Washington Gas Living:
Website Redesign
Role: Content Strategy Lead | Copywriter
"Our website isn't converting customers to natural gas—they're getting lost in utility jargon. Can you help untangle the user journey?"
The Challenge: Washington Gas needed to convince customers to switch from electric to natural gas, but their existing site buried this goal under billing portals and service information. Potential converts were getting lost in utility terminology instead of discovering natural gas benefits.
The Solution: I developed a content strategy for a dedicated campaign site that spoke to three distinct audiences—residential customers, commercial clients, and contractors, each with their own motivations and pain points. The key was translating technical energy information into straightforward, actionable content that addressed real concerns: cost savings, reliability, and environmental impact.
The Impact: We created intuitive pathways that guided audiences to relevant information without confusing utility jargon. The site became a powerful conversion tool that earned industry recognition—including an Addy Award—while establishing a sustainable content system that Washington Gas staff could maintain independently.
Washington Gas Living: Before
The original site overwhelmed visitors with dense technical information and jargon. I identified this as a barrier to user engagement and recommended a complete content restructure focused on accessibility and user needs.
WGL Service Area Map
Understanding our diverse audience meant recognizing that urban DC customers had different needs from those of suburban Maryland and Virginia families. I structured content to address these geographic and demographic variations effectively.
Primary User Type: Homeowner
Research revealed our primary conversion opportunity: homeowners frustrated with rising energy bills. I developed a content strategy and step-by-step conversion processes that made complex energy decisions feel achievable, directly addressing their cost concerns.
Secondary User Type: Contractor
Contractors were a valuable secondary audience seeking trusted advisors for homeowner decisions. I created targeted content that positioned them as experts while providing the technical resources they needed to build credibility with clients.
Content Attributes for Specific User Needs
I developed differentiated content strategies for each audience, reassuring, benefit-focused language for homeowners and ROI-driven, efficiency data for commercial clients. This approach increased engagement across all user segments.
Improving Navigation and Wayfinding
The original navigation reflected internal company structure rather than customer needs. I redesigned the information architecture around customer journeys, creating intuitive pathways that reduced cognitive load and improved task completion.
Washington Gas Living: After
The redesigned site transformed user engagement, with interactive calculators replacing static rate charts and conversion-focused content driving measurable business impact. Most importantly, the new content strategy resulted in significantly higher engagement and stronger brand perception.
Redesigned Navigation and Mega Menu
I partnered with our information architect and visual designer to create a navigation structure to educate residential and commercial customers. Working with UX, we developed intuitive pathways that supported the premise of a "natural gas lifestyle" while effectively serving diverse user needs.
2015 Addy Award Winner
This project earned recognition from the American Advertising Federation and demonstrated how strategic content design could transform a traditional utility's digital presence.
The sustainable content system I created enabled Washington Gas to maintain messaging consistency while adapting to seasonal campaigns and regulatory changes, delivering both immediate results and long-term value.