1. Accomplishments
DIGITAL PRODUCT - WEBSITES
When assessing new websites, I realized the need to make the content
easier to read for users, and try to reduce ‘dead ends’ by better
directing users to the content they needed quickly whilst also managing
the expectations of the Project team, with realistic deadlines.
I achieved this with my first build (in both Brazilian and English
language websites). I have made the content easier to read for the user
by breaking up the long text sections with CTA buttons (Call to action)
to point them quicker to the areas they are interested in.
With the heavy workload the team has, I have met the targets with
expectations managed through transparency of workloads, greater
scheduling and regular updates with the custom delivery team. Using
my initiative, I investigated and utilized the calendar application creating
a plan 2-3 weeks in advance as to what projects I will be working on
whilst at the same time being flexible for urgent projects and daily
demands.
INCREASE THE MARKETING EMAILS EFFECTIVENESS
After assessing the current state of our own email marketing templates
and messages, I found that we needed to improve the experience for
the customer within emails. My investigations found that these were all
‘word heavy’, they were not aspirational, and were not mobile friendly.
The database we were working with is also limited and needed
reviewing.
I rebuilt the templates and emails so that they were responsive to the
device they view on, and added navigation to key areas on the website
which was crucial for the user to help them understand the Card. One
area that was lacking in both emails and on websites was a lack of
strong CTAs for the user to help them quickly identify the information
they needed. By adding strong graphics and bold CTA buttons, with
relevant text within them (not just ‘click here’) I have found great user
interaction. Comparing the October 2014 rate sale vs the one before I
started in June 2014 (peak season) saw a CTR increase of 356% ( from
7.55% up to 25.35%).
With almost 40% of our users using mobile phones to read their emails,
since making the emails mobile friendly, I have seen a strong response
on mobile, receiving a 200% increase in the CTR vs previous ‘non
mobile friendly’ campaigns.

2. In the first ‘Massive Rate Crash’ email, was received incredibly well,
with an open rate of 35.99% (almost 180% above the industry target of
20%), and a click-to-open rate of 25.35% (over 250% above the
industry target 10%). The new graphic attracted 44.94%, the CTA
button receiving 25.84% and the Navigation 15.73% of the CTR. I have
been A/B testing different email subject lines to see what type of
wording created the higher open rates, and also seeing if it had an
effect on the CTR. I have found that subjects more in line with the main
message of the email perform better. The graphics I have created were
not only for used in emails, but I also reworked them for use on the
websites, within social media (gained a reach of over 200,000), and for
web banners used in PPC campaigns. This allowed us to have a
consistent message across all avenues for the customer to recognize
and increase the brand awareness.
To increase the productivity of sending emails, with the team and
Communicator (the software provider we use to manage email
marketing campaigns) we are progressing with the rebuild of the
database. The completion of this project will allow me to spend more
time working on projects as the email database currently absorbs too
much of my time. We are rebuilding how we manage the database
entries, moving the data to a single file, removing the need to download
multiple files. This will save me up to six hours a week production time.
Also, I have created new, more flexible filters that have appropriate
descriptions. These have been valuable with the recent Massive Rate
Crash sale emails, as I was able to reuse filters I had previously set up
within the campaign.
Further increasing productivity, I have created a ‘library’ of code
snippets, which are built responsively to speed the production of email
builds. This is because creating and coding emails is a longer process if
you start from scratch every time.
ASSESS / PLAN LIFE CYCLE EMAILS
Life Cycle Marketing (LCM) emails, are automated emails that begin at
welcome, and keep the customer engaged over a period of time and
empower them by the knowledge of the Card.
Working with the team locally and in Australia, I am designing a series
of emails from the ground up to work hand in hand with the launch of
our new database. These designs have a new look and feel, with
greater alignment to the company’s brand identity, with the addition
useful key information. Creating email newsletters to give added value
to our customers, and not just sending them sales messages, as well as

3. promoting the latest discussions from Social Media as they work hand
in hand.
Working with the team we have created a marketing calendar that
oversees all of the different tactics we utilize. This is part of a long term
plan so we can prepare early, record and learn from the performance of
each campaign.
YOUNG TRAVELLER CARD
With an email database of 25% of Cards sold, I have exceeded the
targets (10%) to increase the email marketing database for the Young
Traveller Card. We were unable to add a newsletter signup to the
website as it requires the Communicator database rebuild to have taken
place as the legacy data and way it was build was not with this in mind.
This will be assessed in Q1 2015 for testing.
I pushed forward the design and structure of the website, by making it
more appealing to youth visitors by adding a fun and exciting
background from the ‘static’ one there before. Assessed the content of
the homepage and added in graphics that included icons for greater
recognition to the user. To help the user know of offers, animated web
banners have been create and added, as well as landing pages with
clear messaging and CTAs so the user doesn't have to ‘look for’ the
information they require.
I created a set of web banners to be displayed on Lonely Planet’s
website. This creative out performed creative produced by Lonely
Planet and an external agency, with the CTR of over 200% above the
industry standard.