Role

Creative Designer Lead
Seo & Marketing Team

Date

Dec '2024

Service

UI / UX Design
Seo & Marketing

02

Car Dealership Website

DriveDeal.ca

Branding. Strategy. Visibility.
Laying the digital foundation for a new product in the automotive B2B market.

DriveDeal.ca is a new SaaS solution designed to help Canadian car dealerships manage leads more efficiently. As part of the Interactive Media Management program, our team partnered with the client to launch this product's branding, SEO, and digital marketing—from the ground up. .

While some teammates focused on SEO strategy and copywriting, I was part of the Lead Generation & Marketing Team, and also led the Creative Team—shaping the visual identity, branding system, and marketing content that would represent DriveDeal.ca across platforms.

The Problem

Canadian dealerships—especially small to mid-sized independents—often face problems with:

  • Lead leakage (cold or untracked leads).
  • No defined CRM system or follow-up process.
  • Zero brand presence or outdated websites.
  • Poor visibility on search engines.

As this was a new product, our challenge was twofold:
→ Craft a brand that looks and feels trustworthy
→ Make sure the right people can find it online

How might we help DriveDeal.ca establish brand awareness and attract strong prospective clients as it launches a reliable product designed to streamline client negotiations for car dealers, so that it can secure a competitive position in the market?

The Research

We analyzed competitors in the B2B automotive tech space and also reviewed current SEO gaps across dealership-related queries. Some insights:

  • Many CRM tools were overly complex or lacked design clarity
  • Visual branding of competitors leaned heavily on outdated web templates.
  • Search trends revealed key terms like inventory management, lead follow-up, and dealership CRM lacked strong results in Canada.
  • Dealership owners often prefer simple, direct platforms over jargon-heavy solutions.

We knew we had to build a clear, confident identity, and back it up with effective marketing and SEO.

The Strategy and Solution

Our team split into three task forces:
  1. SEO & Copywriting – Keyword targeting, Google indexability, competitor content gap analysis.
  2. Design & Branding – Logo, color palette, typography, landing page elements.
  3. Marketing & Content – LinkedIn campaigns, value messaging, outreach content.
I was actively involved in both branding and content, collaborating closely with our SEO team to ensure everything felt aligned.

Branding & Visual Identity

I spearheaded the branding direction and established a modern, minimalist, and neutral aesthetic—built to inspire trust, efficiency, and ease of use. The tone had to be functional yet friendly, tech-forward but not intimidating.

Our moodboard focused on emotional cues like:
🔹 Trust | 🔹 Ease | 🔹 Reliability | 🔹 Transparency | 🔹 Success

Logo Design Process

Our logo development journey began with two core ideas rooted in the brand values of collaboration, trust, and efficiency.

Concept 1: Trust Through Symbolism
The first idea was to visually communicate collaboration through a handshake enclosed within a circle, inspired by a steering wheel. This symbolized partnership, mutual trust, and safe driving — aligning well with DriveDeal.ca’s goal of making car deals more human and dependable.

Concept 2: Minimal, Modern, and Memorable
While the handshake concept was rich in meaning, we wanted something more modern, minimalistic, and instantly recognizable. This led us to creatively combine the initials “d” and “D” from DriveDeal, stylizing them into the shape of a car — making the mark simple, smart, and scalable for both web and app formats.

Final Logo

Here’s our final logo, crafted to reflect efficiency, ease of use, warmth, and human connection.

  • The orange colour conveys friendliness, energy, and approachability.
  • The bold typeface offers clarity and impact while maintaining a clean, professional appearance.
  • The dot in .ca adds a pop of colour and anchors the logo in its Canadian identity.

We also created a responsive version of the logo that works well across digital touchpoints — from website headers to app icons.

Marketing Content (SEO + LinkedIn)

Our team also worked on external-facing content to support product visibility.

  • I collaborated on keyword-optimized landing page copy, ensuring alignment with organic search goals.
  • I created LinkedIn marketing visuals to introduce DriveDeal as a trusted and modern dealership solution.
  • We also produced a short marketing video tailored for LinkedIn, which I designed visuals for and storyboarded in collaboration with the team.

Final Thoughts

This project marked a major milestone for us — it was our first real client collaboration, where we had the opportunity to work hands-on across all key areas: research, brand strategy, logo design, content creation, and UI/UX design. It wasn’t just about creating a logo or designing a website — it was about building a brand identity from the ground up, aligned with the client’s goals and values.

From the early brainstorming sessions to refining the final deliverables, this experience helped us strengthen our communication, time management, and creative problem-solving skills. It also reinforced the importance of user-centered design and how small design decisions can significantly impact how a brand is perceived.

We’re proud of what we created for DriveDeal.ca — a brand that feels trustworthy, modern, and approachable. But more importantly, we’re grateful for the growth and learning that came with this journey.

Sortit isn’t just a scanner. It’s a mini behavior shift disguised as a game — one scan at a time.

Reflection

What truly stood out in this project was the power of collaboration. Every team member brought something unique to the table — whether it was strong visual design, content strategy, user research, or wireframing expertise. Rather than working in silos, we constantly communicated, cross-checked ideas, and provided feedback to one another, which elevated the overall quality of our output.

There were moments when timelines got tight or we faced creative blocks — but these challenges were overcome through collective brainstorming and mutual support. Collaborating with a real client also helped us learn how to listen actively, divide responsibilities efficiently, and present as a unified team during client reviews.

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