encounter products that resemble one another and use similar catchphrases, making the words lose some of their impact.

Pictures are universal and are used to leave an impression on that late-night phone scroller, tired from a day of exhausting work. Everyone loves looking at a glistening lake or lush greenery, not to mention smiling faces. We all have heard the phrase “a picture speaks a thousand words,” and this is also true across different cultures.

What makes Muskoka Woods even better than your average school or camp is that their pictures are real and unstaged. Photos of an end-of-the-year group photo or a team celebrating a win, while completely unaware of the photographer, are raw, and the energy is palpable. 

This extends to more practical matters, too. Parents want to know their children will be well-fed and healthy while they are away from home. A simple picture of a typical camp meal on the website goes a long way towards addressing parental concerns and queries.

Advertise Your Achievements Up Front

Branding is all about trust. Parents in China, just like parents all over the world, don’t want to send their children away to a place with little or no reputation. 

One terrific element of Muskoka Woods’ website is that users encounter the camp’s history and partnerships almost immediately. 

Years of experience and a handful of reputable agencies silently express a legacy of good relationships. It will leave a mother or father thinking, “If all of these people trust these guys, I can too.”

Be Capable of Adjusting Your Content for a Different Audience

Since trust is built on a company’s track record, it can also be built by putting in even more effort. It’s one thing to casually translate a website and have it as a replica of the original; it’s another thing to consider user experience and design for a foreign audience.

Muskoka Woods certainly considered that non-Canadian parents may have more questions than their average clientele. That’s why they modified their Chinese website to include a list of frequently asked questions and their answers.

Because Chinese characters take up less space than other scripts, Internet users have become more accustomed to different layouts on phones and computers. Web pages tend to be a lot “busier” in China than in the West. 

Instead of requiring customers to click a button to find the common questions the camp receives, they added it to the website’s first page. Fewer clicks often mean more views, as it requires less effort.

Place More Emphasis on the Costs & Benefits

Another adjustment the camp made on its Chinese website was move the pricing to the homepage. This is important information regardless of location or background, but even more so to people from countries where the average salary may be lower or spending habits differ.

Muskoka Woods made sure to include their pricing on the homepage.

In the image above, the camp’s programs are divided by age and time. This way, parents can easily see a full spread of their options. Being upfront and transparent about pricing (and presenting it clearly) increases trust.