How I made Zelus Labs’ blockchain services easy to grasp, through storytelling, custom illustration and a Webflow build.
Result: after launch, the sales team reported the site cut the time they spent explaining Zelus services on client calls in half.
Zelus Labs isn’t your typical Web3 company. They don’t sell SaaS or agency services. They build custom digital experiences (think NFT marketplaces, branded crypto wallets, and immersive dashboards) for brands diving into blockchain. My challenge? Design a website that made their highly technical work feel approachable to non-developers, CEOs, marketing teams, and creators, while keeping the innovation front and center.
Throughout the project, I owned the entire process: UX strategy, branding, illustrations, UI design, and the Webflow build. Collaborating closely with their U.S.-based marketing and sales teams, I translated their vision into a site that didn’t just explain what Zelus does, but made you feel the potential of their work.
Early on, we realized the biggest hurdle was clarity. Even tech-savvy clients struggled to grasp how Zelus’s services (like tokenized asset development) applied to their needs. Through competitor research and user interviews, we identified a pattern: people needed to see the journey, not just hear about features.
I mapped out a narrative framework for the site, problem, solution, outcome, and built wireframes in Figma that progressively disclosed information. The "aha" moment came when we tested prototypes: users responded best to visual storytelling. That insight shaped everything, from the layout to the illustrations.
Zelus needed to feel like a guide into Web3: knowledgeable but never intimidating. We landed on a vibe I call "friendly futurism":
The Solutions pages are the heart of the site. Every service follows the same structure for consistency, but what makes them special are those bento grid cards, each with its own illustration and concise copy. It’s like a visual FAQ that answers "How does this help me?" at a glance.
Behind the scenes, a robust Figma design system kept everything cohesive. Using atomic design principles, we built everything from foundational styles (colors, typography) to reusable page templates. This let the marketing team safely update content later without breaking the layout.
Micro-interactions added polish: gradient shifts on hover, smooth scroll-triggered animations, and a playful custom cursor that reacts to cards. The goal was to make exploration feel effortless, even when explaining complex topics.
Webflow was the perfect fit. It gave the marketing team CMS freedom while letting me push visual boundaries. The trickiest part? Nailing the storytelling sections: six full-screen scroll points with coordinated animations that explain Zelus’s process.
We prioritized desktop optimization (our analytics showed almost all traffic came from computers) but ensured mobile responsiveness. Post-launch, the sales team reported the site cut their explanation time in half. They’d pull up the bento grids during calls, and clients instantly "got it."
The best feedback came from the Zelus team: "Finally, a site that looks as innovative as our work." Sales decks now pull directly from the website, and the CMS has handled multiple service additions seamlessly.
Personally, I grew most in two areas:
If I revisited it today, I’d push the Web3 metaphors further and give the mobile layout the same storytelling as desktop.
More products I designed and shipped.
