In honor of Madison’s Restaurant Week, IH Concepts in Madison, WI wanted to take the time to talk about our past work with Monona Bakery & Eatery. Monona Bakery is a family-owned restaurant and bakery with Honduran influences in its menu. From 2021-2022, we worked with Monona Bakery to help improve their online presence with our website design services in Madison, WI and aid them in receiving the City of Madison’s Small Business Equity Recovery Grant (SBER). By building a connection with the fellow small business, our goal was to save them money in the long run by unsubscribing them from Wix, a website development platform; help them gain an air of professionalism; and lessen budget costs with the grant.
Prior to doing business with us, Monona Bakery paid for a Wix template that costs around $30 per month to maintain the website. Some may have seen the website as confusing to navigate and reading more like a menu than a professional restaurant page. There was little color contrast, curlicue fonts and ornate borders. By starting from scratch, our team of graphic designers collaborated with the family that owns the bakery to completely transform the look of the website.
After the website was completed, it vastly improved Monona Bakery’s digital presence. Our team added several features, including a Community and Press page highlighting news publications featuring the restaurant, an updated menu with a clear layout and pictures, and a fresher, professional color palette and clearer fonts. Not only did this improve the aesthetic appearance of the restaurant, but it also cost the restaurant less long-term, as our service of hosting the website at an upfront cost ended up saving them 2/3 of the cost of what Wix charged.
From this experience working with Monona Bakery, IH Concepts learned several lessons. By collaborating and building a relationship with the family, we were able to help their website achieve a cleaner look that all parties were happy with. The new design gained credibility for Monona Bakery, and their business steadily grew, subsequently winning them The Best of Monona Award for the Best Breakfast and the Best Donuts in 2023.
Furthermore, as we worked on budgeting needs with the restaurant, our Marketing team was able to aid them in the application for and acceptance of the SBER Grant. In this way, we can break down any financial barriers for small businesses, so those who need it most can afford our services and build up their business. The contributions of our marketing team demonstrate the importance of marketing for restaurants, as a new website design alone won’t address budgeting concerns. This is how we make graphic design and marketing overlap—by helping restaurants afford our design services that will allow them to readily reach customers on their digital platforms.
Lastly, our teamwork with Monona Bakery gave us insight into the power of doing your job well. With our all-hands-on-deck approach and undivided attention and dedication, we were able to lay out a personalized gameplan for Monona Bakery. Although Monona Bakery was fortunate to receive the grant, the graphic design collateral and marketing services we provide became an investment for any restaurant that will pay off immensely in the long run. We give our local family-owned businesses everything we have to offer, and by doing so, strive to see them thrive.
In short, IH Concepts served every individualized need of Monona Bakery & Eatery through effective communication and collaboration with the restaurant. We revamped their website, and their new-and-improved website is easier to navigate for potential customers and cheaper for the business to uphold in the long haul. Additionally, we brought relief to their business costs by cutting down on unnecessary expenses from Wix and increasing their budget through our consulting for the grant. The power of personalized services IH Concepts offers is what drives our success and allows us to do our job well, all the while helping businesses put their best foot forward, as seen with the flourishing success of Monona Bakery.
