A well-designed website is essential to the success of a small business, particularly those with little or no brick-and-mortar presence that rely exclusively on online sales. That’s the case with Two Hands Guitar Co. in Fairhope that produces hand-crafted, heirloom-quality acoustic guitars.
Montgomery-based Copperwing designed a website for Two Hands Guitar as part of Copperwing’s Giving Wings Project to help small businesses during the pandemic. The engaging new website launched in January.
Copperwing started the Giving Wings initiative in spring 2020 in response to the strain that the COVID-19 pandemic places on small businesses. Organizations selected for Giving Wings received a newly designed website free of charge.
“The call for entrants went out over social media and immediately brought an overwhelming response,” recalls Brian Key, Copperwing Partner and Director of Client Solutions. “Businesses were asked to explain what products or services they provided and why they should be chosen. There were so many deserving applicants that Copperwing chose three to receive their own website.”
Copperwing and Two Hands are a good match. Each bring a high degree of talent and attention to detail to their fields of creative endeavor.
“Every guitar that I build is a totally unique, one-of-a-kind instrument which takes 200-250 hours to build, over a four-to-six-month timeframe,” explains Two Hands Guitar owner Joel Teel. “Due to the nature of my products, it’s impossible to market them in a retail environment or to keep a large inventory on hand.”
Although Teel builds a small number of “spec” guitars that are offered for sale after being built, most of his sales are commissioned and built specifically for each client.
“My business can’t be sustained solely through a local market; therefore, my clientele is generated from all across the United States, and potentially through international sales. So, it was imperative to offer a virtual portal for people to learn about me and my guitars.”
The website tells Teel’s story and showcases the quality of Teel’s craftsmanship. A business like his requires an artistically and skillfully planned website. One that will make people feel confident about purchasing a high-end bespoke instrument from someone hundreds, or even thousands of miles away.
What Teel wanted in a website, he got. A website that helps people feel comfortable enough to trust him to build their dream guitar, instill a desire to own a Two Hands Guitar, and finally, explain how to order one.
“As always, we allow the client’s story to lead where the design takes us, and in this case, the story was one of warmth, precision and passion for the arts,” Key explains. “The wood grain used in Two Hands Guitars provided texture and warm color. We used Joel’s, the guitar maker’s, handwritten notes, the shapes of the guitars themselves and visuals from the studio. You feel as though you are visiting his world. We also wanted the user experience to be easy and fluid. There’s a lot of information on the site that is necessary for people looking to have a custom guitar made. However, the motion and visuals keep it from feeling overwhelming.”
A business like Two Hands requires a website that makes people feel confident about purchasing a high-end, custom-made instrument, and purchasing it based primarily on the images and information provided on the company’s website.
The Two Hands Guitar Co. website was designed by Copperwing as part of its Giving Wings Project to help small businesses during the pandemic. The Montgomery-based firm created a website that tells Teel’s story and conveys the quality of his craftsmanship.
Although Two Hands Guitar Co. owner Joel Teel builds a small number of “spec” guitars that are offered for sale after being built, most of his sales are commissioned and built specifically for each client.
These exquisitely made bespoke guitars can take 200 to 250 hours to make. Marketing them in a retail environment isn’t feasible nor is stocking a large inventory as businesses commonly do. So, the nature of this business makes a well-designed website all the more important.
Article Written by Jessica Armstrong and Images Courtesy of Copperwing