White-Label WordPress Development: Migrating Open Banking Europe’s Support Section

Introduction

Armstrong Partnership, a Canadian digital marketing and design agency, partners with Vertical to deliver custom WordPress development for their clients. Armstrong’s portfolio includes global enterprise brands such as Mastercard, who rely on Armstrong for strategy and design.

Challenge

One of Armstrong’s clients, Mastercard OB Services Europe A/S (also known as Open Banking Europe), needed to migrate their support section from a legacy Zendesk system into their main WordPress website. The goal: centralize content, improve usability, align with Mastercard’s strict compliance requirements, and reduce costs.

Solution

As Armstrong’s trusted white-label WordPress partner, Vertical was responsible for the full migration, backend build, and implementation of the new support section.

Executive Snapshot:

Compliance: Integrate all support content into Mastercard’s Open Banking Europe website (no third-party platforms).
UX Improvements: Deliver intuitive browsing with categories, filters, and advanced search.
Easy Admin: Enable non-technical staff to easily create and update support articles.
Brand Alignment: Seamlessly match Mastercard’s site design and strict brand guidelines.
Cost Reduction: Remove dependency on Zendesk licenses.

Challenges & Solutions

Zendesk Complexity: Standard exports lacked categories and custom fields; solved via custom Python scraping and import scripts.
Strict Brand Compliance: Delivered pixel-perfect design to match Mastercard guidelines.
Content Cleanup: Removed obsolete taxonomies and fields while ensuring migrated content remained accurate.
Enterprise QA: Tested thoroughly in staging before deployment, minimizing risk to Mastercard’s production site.

Migration Process

Vertical migrated:

50+ articles
20+ categories
Dozens of images and attachments

The process included:

Zendesk export of texts and images.

Custom Python scripts to scrape and migrate categories, fields, and taxonomies not included in standard exports.
Data restructuring: merged, removed, and renamed categories; cleaned legacy formatting.
WordPress import via custom post types and taxonomies.

Non-essential or outdated content was purged during migration, ensuring only relevant and accurate support resources were integrated.

Technical Execution

Backend: Built with WordPress custom post types, custom taxonomies, and ACF fields for attachments and article details.
Search & Filters: Implemented faceted filtering with Relevanssi-powered search, optimized for keywords and taxonomy prioritization.
UX & Design: Sidebar scrollable menu, precise filtering, and seamless design integration into the existing Open Banking Europe site.
Admin Usability: Organized custom fields and taxonomies so editors can easily publish and update content after minimal training.
Security & Compliance: Aligned with Mastercard’s strict brand and platform policies.

Collaboration & Workflow

Design & Feedback: Armstrong handled brand coordination, Vertical implemented design in Figma with feedback from both Armstrong and Mastercard OB stakeholders.
Communication: Daily Slack and Jira updates, Figma reviews, and stakeholder calls ensured alignment.
Timeline: Estimated at 4 weeks, but delivered in under 3 weeks, allowing extra time for QA and training.
Training: Vertical provided live training sessions for Open Banking Europe editors to manage the new support section.

Results & Impact

Centralized Support: All resources are now hosted directly on the Mastercard Open Banking Europe site.

Improved UX: Intuitive design with filtering and precise search significantly improved accessibility for users.

Easy Admin: Non-technical staff can now update and publish articles quickly and confidently.

Cost Savings: Eliminated Zendesk licensing costs by moving to a WordPress-based system.

Positive Feedback: Armstrong and Mastercard stakeholders praised the seamless migration and robust backend design.

Vertical has been an invaluable partner for us. Their ability to handle complex WordPress builds, migrations, and integrations with precision and speed allows us to serve enterprise clients like Mastercard with complete confidence.

Dave Terpstra

Senior Program Manager + Integrated Producer

About Armstrong

Armstrong Partnership is a Canadian marketing and design agency specializing in brand strategy, digital campaigns, and enterprise marketing solutions. They collaborate with trusted partners like Vertical to deliver robust technical implementations

About Mastercard OB Services Europe A/S (Open Banking Europe)

Part of Mastercard, Open Banking Europe provides real-time access to financial data and insights, supporting open banking compliance and innovation across Europe. Their support hub is critical for financial institutions and partners.

About Vertical

Vertical is a Toronto-based WordPress development agency with 15+ years of experience. We specialize in white-label solutions for agencies, custom enterprise builds, and long-term maintenance and support. By partnering with Armstrong, we deliver secure, scalable WordPress solutions for global brands like Mastercard.

[email protected]
verticalhq.ca