When The Copper Skillet, a family-owned American comfort food restaurant in Austin, Texas, came to us, they had a problem that’s more common than you might think: they had a website, but it was doing absolutely nothing for their business.
Their online orders were minimal. Their phone was quiet. And despite having a loyal local following and genuinely great food, they were struggling to attract new customers — especially the younger, online-first generation that increasingly decides where to eat based on what they discover on their phones.
Three months after we rebuilt their website, their online orders had tripled. Here’s the full story of how we did it.
The Challenge: A Website That Was Hurting More Than Helping
When we first audited The Copper Skillet’s website, the issues were immediately clear. The site had been built in 2018 using a basic template and hadn’t been updated since. Here’s what we found:
The website wasn’t mobile-responsive. Given that over 70% of restaurant searches happen on smartphones, this was a critical failure. The menu was a scanned PDF — impossible to read on mobile and completely invisible to search engines.
There was no online ordering system. Customers who wanted to place a to-go order had to call the restaurant during busy service hours — a frustrating experience that cost the business countless orders.
The site loaded slowly due to unoptimized images. Our testing showed an average load time of 8.2 seconds — more than double the acceptable threshold.
The photography was outdated and unappetizing. Food photography is everything in the restaurant industry. Low-quality, poorly lit images were actively making their delicious food look unappealing.
There was no Google My Business integration or local SEO optimization, meaning the restaurant was virtually invisible in local search results.
In short, the website was a digital dead end — a box ticked but not a tool leveraged.
Our Strategy: Design for Hungry Customers, Not Just Aesthetics
We approached this project with a clear goal: every design decision had to serve one of three purposes — attract more visitors, keep them engaged, or convert them into customers.
Here’s the roadmap we built:
Phase 1: Brand Refresh and Visual Identity
We started by developing a refreshed visual identity that honored the restaurant’s warm, homey character while modernizing its presentation. We chose a rich color palette of deep amber, cream, and charcoal — evoking the feeling of comfort food without looking generic.
New photography was arranged through a partner food photographer. We worked closely with the kitchen team to capture hero shots of their most popular dishes in the best possible light. Great food photography is non-negotiable in the restaurant industry — it’s what converts a browsing visitor into a customer who picks up the phone or places an order.
Phase 2: Mobile-First Website Rebuild
We rebuilt the entire site from scratch with a mobile-first approach. Every element — from the navigation to the menu to the ordering system — was designed to work flawlessly on a smartphone before being adapted for desktop.
The new site loaded in under 2 seconds on mobile devices — a 75% improvement over the previous version. Images were compressed and served in next-generation formats. The hosting was migrated to a faster, more reliable server.
Phase 3: Digital Menu and Online Ordering Integration
This was a game-changer. We replaced the old scanned PDF menu with a beautiful, searchable digital menu that organized items by category, included high-quality photos for key dishes, and displayed pricing clearly.
We integrated a commission-free online ordering system directly into the website — meaning The Copper Skillet keeps 100% of every online order rather than paying 20–30% to third-party delivery platforms.
The ordering flow was designed to be as simple as possible: three clicks from the homepage to checkout.
Phase 4: Local SEO Optimization
We optimized every page of the new site for local search terms — specifically targeting searches like ‘best comfort food Austin,’ ‘family restaurant near me Austin TX,’ and ‘American restaurant Austin.’ We also integrated and optimized their Google My Business profile, ensuring consistent NAP (Name, Address, Phone) data across all directories.
Within 45 days of launching the new site, The Copper Skillet had moved from page 3 to the top half of page 1 on Google for their primary keywords.
The Results: Numbers That Speak for Themselves
60 days after the new website launched, the data told a remarkable story. Online orders increased by 214% — more than tripling from an average of 18 orders per week to 57 orders per week.
Website traffic increased by 180%, with the majority of new traffic coming from organic local search. Mobile traffic accounted for 74% of all visitors, confirming that the mobile-first approach was exactly right.
Average order value also increased by 22%, which we attribute to the digital menu’s ability to showcase high-margin items with appetizing photography.
The restaurant’s Google My Business listing went from receiving about 40 views per month to over 380 views — a 850% increase — bringing a steady stream of new customers walking through the door.
Most importantly, the owner reported that the phone stopped ringing for to-go orders (which was actually the goal — those orders moved online), freeing up staff to focus on in-house service.
What This Means for Your Business
The Copper Skillet’s story isn’t unique. We see similar patterns with local businesses across the United States — restaurants, clinics, salons, contractors, and retailers who have websites that simply aren’t working as hard as they should be.
The investment in a professionally redesigned website pays for itself quickly when it’s built with strategy, not just aesthetics. Every decision — from the color palette to the button placement to the loading speed — has a measurable impact on how many visitors become customers.
Are you leaving online orders, appointment bookings, or customer inquiries on the table because your website isn’t converting? We can help.
Contact SciLife Solutions today for a free consultation. We’ll analyze your current website, identify the biggest opportunities for improvement, and show you a clear plan to get the results your business deserves. Just like we did for The Copper Skillet.
