Trustventure Events
Rebrand and website redesign for a modern finance consultancy.
Tasks
UX/UI Design
Visual Design
Branding
Timeline
Aug 2022 - Feb 2023
Context
Trustventure is a consulting agency based in Cologne, Germany. They support startups and established companies in financial planning, fundraising, and investor relations. The majority of their clients come from all around the Northrhein-Westfalen Region.
Eventhough they support all kinds of businesses, Trustventure is a startup at its core. During my time working as an in-house designer there, that meant a fast-paced enviroment and juggling multiple tasks.
Bellow I'll describe the two largest projects I was resposible for while working at Trustventure: the Reposition of their brand and the launch of a dynamic 20+ page website. These two projects are but a small portion of everything I created there, since I had many other reocurring tasks, such as designing and maintaining all marketing materials, spanning print, digital, and social media, including establishing design systems and templates.
I also designed numerous reports, sales decks, and investor pitch presentations—both for Trustventure and their clients, one of which contributed to raising €10M+ in funding.*
*not displayed publicly due to confidentiality.
Challenges
The finance market evolves fast in the Northrhein-Westfalen Region. With over 2,300 startups founded between 2020 and 2023, it continues to be a leading startup creator in Germany. Trustventure's founders knew that their brand didn’t resonate at all with this new audience of modern founders and investors. They also felt that together with an outdated online presence, their current approach didn't reflect their expertise.
It was clear then the three main problems they needed to solve:
Tight budget & timeframe
My Role
For these two projects, as the lead designer at Trustventure, I was responsible for:
Branding: Leading the rebranding initiative to establish a cohesive visual identity.
UI/UX Design: Designing 20+ website pages in Figma, including high-fidelity layouts for desktop and mobile.
Illustration: Created custom illustrations for the homepage to strengthen storytelling and brand recognition.
Collaboration: Working closely with an external developer who implemented the site using WordPress.
Maintenance: Post-launch, I continued to refine and update the website within the WordPress setup.
Research & Discovery
Understanding the Brand
The first step was to immerse myself in Trustventure's ethos. Through discussions with stakeholders and a review of existing materials, I identified key themes: trust, professionalism, and innovation. These insights formed the foundation for the visual direction.
After that I began to developed moodboards exploring color palettes, typography, and illustration styles. The logo and brand elements creation process required a closer colaboration with the founders to make sure we nailed the fresh energy but professional balance that they were looking for.
Once we were set our decisions I moved on to create a Brand Guideline and establish a visual system that could scale across website, decks, and reports.
UI/UX Design
With a clear and improved brand identity, I proceeded to design the website:
UX & Website Architecture: Worked with stakeholders to define the information architecture for 20+ pages.
Wireframing: I began with wireframes to establish the layout and user flow, ensuring a seamless experience across all devices.
High-Fidelity Designs: Using Figma, I created detailed designs that incorporated Trustventure's new branding elements, including color schemes, typography, and imagery.
Illustrations: To add a unique touch, I developed custom illustrations for the homepage, aiming to humanize the brand and make the content more engaging.
Collaboration & Implementation
Once the designs were finalized and approved, I collaborated with an external developer who implemented the website using WordPress.
I ensured that the developer had all necessary assets and specifications to bring the design to life accurately.
Post-launch, I continued to work within the WordPress setup, making refinements and updates to improve functionality and user experience.
Web Development by Julian Braeucker
Key Takeaways
The Outcome
The redesigned website successfully aligned with Trustventure's brand identity, offering a modern, user-friendly experience. Key outcomes included:
Increased Engagement: The fresh design led to higher user engagement, with visitors spending more time exploring the site.
Enhanced Brand Perception: The new visual identity strengthened Trustventure's position as a modern, innovative agency.
Lead Generation: The improved user experience contributed to an increase in inquiries and potential client leads.
Reflection
In a perfect world, UX/UI designers would have plenty of time to research, empathize with users, and test ideas. In the startup world, that rarely happens. I quickly realized that design often has to move fast, and decisions have to be made with limited information.
This taught me to pay really close attention to every little detail and to listen carefully to both users and stakeholders. Even small pieces of feedback could make a big difference in shaping a design that wasn’t just pretty but actually worked.
I also learned how important it is to create scalable design systems and maintain strong communication with developers, so that what I envision actually makes it to the final product. Next time, I’d love to build in more user testing early on to make sure every decision is grounded in real user needs.
