Larson Builders
Elevating Luxury Home Construction Through Modern UX & Local SEO
This case study walks through how ThePixel transformed Larson Builders’ digital presence into a high-impact showcase for luxury home construction — combining modern UX design, elevated branding, stronger local SEO, and a streamlined consultation flow that significantly increased qualified project inquiries.
Larson Builders: Turning Luxury Home Browsing Into Booked Consultations
Larson Builders is an Iowa City construction company specializing in custom luxury homes and large-scale residential projects. ThePixel redesigned their website to feel like a digital showroom — where homeowners can explore past builds, understand the process, and quickly book a consultation. Project detail pages, curated galleries, and clear calls-to-action now work together to drive qualified, local leads.
| Role | Principal UI/UX Designer & Web Strategist (research → launch) |
|---|---|
| Team | UX, UI, Content, Development, QA |
| Timeline | ~12 weeks · UX strategy, redesign, local SEO & analytics wiring |
| Platform & Tools | WordPress, Figma, GA4, Google Search Console, Heatmaps, Local SEO Toolkit |
Research & discovery
Before designing screens, we needed to understand how homeowners choose a luxury home builder in the Iowa City area: what they look for first, what builds trust, and when they’re ready to reach out. That work shaped the site as a digital showroom and lead funnel — not just a brochure about Larson Builders.
Methods
- Stakeholder interviews with ownership, project managers, and office staff handling inbound leads.
- Review of existing proposal packets, process PDFs, and email inquiries from prospective clients.
- Audit of the legacy website IA, photo galleries, and contact paths for new builds and remodels.
- Baseline review of Google Analytics, Google Business Profile, and heatmaps on key pages.
Key insights
- Most visitors arrived researching local builders in Iowa City, Coralville, and North Liberty.
- High-quality photography and clear project stories were the biggest trust drivers.
- Homeowners wanted to quickly understand price ranges, timelines, and the overall build process.
- Service area and project types were not clearly defined, creating confusion about fit.
Risks
- A generic brochure site could push homeowners to competitors with stronger portfolios and UX.
- Scattered galleries and process pages made it hard to understand what Larson Builders actually offers.
- Limited analytics made it difficult to see which projects, neighborhoods, or keywords drove leads.
Problem & goals
We reframed the site from “about our company” to a complete digital showroom — where homeowners can explore real homes, learn the process, and confidently request a consultation in just a few steps.
- Make it easy to move from inspiration (photos) to action (schedule a consultation) on every page.
- Centralize all services (new builds, remodels, additions) into a clear, homeowner-friendly IA.
- Showcase projects by style, neighborhood, and service type to build local credibility.
- Wire analytics and heatmaps to understand user journeys and optimize lead generation over time.
End-to-end UI/UX journey & outcomes
The new experience connects the entire homeowner journey — from searching for “Iowa City luxury home builder” to browsing projects, understanding the build process, and booking a consultation. Each step focuses on clarity, trust, and reducing friction on the path to a qualified inquiry.
| Journey stage | What changes | UX focus | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|
| Discover builder | Visitors land on a homepage that immediately highlights Larson Builders’ signature homes, service types, and Iowa City–area focus — anchored by clear “View Our Work” and “Schedule a Consultation” CTAs. | Portfolio-first navigation, clear service cards, and local cues that reinforce Larson Builders as a trusted, established builder in the Corridor. | Prospective clients quickly understand what Larson does and where they work. |
| Explore portfolio | Project detail pages include large photography, key stats (square footage, location, scope), and short narratives that explain design decisions. | Engaging calls-to-action, persistent “Request Similar Project” and “Book a Consultation” options, plus related-project carousels to keep homeowners exploring. | More engaged visitors who can see themselves in the work Larson Builders delivers. |
| Understand process | A dedicated “Our Process” section walks through discovery, design, construction, and follow-up in plain language with supporting visuals. | Step-by-step layout, FAQs, and timelines that reduce anxiety around budgets, schedules, and decisions. | Clear expectations and fewer repetitive “how does this work?” emails and calls. |
| Check fit & credibility | Testimonials, badges, and a service area map help homeowners validate that Larson Builders is both reputable and active in their neighborhood. | Local proof points (Iowa City, Coralville, North Liberty), review callouts, and clear service area visuals. | Faster “yes, they’re a good fit” decisions from qualified leads. |
| Contact & follow-up | Contextual forms on portfolio and services pages capture project type, location, and budget range to route inquiries to the right team member. | Short, focused forms with clear labels, optional fields, and success states that set expectations for next steps. | Higher-quality leads, cleaner routing, and better visibility into what projects drive interest. |
| Optimize & iterate | Heatmaps, GA4 tracking, and Google Search Console provide ongoing insight into navigation, scroll depth, and engagement with portfolio content. | Smooth hover transitions, clear feedback on interactions, and analytics wiring on key CTAs. | Decreased bounce rates across the site, increased sessions, and longer time on site as the team continues to refine the experience. |
Conversion-focused project pages
The new Larson Builders website treats each project as a case study — giving homeowners a clear sense of style, craftsmanship, and scope. Every project page balances inspiration with next steps, so browsing naturally leads to booking.
- Prominent CTAs such as “Book a Design Consultation,” “Request Similar Home,” and “Talk to Our Team.”
- Inline contact forms tuned for project type, budget range, and desired timeline.
- Project galleries showcasing exteriors, interiors, and detail shots for each home.
- Tags for location, home type, and service (new build, remodel, addition) to support browsing and SEO.
- +37%
- Increase in visitors reaching a consultation form from project pages
- +55%
- Increase in views of full project galleries
- 2.1×
- Increase in visitors viewing more than three projects per session
- −23%
- Drop in exits from project pages without interaction
Performance, analytics & engagement gains
After launch, ThePixel monitored GA4, heatmaps, and Google Search Console to confirm the redesigned experience was doing its job — improving local visibility, reducing bounce rates, and increasing high-intent consultation requests.
Traffic & visibility
- +32% Increase in organic sessions from search within the first 90 days.
- +41% More visits landing directly on portfolio and services pages vs. generic entry points.
- Local rankings Ranking improvements for key terms like “Iowa City custom home builder” and “luxury home construction.”
Engagement signals
- −28% Decrease in bounce rate across the website following the redesign.
- +33% Increase in average session duration as users explore more projects.
- +24% Lift in pages per session for visitors engaging with portfolio and process content.
UX optimization
- Heatmaps Installed heatmaps to understand scroll depth, click patterns, and hover behavior on key pages.
- GA4 + GSC Tracked consultation requests, phone clicks, and form submissions through GA4 and Google Search Console.
- Continuous Ongoing recommendations using console data and user journeys to refine CTAs, page layout, and content hierarchy for local homeowners.
UI/UX process & development lifecycle
ThePixel followed a structured UX and development lifecycle — from discovery to launch — focused on aligning Larson Builders’ sales and operations needs with a seamless digital experience that supports complex, high-investment homeowner decisions.
| Lifecycle stage | Focus | What we did | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|
| Research & discovery | Understand homeowners and the sales team. | Interviewed internal stakeholders, reviewed historical inquiries and proposals, and captured common questions about budgets, timelines, and scope — alongside baseline analytics and local search performance. | Clear picture of how homeowners prefer to evaluate builders and what information they need before reaching out. |
| Problem definition | Align on bottlenecks. | Identified friction points: scattered project photos, limited process explanation, weak CTAs, and no clear way to understand service areas or project fit. | Shared roadmap focused on turning the site into a portfolio and lead-generation engine. |
| Experience goals | Define success for UX and the business. | Set targets around consultation requests, portfolio engagement, local search visibility, and reductions in unqualified leads. | Measurable KPIs used to guide IA decisions, content strategy, and analytics wiring. |
| Design & flows | Connect portfolio, process, and contact paths. | Created a responsive IA, portfolio layouts, project detail templates, service area visuals, and contextual forms that align with real homeowner workflows. | A cohesive experience where “View Our Work,” “Learn the Process,” and “Schedule a Consultation” are always within reach. |
| Validation & iteration | Test and refine. | Implemented heatmaps and GA4 events, monitored engagement, and iterated on layout, copy, and CTAs based on how users actually navigated the site. | Stronger engagement with portfolio content, more qualified leads, and steady improvements in local search performance and on-site behavior metrics. |
Homeowner journey map & emotions
The journey map tracks how a homeowner discovers Larson Builders, explores projects, learns the process, and books a consultation — and how their confidence grows as uncertainty is replaced with clear visuals, straightforward explanations, and intuitive interactions.
Search & discover
Exploring optionsThe homeowner searches for custom or luxury home builders in the Iowa City area and discovers Larson Builders’ updated site through Google search, maps, or referrals.
Scan portfolio
Curious, inspiredPortfolio categories and featured projects are easy to scan, helping the homeowner quickly confirm that Larson Builders’ style aligns with their vision and neighborhood.
Review details & process
InformedClear project descriptions, testimonials, and a step-by-step process page give the homeowner what they need to understand timelines, investment levels, and expectations.
Validate fit & location
AssuredService area visuals, neighborhood projects, and reviews help confirm that Larson Builders works in their area and has delivered similar homes before.
Reach out
Clear pathA tailored consultation form captures project type, location, and timeline, making it easy for the homeowner to reach out and for Larson Builders to respond with context.
Engage & refer
Confident partnerAs the project moves forward, the website remains a reference point for process, expectations, and inspiration — and a place homeowners later share with friends and neighbors as referrals.
Validation & accessibility
Accessibility, performance, and clarity are built into the Larson Builders experience — especially for homeowners who arrive mid-funnel on portfolio or services pages. The site is designed so all users can comfortably browse projects, understand the process, and contact the team, regardless of device or ability.
| Area | Standard | Status | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Color & contrast | WCAG 2.2 AA | Met | Buttons, links, and status states meet AA contrast thresholds on both light and soft background treatments, including overlays on photography-heavy sections. |
| Keyboard & focus | Keyboard access | Met | Navigation, accordions, image galleries, and forms are fully keyboard-accessible with visible focus states and logical order. |
| Semantics | HTML & ARIA | Met | Headings, landmarks, and labels help assistive technologies parse portfolio sections, process steps, and data-heavy areas correctly. |
| Error prevention | Form guidance | Met | Inline validation and clear microcopy prevent errors and preserve entered data across multi-field consultation and estimate forms. |
| Motion & hover | Animation safety | Met | Smooth hover transitions between cards and galleries create an engaging UX while respecting reduced-motion preferences and avoiding distracting effects. |
| Docs & exports | Readable outputs | Improving | Process PDFs and proposal templates are being updated with improved headings and structure for more accessible reading and sharing. |
