The Otterdev Approach
A five-person Otterdev team was dedicated to this project—a Project Manager, Creative Lead, Designer, Tech Lead, and Developer—working closely with Ciberspring to ensure a smooth and transparent process. Below are the key steps taken.
Brand Analysis & Moodboarding
We started with a holistic look at Ciberspring’s brand identity. Through competitor research, we identified visual elements and UX strategies that would differentiate Ciberspring while meeting industry expectations. This laid the foundation for the following:
- Moodboards reflecting brand essence and guiding aesthetics.
- Collaborative Review sessions with Ciberspring for iterative feedback.
Once approved, moodboards helped us transition seamlessly into high-fidelity designs.
UX/UI Design in Figma
With full creative freedom (within reason), Otterdev designed 11 reusable templates that Ciberspring could apply to over 30 pages. This saved time and resources, promoting consistency and easy maintenance across:
- Home Page: The most comprehensive build, acting as the “digital front door” for visitors.
- Case Studies & News: Flexible templates for showcasing success stories and updates without repetitive development.
- Services & Contact: Intuitive layouts for users to quickly find what they need and reach out.
Approved designs went straight to development in an iterative “design, develop, QA” cycle. This allowed Ciberspring to see near-final pages quickly and offer real-time input.
Jamstack & Sanity CMS Integration
Why Jamstack?
Otterdev used Astro for the frontend and Sanity CMS for backend content management. The headless approach allowed for:
- High Performance: Static site rendering where possible, reducing page load times.
- Scalability & Security: Decoupling content management from the presentation layer.
- Cost Efficiency: Fewer server-side processes, simpler hosting.
Salesforce Integration
As part of the scope, any lead forms or marketing data collected on the site needed to flow into Ciberspring’s Salesforce environment. The Tech Lead ensured a smooth and secure handoff of user submissions from the new site to Salesforce without disrupting existing workflows.
Migration & SEO Preservation
Content Export/Import
Migrating dozens of pages (including case studies, news items, and general web content) from WordPress to Sanity was a carefully planned operation:
- CSV Export from WordPress, structured for easy import.
- Sanity Schemas set up in parallel, capturing the necessary fields for Ciberspring’s content.
- Verification to confirm that no data was lost or misclassified during the import.
Redirects & Site Structure
To safeguard existing SEO efforts, we mapped old WordPress URLs to new page paths, setting up 301 redirects as needed. This prevented any 404 errors from cropping up post-launch and ensured search engine rankings remained stable or improved.
Challenges & Their Resolutions
Tight Timelines
The primary challenge was time. With Ciberspring’s internal deadlines looming, Otterdev had to coordinate design, development, and testing in a compact schedule. Frequent communication and early prototyping played crucial roles in hitting these milestones.
Complex Layouts
The home page and certain long-form case study sections required innovative design to combine text, imagery, and interactive elements. By designing reusable templates, we could streamline complex requirements while retaining brand consistency.
Overall, the project proceeded smoothly thanks to detailed planning and ongoing collaboration with Ciberspring.
Results & Initial Impact
Though detailed performance analytics or conversion metrics aren’t available at this time, the revamped website now showcases:
- Modern Look & Enhanced Usability
- The new UI/UX presents Ciberspring as a forward-thinking service provider.
- Simplified navigation and improved visuals enhance user engagement.
- Speed & Reliability
- Jamstack architecture significantly boosts performance. Static site generation for key sections minimizes load times.
- Effortless Content Management
- With Sanity CMS, Ciberspring’s teams can create and edit pages easily—free from plugin-related constraints.
- Minimal Maintenance
- Astro’s lightweight nature and decoupled backend reduce complexity, making post-launch upkeep straightforward.
Lessons Learned & Advice
“Migrating to newer technology can feel intimidating—like upgrading from a basic keypad phone to your first smartphone. You may initially worry about unfamiliar workflows or potential trade-offs, but the experience benefits quickly outweigh those concerns.”
Key Takeaways
- Plan Early for Content & SEO: The success of any major CMS shift hinges on proper data export, import, and URL mapping.
- Stay Flexible: An iterative design-development cycle helps teams adapt quickly to feedback, which is especially crucial under tight deadlines.
- Lean on a Solid CMS: Sanity’s headless structure gave Ciberspring full editorial control without back-end overhead, proving how a modern CMS can remove friction.
Words from Ciberspring:
”I have nothing but positive things to say about Otterdev. They made our website migration from WordPress to Sanity an absolute breeze. Their design vision is next-level, their speed is unreal, and their process is refreshingly innovative. Thanks to the headless Jamstack setup, CI now has a whole new outlook—and a serious edge over the competition.”
— Mike Shaw, Managing Partner, Ciberspring
Final Thoughts & Next Steps
The updated Ciberspring website is now equipped for growth, whether that means introducing new features, adding multilingual capabilities, or scaling for heavier traffic. Otterdev remains available for ongoing maintenance and support, ensuring that each future update aligns perfectly with this modern, agile foundation.
