With COVID-19 meaning social distancing is the new norm, we’re seeing profound effects on our lives. Face-to-face meetings, gatherings and events aren’t possible, making this a difficult time for the general population and most industries. For many businesses, budgets are under increasing pressure as revenue streams are cut and operational and marketing methods undergo huge upheaval.
As a society, we’re worried about our health, our families’ health, our wellbeing and our job security. Now is not the time for brands to choose a hard-sell approach, or to appear to be ‘cashing in’ on – or even preying on – social insecurity, as audiences become less receptive and more critical of insincere marketing.
So how can businesses maintain those physical interactions that are so vital to customer engagement, and promote their services in as effective and relevant a way as possible?
One option for connecting with your customers is through hosting a digital event.
Digital events have become more prominent in the last few years, and offer a range of benefits:
Two of the primary forms of digital events are webcasts and webinars. The terms are often used interchangeably, but in fact, they both feature a distinctly different approach to hosting an online event.
If you want to engage with a larger audience, featuring tens or even hundreds of participants, a webcast is an ideal way to broadcast your message.
Webcasts are typically a one-way flow of information shared over the internet, delivered like a lecture or speech. In cases where there are a large number of participants, a webcast gives you the opportunity to deliver a valuable presentation with minimum disruption.
If you’re looking for a higher level of engagement with your audience, a webinar might be a better option. A webinar more closely resembles a meeting, often with fewer participants who are more involved in the content. In this two-way, interactive option, your audience can ask questions, and there’s more opportunity for you to drive direct interaction.
For the very highest level of engagement where creativity and collaboration is needed most, virtual workshops create an effective environment within the digital sphere. In ‘real-life’ face-to-face creative workshops, structure is often more fluid, but this can be difficult to achieve in an online environment. To successfully deliver a virtual workshop, you should have a clearly-defined process for organising and managing participation, and use easy-to-implement, highly intuitive technology, to smooth the delivery process.
If you’re looking to fully replicate an existing conference or event, then a virtual tradeshow could be well suited for you. Virtual tradeshows can be hosted indefinitely, taking place online with on-demand information. By using live chat options and providing customer support, your visitors can experience the same feeling of instant, responsive communication as they would in a face-to-face expo.
In a virtual tradeshow, you can host digital exhibition halls, booths and auditoriums, helping you to replicate the immersive experience of a real-life event. However, it’s worth noting that this type of event the longest lead time, and can be costly to set up.
In this blog, we look at the different types of digital events, how you can build your audience for your events, and provide some top tips for success.
Different events will attract different audience sizes and levels of engagement. Its success will often rely on the quality and number of participants in the audience you manage to attract.
Traditionally, digital events are split into two audience segments; your existing database contacts, and audiences built through new lead generation.
Unless you have a well-managed and maintained database of contacts, GDPR and other data legislation, such as CCPA, can restrict the opportunity for direct email invitations to your event. So you’ll need to check this, and consider alternative lead-generation tactics if this is the case.
Social media is a great tool for driving lead generation when used creatively, and can be supplemented through media partnerships or other paid media channels – for example, search engine advertising.
One of the greatest benefits of a webinar or a webcast is that either one can be held live or made available on-demand, depending on the platform you choose to host your event. By making an event recording available after it’s taken place, you can make connections with customers and prospects who can’t necessarily attend in real-time, or who may be researching the subject after the event has already taken place.
In fact, with any online session you’ll want to consider post-webinar activity – just as you would with a live event. Your digital session is just the beginning of potential engagement, and with strategic follow-up activity you can continue to nurture leads and maintain interest. Repackaged content following a webinar can be an ideal way to sustain the conversation with customers, as can additional ‘exclusive’ materials.
With a combination of session playback and additional content, your sessions gain additional longevity – and that means maximum impact for your brand.
At P+S, we’ve been hosting digital events for years, both for our own brand, and for our clients too. Our top tips for success include:
When it comes to digital events, our in-house team can take care of everything: from determining the strategy and execution of lead generation campaigns, to designing and copywriting your presentations and content. And it’s all tied together by our expert strategists, who’ll work with you to ensure we meet – and exceed – your expectations.
If you’d like to find out more about what type of digital event would best suit your business, and how we can help you deliver it, get in touch today, by emailing [email protected].
So, it’s time to refresh your website. You start by taking a look at what you can improve, and an audit finds your workflows aren’t quite right, your content matrix doesn’t quite work, and your design isn’t accessible. You decide a rebuild is the most effective route, so you putout a tender, choose an agency and move forward using the data you’ve collected and the issues recorded with your now defunct website.
Three years later, your company has grown and rebranded. Now, your website needs to cater for users across the globe, and your UX doesn’t quite fit newly heightened expectations. Time for another audit. You review your website, only to find the changes that need to be made will cost almost as much– and take just as long – as building an entirely new website. Before you know it, you need to start the entire process all over again.
If this story sounds familiar, you’re not alone. We’ve known many companies spend thousands on developing a website, only to find when they need even relatively small changes, there are significant cost and time implications.
Today’s accelerated pace of digital change means the traditional approach to web development has become outdated. But there is another way.
At Proctors, we’ve developed an approach to web development that gives websites the flexibility, scalability and longevity needed to support ongoing business needs.
Microservices to the rescue
Microservices architecture is a software development architecture which makes things much easier. Creating a microservice architecture involves splitting up all of the different services integrated into your website and sales process, then creating protocols for them to communicate independently to collect and deliver their data and services to users and website visitors.
Separating out your front-end into its own microservice allows you to free your design and UX from the limitations of your data systems. A separate front-end can connect to multiple data sources and present them in one central place for our users, often for multiple devices as well.
You can read more on microservices here.
What is a dedicated front-end?
At P+S, we specialise in Angular as our front-end framework of choice. While there are many front-end frameworks out there, such as React and Vue, Angular is more structured and has a more complete out-of-the-box framework. We’ve found it offers more consistent results, and is a more suitable tool for enterprise businesses.
Angular allows the front- and back-end of your website to operate as separate entities. Angular will function as the public face of your online presence to your users, and will connect to, and draw data from, all the other services using modern RESTful APIs; for example, content from Drupal and booking data from a booking engine.
This means any additional or changed functionality in the back-end of your website, such as an API integration, will not affect the front-end of your website.
An added bonus is if you realise your website needs to be updated a few years down the line, whether that’s from a UX standpoint or company rebrand, the front-end can be completely redesigned in isolation from the back-end, eliminating the need for a complete rebuild and minimising disruption to your online presence.
How can it help you?
Angular saves time and money.
Once Angular is set up alongside your content management system, your website is almost limitless.
If your company undergoes a rebrand, your Angular front-end can be re-skinned with no disruption to your website – check out our Atomic Design approach to making this process more efficient, too.
Should your company grow, the data used to set up your initial user journeys often becomes outdated. Not only is it possible for us to completely redesign how users interact with your site, we can even separate your site out further and conduct split A/B testing against other variations.
Alongside these core benefits, there are a range of other positives. You can reduce load time due to application processing taking place in the browser, rather than the server. And you can support and facilitate multilingual development in a much easier, simpler way than via a traditional CMS approach.
Finally, as many companies choose apps as a way of engaging with their customers on a more personal level, there’s potential for streamlining the process here, too. While the majority of businesses need to build their website, then build their app in iOS before building it yet again in Android, Angular makes this much simpler. You can run your apps from the CMS that drives your website (usually Drupal), and use your Angular front-end for both iOS and Android, for minimised build time, whilst avoiding the duplication of functionality as the majority of it will be readily available via your CMS.
Looking to the future
At Proctor and Stevenson, we’ve implemented a Drupal/Angular approach for a number of key clients, including global tech giant, Panasonic. This approach has enabled us to create a number of future-focused solutions for our clients, spanning multiple continents, in multiple languages and engaging millions of users.
Decoupling a front-end works extremely well for enterprise businesses which rely on legacy back-end data or back office systems, where it’s a real challenge to modernise this data and present it to customers in a modern, multi-device world. Given the current global pandemic, businesses are realising they must be able to operate remotely without a negative impact on efficiency or customer experience. Decoupling a front-end is therefore one of the most pragmatic, healthy and cost-effective choices a business can make today.
When it comes to digital, our in-house team can take care of everything: from back-end development, to front-end and digital design, SEO, AdWords, automation, information architecture and content optimisation.
Get in touch, by emailing [email protected] today, and let’s discuss how we can transform your business’ website.
COVID-19 has realised some of the most challenging times in recent memory. Across the globe, the pandemic is proving to be a ‘sink or swim’ event as entire economies are placed under increasing pressure, while brands and businesses scramble to find new ways of working.
This ‘sink or swim’ verdict rings especially true for B2B brands who traditionally rely on face-to-face relationships to do business – if they can’t find ways to work digitally, they won’t survive.
Digital touchpoints across the customer journey are no longer optional. They’re imperative.
This quote from a retail CEO in a recent article by McKinsey sums up the thinking we’ve seen in those of our clients who seem to be thriving:
“Every business is now a technology business, and what matters most is a deep understanding of the customer, which is enabled by technology.”
It’s tempting to focus on the word ‘technology’ here. You may think those who are succeeding had an advantage if they already had a digital marketing infrastructure in place. And yes, some of them may have had a head-start, but we think it goes deeper than this.
We’ve already seen successes born out of necessity. And rather than having any one technological solution to thank, it’s most often been a specific mindset which has proven invaluable to these prosperous businesses.
Here are some of the common attributes we’ve seen shared among the brands who are thriving:
1. RESPONSIVENESS: Adapting to changing customer needs has always been critical to a brand’s survival. But not even technology companies, who have always set the pace of change, will have experienced such a rapid, radical shift in society as recent times have presented. Among our clients who are successfully navigating these uncharted waters, most have re-evaluated their brand’s purpose and re-calibrated it to connect with a new set of customer needs.
2. SPEED: Small teams with an entrepreneurial mindset have been making quick decisions. In many cases, where it took months for plans to be approved, decisions have been made in days.
3. EXPERIMENTATION: Spotting shifts in customer buying patterns has been useful, but often decisions have been made with imperfect data and a higher than usual level of uncertainty. The role of data has shifted from being the facilitator of protracted, detailed planning and decision making, to the radar for testing, learning and iterating quickly.
4 CREATIVITY: Connecting with customers in an authentic, positive way has been a creative challenge. Those who have succeeded went beyond stock “we’re here for you” platitudes. They re-enforced their brand purpose by adding genuine value to their customer’s lives.
5. AGILITY: In the past, marketing digital transformation was often treated as a big-ticket, slow moving investment, often driven by expensive consultants. COVID-19 has accelerated the adoption of digital systems for many, and most systems are largely interoperable, so bolting together solutions is entirely possible. Again, clients have been making quick decisions about what they need, launching and refining as they go.
6. COLLABORATION: In the past, one of the classic barriers to marketing digital transformation adoption was cultural. Creating the ultimate digital customer journey needed collaboration between a diverse set of departments in the organisation, many of whom hadn’t had to work together before. Times of crisis often bring people together though, and in recent months everybody’s survival has relied on us all working together.
These attributes have always been typical of most successful technology companies, and are certainly evident in the marketing operations of our successful clients – no matter their sector.
What drives them is a mindset which focuses on:
· Satisfying changing customer needs
· Optimising the customer experience throughout their journey
· Launching quickly with a minimum-viable-product (MVP)
· Continuously improving commercial returns
It’s an approach to marketing technology that even Panasonic, our most digitally evolved client, has always taken. The sophisticated ecosystem they enjoy today has evolved over many years, always driven by this exact mindset.
So, as we all begin to look to the future, it’s becoming more and more apparent that things won’t go back to how they were. We’re all technology companies now. To succeed, we need to think and act like technology entrepreneurs: Creative. Responsive. Agile. Collaborative.
As Tom Peters said at the beginning of the dotcom revolution, winners have a common go-to-market strategy: READY, FIRE, AIM.
It’s still possible to integrate evidence-driven digital tools with your current business operations and deliver powerful results for your customer experience. Whether you want to maximise your brand awareness, or reassure your existing clients during these challenging circumstances, it’s possible to make changes which are as quick and calculated as they are impactful.
To find out more about we can transform your digital strategy, get in touch with us at [email protected].
Paradigm shifts, the ‘next big thing’, world-changing, disruptive, next-generation, XYZ 2.0… superlatives are at home when it comes to digital technology. So, it’s not surprising that most people roll their eyes at the introduction of the next tech game-changer.
With the gift of hindsight, we can see which emerging technologies were worth the hype over the last few decades – but they’re few and far between. The home PC, and in turn the laptop, the internet, and the smartphone: for the general consumer, these are the few revolutionary technologies that have truly impacted the way we live, work, shop and socialise, paving the way for smaller evolutionary trends which dictate our behaviour.
But is it really possible to make predictions on the next big shift in tech?
Well, hold your eye-rolling for now. Because it’s likely already staring most of us in the face.
Virtual reality (VR) has the Ronseal factor: it’s a self-contained digital ‘reality’ which you can digitally interact with.
VR has been around since the late 70’s. The most commonly cited first incidence of its use is from NASA, when their artist-in-residence David Em created the first virtually navigable digital world. But today you’re more likely to find it used for a video game or perhaps a training simulation.
Augmented Reality (AR) is slightly different. Instead of being self-contained, AR superimposes virtual elements onto the real world: it augments our physical reality.
You’ll most often find AR used on smartphones and tablets, making use of the device’s camera. Those social media filters which give you dog ears or a drastic makeover? They’re a form of augmented reality. And ‘Pokémon Go’ uses AR too.
AR isn’t new, but it is being used in increasingly novel ways – and no, we don’t mean the new filters which make you look like an attractively chiselled supermodel.
AR has potential because while VR removes you from the real world, AR supplements your experience with reality – and can actually increase your engagement with the real world.
Imagine, for example, your VR headset didn’t block off your view of the real world. Instead, it’s a set of glasses, much like a normal set of eyeglasses, but provided a digital overlay of useful information. As a construction worker, you could look at a site and immediately be presented with spatial calculations which could help you cut materials to size without needing a measuring tape. As a surgeon, you’d be able to see your patients’ vitals in front of you, without even turning your head. As a consumer, you’d be presented with information about the materials which make up the clothing you’re about to buy.
All these are real examples – albeit mostly in their infancy. But they have incredible potential to become true game-changers with the right thinking, creativity and application.
Through a combination of enhanced engagement and the presentation of useful information, AR’s possibilities are limitless.
We could go on about the complexities, challenges and intricacies of AR, but instead we’ll keep it snappy, as you’re busy holding down the fort in the real world.
Instead, let’s do a quick summary of AR today:
· AR won’t replace computers
While AR may displace some computers, there’s merit keeping most of them. For example, while some companies have experimented with the addition of an AR dashboard in (mostly luxury) cars, this is unlikely to become the reality for the general public – who needs another distraction while trying to navigate rush-hour traffic? A satnav is plenty enough.
· AR is platform agnostic
AR isn’t owned by Apple, Android or Microsoft: its technology can be used in combination with any of the Big Three (and any other brand, for that matter) as long as the device itself is compatible.
• AR is still in its discovery phase
While we’re already using AR on smartphones, this is unlikely to be its final form – the screens simply aren’t big enough for us to appreciate its full potential. There’s so much scope for AR to play with all our senses: haptic feedback (pressure sensing) could be used for us to more accurately ‘interact’ with virtual elements; eye-tracking could ensure whatever information we need in our peripheral remains in constant view; geo-location and movement tracking can even further blur the lines between the physical and digital. In all likelihood, the vehicle for delivering AR experiences will depend on its context and use case – and that’s really exciting.
• AR could see new tech behemoths emerge
The companies who use AR to its full advantage could well usurp many of the larger, well-established players who ignore it. This may seem overzealous, but in 2000, who could have guessed where Microsoft, IBM, or even Facebook would be today?
If technology’s history has taught us anything, it’s that when a new piece of revolutionary technology comes along, it’s true magic is revealed when it collides with culture. It’s the crucial intersection between technology and the arts which offers the most potential.
Right now, the first wave of AR applications sit in two camps: utilitarian or ‘just for fun’. What we’re seeing today is not dissimilar to the very beginnings of an App Store.
The next wave will come when vehicles for delivering AR experiences gain traction, such as the AR glasses we mentioned above (Snapchat, in fact, launched ‘Spectacles’ as far back as 2016). Not only will we see utilitarian use cases strengthen, we’ll also see AR branch out into new markets.
From seeing how much fuel your car has left just by looking at it, or receiving real-time walking directions without ever having to look down at your screen; from your phone notifications appearing in your periphery, to shopping for new clothes seamlessly without ever having to try them on, thanks to a new AR mirror that superimposes new styles onto your live reflection.
These new applications will go beyond making life more convenient: they’ll start to build the standards behind the tech, and ignite discussions about how our technologies ‘talk’ to each other.
As for the third wave… That comes down to data.
Now is the perfect time for brands to get ahead of the game when it comes to using AR in ways that will truly inspire and engage their audiences.
There are limitless opportunities. Why not contact us today at [email protected] to discuss your goals with our team.
This experimental interactive short by filmmaker Ru Howe is one of the first films crafted with trailblazing technology from Bristol based start up stornaway.io which lets filmmakers create story game experiences easily and creatively without coding. Released at Immersive Encounters this week, you can watch it here.
Part funny vlog, part game, the viewer gets to follow Wolfie all over Bristol, on multiple paths through the city – encountering and re-encountering memorable characters across two timelines.
Behind Howe’s signature jump cut editing and Wolfie’s wide eyed vlogging are layered some wonderfully meditative moments and conversations.
Life Moves Pretty Fast was made hand in hand with the creation of Stornaway.io itself. Originally mapped out on Howe’s kitchen wall with pieces of paper, he and producer Kate Dimbleby used the creative production process to design and prototype an authoring tool which would put the creative process at the heart of stornaway.io‘s revolutionary drag and drop vision.
The film was shot in 2 days with a cast and crew of professional friends on a minimal budget.
Life Moves Pretty Fast is designed to be watched and replayed multiple times – there are over 40 minutes of gameplay (if you find all the secret paths!) but allow yourself 15-20 minutes to take Wolfie through 2-3 different journeys of discovery.
If you are a filmmaker or business interested in making your own interactive content, please contact [email protected] or go to the website and sign up for a free 30 day trial and discounted licenses
https://www.lifemovesprettyfast.io
We are pleased to announce the acquisition of Microserve, a Bristol-based Drupal development company specializing in cutting-edge website design-and-build projects, UX, strategy and website support and maintenance.
The acquisition of Microserve further bolsters Investis Digital’s ability to deliver on the company’s proprietary Connected Content™ approach, which relies on building and running intelligent websites and digital experiences that are rapidly deployed and strategically measured, all of which is underpinned by its secure Connect.ID technology.
Don Scales, Global CEO of Investis Digital, said, “As we continue to see an unprecedented rate of engagement online, embracing a digital-first world is paramount to driving business performance. This acquisition reflects our commitment to our clients to deliver against our 24/7 service model and to help them communicate the messages that matter most”.
Microserve is composed of 24 employees and has developed an exceptional reputation for developing robust digital solutions. Its team of accredited Drupal developers is one of the biggest in the U.K.
“We are so pleased to be joining the Investis Digital family, especially during a great period of growth”, said Dan McNamara, Managing Director, Microserve. “The opportunity to work alongside great talent, access a wider client base and use our technical skills to accelerate the Investis Digital vision makes this partnership the right choice. We’re also looking forward to offering our existing clients a greater breadth of services and strengthening our key relationships”
Like Investis Digital, Microserve has a strong client base, ranging from global blue-chip companies to charities, NGOs, local government and more. This portfolio of clients will add to Investis Digital’s own roster of ambitious clients, including ASOS, Anglo American, Rolls-Royce, Ocado, Heineken, Vodafone and more.
Following the transaction, the Microserve team will serve as an additional footprint in the U.K. and will continue to be based in Bristol. Dan McNamara, current Managing Director of Microserve, will take on a Business Director role leading the integration of Microserve into the Investis Digital business. He will be reporting into Adrian Goodliffe, Senior Managing Director, Europe.
Financial details of the transaction were not disclosed.
The tech industry is booming and we couldn’t be happier!
This has been a challenging year, with people forced into their homes and businesses forced to digitalise at a rapid rate. Just remember: whilst you work at home, hackers are as well.
It’s been tough to keep up, and there’s been a huge rise in malware and ransomware attacks as a result. One in five people feel more at risk of cyber attacks during the lockdown.
The UK industry is rising up to meet this, with cyber tech booming over the last couple of years to be worth more than £8 billion a year.
Now is the time for cyber tech companies to step up and be seen — companies from enterprise to start-ups are looking to improve their security and this is where we can help you. Check out some of our recent articles on how to get started in cyber tech marketing and how to scale up your business.
One of the tools we used during discovery were sacrificial concepts. They enhanced discussion with participants, and provided a foundation for the upcoming design sprints.
Here, we’ll explore what sacrificial concepts are, and why they are useful.
Sacrificial concepts are a tool originally developed by the design firm IDEO. They are used in early research as a stimulus for discussion, and are different from presenting prototypes later in the design process for the purposes of testing or validation.
Sacrificial concepts are:
Sacrificial concepts can be a powerful tool to enhance discovery. For the health and wellness project, they gave us a deeper understanding of people’s attitudes and needs, which enhanced the research insight, design principles, and set of personas from discovery.
We entered the design sprints with a better idea of how much information different people wanted and why, what type and depth of information they wanted, and how they might want to engage with the service.
Mace & Menter are specialists in service design, user research, discovery and prototyping for public services, health and the third sector.
To find out more, contact us on 020 7193 8952 or email [email protected].
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With home internet usage at an all-time high over recent months, I have been thinking a lot about customer experiences. It’s shocking how many online customer experiences are still slow, clunky and confusing. When you pick apart so many customer journeys you can see that many that look good are filled with sticky tape solutions and cracks that are exposed as you go through.
Customer journeys today are varied but most customers now have a low tolerance for friction. Cult make up site Trinny London has a very well-managed customer journey and provides a great example of the customer experience done well. The site has seamless UX that follows the user across channels to remind them what their colour set is, and what products they’ve already bought. Next also provides a very seamless experience across all channels. The company undertook a full digital transformation early on and can now build on a stable platform. But there are plenty of opposing examples. I logged into Harvard Business Review on all devices but when I click a link from Twitter or elsewhere, I’m still asked for login details. Firewalls are certainly a big source of friction for customers.
There’s also Made.com where a colleague bought a rug and was subsequently sent a reminder email asking if she wanted to buy a rug. She continues to receive rug-focused emails even through the same email address used to purchase.
A common trait among poor customer experiences is that nearly all of them are non-linear. They move from social media to an app and sometimes even to human interaction. Comparing experiences makes the flaws of a platform blindingly obvious. Take logging in to Netflix vs Amazon on your smart TV for instance; Netflix makes you use whatever horrid UX your TV and remote have to put in your full email address and password. On the flip side, Amazon gives you a simple code to put into your phone/tablet/computer and that’s it. Putting the user and their real-world context first always removes friction and this is a prime example of that. So, how can businesses strike the right balance between user experience and strong security? When security is linked to respecting your data and privacy, rather than being bloody-minded or a hangover from legacy systems, then I think customers can be more willing to accept a little friction. They don’t mind logging in again across multiple devices if they know it’s for their own security. If not, it looks like sub-standard UX.
Businesses often fall down when apps aren’t comfortable making use of the customer’s device. For example, I have two banking apps on my phone, one only uses fingerprint, the other allows me to use facial recognition which is much quicker and more convenient.
There’s the expectation that if you share a certain level of data with the brand, your experience should then be seamless. It is vital that you are able to deliver and it’s always been the case. How often have you been driven mad by call centres passing you around departments where you keep having to give the same information? If you can convince someone that they will have an easier life because they told you something, they usually won’t mind telling you. In most cases, handing over data is hope over experience. The trick is for brands to give people a good experience from the start, so they understand what they are signing up for and what the clear benefits will be to them.
Really, Customer Experience (CX) should never be a department, but a state of mind across all business areas. The minute organisational structure trumps the customer experience, it becomes sub-standard. You must always remember to design with a customer-first approach – it sounds trite but is still depressingly the exception rather than the rule. If necessary, share your KPIs across business units to ensure alignment, and force silos to consider the impact of their actions. It’s easy to fall into the trap of different business units actually working to different objectives – for example, one team is tasked with reach, another with conversion when the real KPI is sales.
All decisions made should be in order to remove the barriers between the customer and the goal. There’s also a huge value for working closely with customer service. It gives an invaluable understanding of what real people do when they use products, interact with brands, and so on. Businesses should look outside the standard channels for new employees and find people who have lived the life they are trying to service.
This article was written by Rob Pellow for PerformanceIn on August 25th 2020.
HubSpot customer Indicia Worldwide has seen a huge uplift in website conversions after teaming up with Noisy Little Monkey to design and build their new website.
“Since our new website went live in HubSpot, we have seen a significant rise in the number of visits to the website and also leads coming to us through the website.”
~ Alan Thorpe, EMEA Marketing Director at Indicia Worldwide
Many businesses in the marketing sector have suffered in the COVID crisis but Indicia Worldwide’s new website has bucked the trend by converting more website visitors into leads at a time when uncovering new opportunities is essential in the business service sector.
An imminent rebrand for the global communications agency meant that deadlines were tight but a novel approach proved fruitful. Rather than simply migrate the existing website from WordPress to HubSpot, Noisy Little Monkey spotted the opportunity to reimagine the site and focus it on the Inbound buyer journey.
This required a redesign and rebuild more substantial than the original client requirement but delivered a huge return on investment, initially in the form of a spike in, and then sustained growth in: incoming enquiries, webinar signups, newsletter sign ups, and so on.
The biggest challenge was merging two established domains onto one, preserving the user journey and existing search engine rankings. Indicia Worldwide also faced several other typical website problems:
The team set to work on a series of audits and workshops to help lay the foundations of what a best-in-class web build would look like for Indicia Worldwide.
Workshops about buyer personas and the buyer journey combined with Noisy Little Monkey’s legendary SEO skills meant that the site’s architecture, content and UX were built around the perfect combination of buyer journey and SEO ranking factors.
In addition to the persona workshops, the team ran an audit which researched the client’s competitors, how their content performed on search and social media, and the effectiveness of their on-site buyer journeys. Armed with information about what made their customers tick, our team were able to bed this information into the briefs for the new web design and contextualise the customer journey for Indicia Worldwide’s highest value personas.
Indicia Worldwide had a tight turn around for the web build. To ensure we were meeting the client’s strict deadlines, our team launched the new site in phases. Within 10 weeks, the team had:
Project managing a web build for a global marketing agency which was in the middle of a rebrand required regular client catch-ups. To keep us on track and ensure we were meeting key milestones, our team set-up:
These meetings helped us address the inevitable bumps in the road and when needed, we would go in and run additional workshops with their senior team to reiterate the value of the inbound approach and keep us all on track.
The website redesign and migration project for Indicia Worldwide was more than just a vanity project; with our help they transformed their website into a lead generation machine.
In a six month YoY comparison, Indicia Worldwide saw a 200% growth in web traffic and a 1250% increase in new leads via the website.
Speak to Noisy Little Monkey about how we can turn your website into a lead generation machine https://www.noisylittlemonkey.com/contact/