1) Challenges
Launching Metalhead Kustoms’ first full-scale digital presence meant carefully balancing authenticity with strategy. The brand already had a strong offline following, but its online identity was nonexistent. • Audience Alignment: The site and brand needed to speak directly to existing followers while also attracting new customers unfamiliar with Ian’s personality or offerings. This meant building a digital identity that felt raw and familiar, without sacrificing clarity or professionalism. • Onboarding Structure: Time was being lost manually handling service inquiries. The business lacked a clear intake process to sort customers by service type or need, which often led to miscommunication and scheduling issues. • Scattered Visual Ecosystem: Without any structured brand system, designs across merchandise, social content, and marketing lacked consistency. Everything had to be created from the ground up to give Metalhead Kustoms a recognizable, ownable look. • Limited Internal Tools: No automated systems existed for email communication or customer routing. Everything was being handled manually and inconsistently, which left too much room for dropped leads and operational friction.
2) Process
The approach was equal parts creative direction and functional strategy. Every decision had to feel true to the brand while solving practical problems for the business. Brand & Identity Development We established a rugged, throwback-inspired visual identity that reflected the brand’s roots in the community. • Visual System: Designed a flexible brand mark and typographic system inspired by classic American automotive cues, paired with a bold color palette of red, off-white, black, and metallics. • Visual Voice: Created a tone and design language that matched the raw voice of Metalhead Kustoms while still being clean and scalable. Website & Funnel Strategy: The website needed to educate, qualify, and route users without having to handhold every lead. • E-Commerce Integration: Designed and developed a Shopify-based storefront for selling merch, parts, and custom packages. • Service Funnel UX: Built a multi-step intake form that asked users specific questions, segmenting them by service type and need. These flows triggered automated outreach and allowed for easier follow up and scheduling. • UI/UX Design: Structured a responsive layout that made content easy to explore, with clear calls to action and service breakdowns optimized for mobile users. Content Creation & Promotion: To fully activate the brand, we needed to create assets that lived beyond the website. • Merchandise Design: Illustrated and developed a collection of custom shirts, hats, and decals that matched the brand’s identity and resonated with Ian’s audience. • Social Asset Development: Designed post templates, promo visuals, and email campaign graphics to support ongoing engagement. • Ongoing Direction: Helped define a rollout plan for content pacing and promotions tied to product drops and service windows.
3) Result
Metalhead Kustoms transformed from an offline word-of-mouth operation into a fully built-out digital brand with the infrastructure, identity, and tools to grow its reach while staying rooted in the aesthetic and community that built it. • Brand Launch: Introduced a complete brand identity and visual system that reflected Ian’s personality and resonated with his hotrod audience. • Improved Lead Management: The new onboarding funnel helped route users into the correct service paths, reducing missed leads and giving Ian back time in his schedule. • E-Commerce Readiness: The Shopify site allowed for merchandise and custom offering sales, creating a new revenue stream and central hub for the brand. • Audience Growth: A consistent visual presence and social asset library gave the brand the tools to grow its reach and stay top-of-mind across platforms. • Operational Efficiency: Automated intake forms and templated outreach simplified how new customers were onboarded, allowing the brand to scale services more efficiently.
