VCEDC Homepage Messaging

Overview

During the October 2025 image selection working session, the VCEDC team confirmed the homepage headline direction and made a small but meaningful navigation correction. These decisions lock in the tone and framing for the site's primary entry point.

Confirmed Headline

"Our business expertise, your success"

This line was reviewed during the session and confirmed as the approved homepage hero messaging. It reflects a deliberate shift away from the earlier "great outdoors" framing, repositioning VCEDC around its role as a business support organization rather than a regional lifestyle brand.

"We've gone away from the great outdoor messaging."
— Melissa Cusumano

The headline should be treated as stable copy. Minor wording adjustments can be made post-launch during a line-by-line copy review, but the strategic direction is set.

Navigation Change: Remove "About Us" from Header

During review of the homepage mockup, "About Us" was identified in the header — a holdover that had never been formally flagged for removal.

Decision: Remove "About Us" from the homepage header navigation.

"We should delete that. It's always been there, but we never said anything about it."
— Kathy Schmitz

This was agreed to by both Kathy and Melissa. The designer should ensure this label does not appear in the final header build.

Hero Image Direction

The homepage hero image should feature a business owner or business interaction, not scenery. This aligns with the "expertise / success" messaging frame.

Candidates discussed:
- Eagle River Animal Hospital (Business of the Year) — Kathy's preferred option; cropping needed to remove background hallway. Justified by the ongoing Business of the Year program even though Business of the Month has ended.
- A photo of Courtney (past Business of the Month) was considered but deprioritized given the program's discontinuation.

A photo of Vanessa on her laptop by the lake was also noted as a candidate for a different section of the homepage (not the hero).

See ^[1] for full image selection status.

Related Decisions

• Roger Wolf's staff photo needs to be retaken before launch — Kathy will coordinate directly with him.
• Kathy noted the importance of using recognizable local images: Vilas County is a small community where residents will notice whether photos are authentic to the area.

Source Meeting

^[2]