Fiddler's Crab House & Oyster Bar Savannah, GA

Fiddler's Crab House

CLIENT

Fiddler's Crab House & Oyster Bar

SERVICES

Branding Refresh

Style Sheet & Collateral

Website

Interior Design Comps

Overview

A brand refresh for an established local staple, executed through market research and modern design elements.

Problems

Fiddler's Crab House is located on the Savannah Riverfront, a very popular destination for tourists. While it remains a popular spot for tourists, many restaurants have seen a gradual shift of patrons move from the Riverfront district to the up-and-coming City Market district located a couple blocks away.

Reasons for this shift are:
New, more modern designed restaurants opening
More entertainment (music) in City Market
Desire for tourists to "eat like the locals" and avoid tourist traps

Objectives

The owners of Fiddler's wanted to elevate their brand in order to demand a slightly higher price point and compete with the increasing competition, all the while retaining the local feel of the restaurant.

Challenges

Challenge 1:

Define what makes Fiddler's unique.

The name "Fiddler's Crab House" did not tell the whole story. They have a large menu that includes lots of other seafood and local craft beer. They also have THE largest oyster selection in Savannah, yet that fact was not present anywhere in their marketing. We also wanted to highlight a few signature dishes that the restaurant is known for.

Challenge 2:

Update the brand visuals.

To demand a higher price point and reach a slightly more refined audience, the logo with its cartoon/illustration style needed an upgrade. The challenge was to create a look that is more subtle, bold, easy to read, and works at any scale. Along with the logo, we wanted to create a branded style guide, or brand book, that would set the foundation for the tone and look of the brand from the restaurant to the website and everything in between.

Challenge 3:

Update the customer experience.

The entire customer experience starts at the website and continues into the interior design of the restaurant itself. The aesthetics of the old website had become dated after 5 years, and the performance on mobile was lacking, which in turn hurt their SEO and traffic to the restaurant. Further, the interior of the restaurant was dark and somewhat dingy looking, so we wanted to brighten things up and bring more energy into the rooms.

Process

We sent out surveys, read and dissected reviews, and sent out a team of "secret diners" to report back on their experience in detail. We found areas that were lacking, surprising favorites, and things that simply weren't working - from menu items, to the overall experience of the brand; both online and on location.