The Campaign

We wanted to break the shackles of traditional design by offering a truly immersive and visually striking platform for international students. Our idea was to reimagine the university’s digital presence from the ground-up with pioneering design features to reflect the university’s leading position. Key innovations included; interactive videos with deep-linked contextual hops, dynamic data from LinkedIn and a “chameleon” site canvas which dynamically changes its skin. A personalisation shelf customises the site experience, whilst simplified UX and gamification are strategically used to seamlessly drive visitors through the conversion funnel. We began by creating a perfect balance of contemporary minimalism, beautiful typography and bold imagery. We took audience engagement to new heights through rich, cutting-edge HTML5 technology that brought the creative to life.

Creative Execution

Engagement - Interactive campaign videos drive conversions by funnelling prospects into a personalised lead nurture program. A 360 degree campus tour allows prospective students to virtually explore the university. Personalisation: The website becomes completely personalised at a regional and “type of study” level through the use of intelligent algorithms and an intuitive content taxonomy. Highly relevant course related data and visuals are served based on the user’s interests and course preferences. Behavioural Tracking: Intelligent lead-scoring and user behavioural profiling smarts are integrated throughout the site enabling further personalisation and behaviour pattern tracking. Endorsement: Dynamic integration of relevant employment data sourced from LinkedIn provides credibility for UNSW Gamification: We built the ‘Ultimate Global Prospect’ game which was supported in market via a suite of quirky Facebook video units built using Snapchat filters to stylise content for International students. A simplified UX allows visitors to peruse the site seamlessly.

Throughout 2016, we drove a 550% increase in international student enrolment enquiries through the platform, smashing KPIs and amplifying enquiries from all key target markets including China, India, Malaysia, Indonesia and Singapore. The simplified UX is a crucial facet of the lead nurturing effectiveness. Since launch we have referred an exponential increase in soft leads to the respective UNSW faculties (Business, Engineering, Law etc) resulting in an enrolment boom. Calls to customer service teams have been almost halved, far exceeding the original objective to reduce call volumes. This was achieved through the implementation of features such as the intuitive Checklist which provides students with a relevant ‘to-do’ list based on their course preference. The website won the AMY Awards 2017 for Best website and was highly commended in the AC&E Awards 2016.

Data gathering Extensive market research was undertaken, including a series of moderated focus groups with existing and potential international students. By developing an intimate knowledge of the behaviour and decision-making journey for students, we connected their emotive needs (university brand perception) with their information needs. Target audience The main target audiences for the website come from Asian markets UNSW International seeks to gain enrolments from including; China, India, Malaysia, Indonesia and Singapore. Relevance to platform Key stages in the conversion funnel for prospective students are Exploration > Application > Enrolment. These crucial touch points were considered throughout the digital strategy and persuasive site architecture. A comprehensive multivariate testing campaign against an early-stage prototype ensured the platform achieved optimal outcomes for usability and intuitive navigation. Approach We developed a strategic online roadmap covering content marketing, social media, conversion optimisation, mobile strategy and search, creating a digital eco-system to surround the platform.