Envisioning a new DTC platform at Hydrow
Hydrow embarked on a journey to revamp its direct-to-consumer (DTC) platform with the goal of empowering content authors, designers, and marketers. The aim was to create a seamless and efficient content creation and publishing ecosystem that maintained design consistency, site speed, and SEO goals without hindering rapid ideation and iteration.
Key goals and principles were established to ensure success:
- Deliver industry-leading speed for site visitors and search engines.
- Provide creatives and content authors with a robust design system for quick ideation and iteration.
- Shift site operations and marketing tasks to be performed without development support.
- Ensure speed and consistency automatically without friction.
Making the right architectural decisions
To achieve the outlined goals, the decision was made to utilize Contentful and Next.js hosted on Vercel. Contentful allowed for a scalable and extensible content model, while Next.js and Vercel enabled pre-rendering and caching for enhanced front-end speed and performance.
Refinements needed for the authoring pipeline
After the initial launch, refinements were identified in the authoring pipeline to enhance the efficiency of content updates. The integration of Contentful publish webhooks with the Vercel regeneration API was key in bridging the gap and enabling instant updates in production.
How we did it
Steps were taken to address interdependency in the content model, resolve page route issues, optimize performance, enhance security, and enable preview functionality. These improvements resulted in event-driven ISR, ensuring instant publishing of content updates without delays.
Successful outcomes with event-driven ISR
The implementation of event-driven ISR led to more efficient execution, instant publishing of content updates, and a seamless authoring experience for Hydrow’s editorial team. Customers now enjoy the latest content without delays, resulting in a lightning-fast user experience.
Wrapping up
The collaboration of Contentful, Next.js, and Vercel brought transformative improvements to Hydrow’s content management workflow. Content creators are empowered to focus on quality content, enhancing the overall user experience for customers.
Take a tour!
See Contentful in action with a personalized walkthrough.