CelticMKE

The mission of CelticMKE, home to Milwaukee Irish Fest, is to promote and celebrate all aspects of Irish, Irish American, and Celtic cultures. Since 2010, Northwoods has been a trusted digital partner of this internationally recognized organization, offering digital strategy, user experience, information architecture, digital marketing, and website design services across a range of digital properties.

Northwoods Team Meets the Varied Needs of a Growing House of Brands

Milwaukee Irish Fest was originally known as both an organization AND an event, which created confusion when it came to promoting its broader programs and services. Most people were aware of the annual four-day festival, but didn’t know that the group previously called Irish Festivals, Inc. also offers a range of year-round opportunities for cultural education and engagement. So, when preparing to announce a rebrand and new name of CelticMKE, the organization’s marketing team turned to their digital BFFs at Northwoods for expert guidance and support in executing their new brand identity.

The Situation

• CelticMKE is home to Milwaukee Irish Fest, as well as Milwaukee Irish Fest Summer School, Milwaukee Irish Fest School of Music, Milwaukee Irish Fest Choirs, Milwaukee Irish Fest Foundation, and the Ward Irish Music Archives, serving a wide range of audiences with diverse needs.
• The organization was preparing to announce a new name that would better represent its current focus, as well as future plans, and needed a thoughtful digital strategy to guide that process.  
• The CelticMKE marketing team wanted to present year-round programming and resources alongside its world-renowned festival in a way that would help users understand the relationship of the parent organization to its house of brands.

The Solution

• Northwoods developed a digital strategy to create an “umbrella” site that serves as both an informational hub for lovers of Celtic American culture and a portal to all of CelticMKE's online assets. 
• The website launch corresponded with rebranding efforts, allowing users seeking information about Irish Fest to visit IrishFest.com for specific festival information and lovers of Irish and Celtic American culture to visit the new CelticMKE.com.
• Northwoods designers created prominent dropdown tabs on each of the six CelticMKE websites to provide quick and visually cohesive access to all of the organization's digital properties.

The Outcome

• Users can easily find information on programs for the family, lectures by leading experts in Celtic culture, classes in traditional language, music and crafts, a rich library of cultural resources, and the signature event, Milwaukee Irish Fest. 
• Visitors to any of the CelticMKE websites can quickly navigate to a variety of resources with a clear understanding of how all of the sites are related.
• For more than a decade, the Northwoods team has created distinct digital environments that cover the myriad needs of CelticMKE, meeting objectives that directly serve each of its unique audiences, while making it easy for visitors to any CelticMKE site to understand how all of the brands are connected.

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