But the brands that stand out aren’t always the ones saying the most. They’re the ones making it easier for people to find what they need, understand what matters and take the next step.
That’s where digital experience comes in.
At So Interactive, we believe the best digital experiences sit at the intersection of strategy, creativity, technology and human behaviour. And recently, that thinking has been recognised across some of the industry’s leading awards.
We’re proud to be named finalists in two categories at the Bookmark Awards, honouring excellence across digital media and marketing
We were also named a finalist at The Mark Awards for our work with Richfield, with A Platform Designed to Turn Uncertainty into Action going on to receive a Merit in the User Experience (UX) category.
While we appreciate the recognition, its true value lies in what it represents: digital solutions that solve genuine problems for both the audience and the business. The Richfield College project is a clear example of this principle in practice.
The challenge went beyond a simple website refresh.
Richfield needed a digital experience that could help prospective students find the right programme, understand its value and confidently take the next step, while supporting lead generation and enrolment.
Our research surfaced some clear areas of friction, drawing on behavioural data, user surveys, competitor benchmarking, a heuristic audit, and call centre insights. Students needed to be able to find and compare programmes, understand fees and feel confident that Richfield was a credible, accredited institution. But confusing navigation, unclear course information, complex application forms and limited trust signals were getting in the way. On mobile, performance, responsiveness and a lack of feedback throughout the application journey created further barriers.
The answer wasn’t to add more. It was to make the experience work harder.
We redesigned Richfield’s navigation and user journeys around what students actually came to do – from discovering programmes and understanding fees to applying and validating accreditation.
Instead of structuring the experience around internal business departments, the information architecture was shaped around user intent and familiar mental models.
The result was a simpler path through a complex decision. And that principle extends far beyond education.
Every unnecessary click creates friction. Every unclear label creates uncertainty. Every overloaded page asks users to work harder than they should have to.
In a digital landscape where attention is increasingly difficult to earn, clarity becomes a competitive advantage. Great digital experience reduces the distance between what a user wants to achieve and what a business needs them to do.
Mobile-first thinking was central to the Richfield experience.
Prospective students needed to be able to navigate the platform across different devices and connectivity environments, so the experience was designed around how people actually use it – not simply how a desktop website can be compressed onto a smaller screen.
Content was made more scannable. Navigation was optimised for touch. Forms were simplified, with clearer validation and feedback throughout the journey.
Behind the experience, a reusable design system brought consistency across 100+ programme pages, allowing Richfield to scale its digital ecosystem without compromising usability.
Because a good digital experience isn’t just about how one page looks. It’s about how the entire ecosystem works together.
Awards give us a reason to celebrate the strategy, creativity and collaboration behind the work. But they also give us a reason to look at what actually makes digital work valuable.
For us, the Richfield recognition reinforces a simple belief: As digital gets noisier, simplicity becomes more valuable. People don’t necessarily need more from brands. They need better. They need experiences that understand what they’re trying to achieve, remove unnecessary friction and give them the confidence to move forward. For Richfield, that meant turning a complex, high-consideration student journey into a clearer path from uncertainty to action.
And that’s the kind of digital experience we believe is worth recognising.
More importantly, the new experience delivered measurable impact. Following the launch, Richfield saw page views increase by 166%, sessions by 119%, users by 113% and engagement time by 93%. AI-driven referrals also grew by 10×, highlighting the impact of creating a digital experience that is not only easier to navigate, but better equipped to connect users with the information they’re looking for.
Because great digital experience isn’t just about how something looks or feels. It’s about creating experiences that work harder for both people and businesses.
Explore the Richfield Digital Platform case study to see how UX/UI design, digital strategy and brand positioning came together to create a more intuitive student experience.
