Skip to Content

Winner Story

Worcester County Sheriff's Office Website by Pagano Media

The Worcester County Sheriff’s Office wanted to make a positive impact on the community by re-designing their website to be more user-friendly. The goals of the project were to provide easy access to resources, highlight the Sheriff Office’s community impact, and recruit talent. The Sheriff’s Office tapped local website designer Pagano Media to guide the project. The new website went on to win the 2022 Award of Excellence in Websites – Government. They also recently won a Silver w3 Award in Websites: Government – Local. We spoke with Pagano Media about the creative risks they took making their award-winning website redesign, and how they define timeless communication.

What inspired the creative direction for the Sheriff’s Office website?
Sheriff Lew Evangelidis and his team have a mission to make a difference in the Worcester, MA community through inmate rehabilitation and community service programs. The goal of these programs is to release inmates back into the community with skills and tools necessary to become impactful, law-abiding citizens who create a safer and stronger community. We designed and developed the new website with three creative goals in mind: 1) provide easy access to the Worcester County Sheriff Office (WCSO) resources and information through intuitive navigation and clear messaging 2) highlight WCSO’s impact on the community and 3) recruit talent for open employment positions. The look & feel of the new site features a lighter color scheme offering a more hopeful feel with a stronger emphasis on the blue, gold, and white found in the brand color palette.

How does Pagano Media define creative success?
Design for design’s sake is an empty endeavor. We pursue design to convey the essence of who our clients are. Truth resonates with people, and inspires action. There is no greater joy than when clients tell us that the website, branding, or video we created for them led to a return on investment – whether that’s increased website traffic, higher lead generation, or more audience engagement.

What made this partnership special?
Worcester County Sheriff office provided images and video for the website highlighting inmate rehabilitation programs, the office’s community outreach, and employee “day in the life” footage. Showcasing authentic visuals sets the site apart and facilitates a more personal connection with viewers.

Which aspects of the project are you most proud of?
The website presents visitor information in a readable, scannable manner. From visiting hours to jail policies and video visit directions – the website is a one-stop experience for information-gathering.

What are some of the creative risks you took creating the site?
Incorporating video call-to action panels was complicated because we wanted to feature a dynamic CTA without compromising website speed. After testing and research, we were able to resize the videos to a happy-medium where they are both clear and optimized for site speed.

Get the Newsletter