Case Study: Digital product design and marketing for a smart connected pet collar startup.

Enhancing the pet care experience with smart, connected hardware and software technology.

Image of scollar MVP mobile app

Scollar

Scollar launched their startup in 2015 with the goal of making innovative IoT products for the pet industry. They had a detailed roadmap that required a broad range of skillsets that needed to work in tandem, and come together seamlessly at key points in the process.

Scollar initially engaged Brinton's partners Mighty Studios for the industrial design and BC Mechanical for the engineering. Shortly thereafter, Scollar asked Brinton to design the user experience for their MVP mobile app, and support the company’s brand launch.

  • Brand Strategy
  • Digital Marketing
  • Front End Development
  • Mobile App Design
  • Prototyping
  • Social Media Marketing
  • UX/UI Design
  • Website Design

Early Collar Prototype

Brinton's close partner Mighty Studios led the development of the initial product prototypes which featured fun colorways, an embedded display screen to control the collar, and a rechargeable battery as the collar's "tag".

Image showiing early prototype of Scollar Smart Pet Collar

Not Just for Dogs

Scollar's leadership identified a gap in the market for smart, connected products that served cat owners, so they invested in the development of product models for both dogs and cats.

Image of Scollar MVP Website
Image showing sections of Scollar MVP Website describing the MVP Mobile App's features

Website

To prepare for the MVP app release, Brinton Design sharpened aspects of the brand, then created a website designed to announce the brand, promote the app launch, capture leads and convert site visitors to app users.

Image showing Scollar MVP Launch Campaign email and twitter profile

Digital Marketing

Brinton then designed and implemented various email campaigns to supplement the brand launch. We also established the foundation for social media marketing and initiated an outreach campaign to generate awareness of the brand and its initial training app offering.

Mobile App

We worked with Scollar’s founders to design the UX/UI for an MVP mobile app providing pet owners with a fun and easy way to train their dogs—and even their cats! Brinton's sketches shown here are from early brainstorms to conceptualize the kind of experience Scollar's leadership wanted to create.

Image showing conceptual hand-sketches created during MVP mobile app planning process
Image of Scollar MVP mobile app UI elements
Image showing one page from the spec Brinton created detailing the UX/UI for the embedded touch-screen interface on Scollar's early prototype

UX Design for the Collar's Onboard Controls

Brinton developed the user flows and interaction design for the low-fidelity, embedded system on the product itself. Using series of taps as the input, users had access to several core functions without the need for the companion mobile phone app.

Image of product team meeting to discuss the mechanical design for an early prototype of Scollar's smart pet collar.

Aspiring to Greatness.

It was great to witness the smooth collaboration, excellent problem solving, and the speed at which a high volume of outstanding work was produced in the early stages of Scollar's development. Truly an "A Team".

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I love how you do exactly what you say you are going to do and the quality of your work is outstanding. I am so glad we took this journey with you."