Case Study

Hilton Microsite

An interactive Content Hub to boost engagement and outshine competitors.

Introduction

Hilton Hotels & Resorts remains the stylish, forward thinking global leader of hospitality. Aiding in easier travel with their smart design, innovative restaurant concepts, authentic hospitality and commitment to the global economy.

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Goal

Our goal was to entice users by the use of fun and interactive components throughout the microsite. Offering a variety of experiences such as animations, carousels, and widgets.

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Problem

Hilton's mobile user demographic is from ages 18-35, which is highly active on publisher websites such as Fodor's Travel, Reader's Digest, Lonely Planet, etc. These websites offer articles of varied length all consisting of imagery, copy, hyperlinks, and banners. The users are used to this formula and it creates an issue of engagement. Taboola reported that the average time spent with an individual page on a publisher site was 1.90 minutes in Q4 2017, down from 2.09 minutes in the first quarter of the year.

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Solution

To address declining engagement, we're introducing an interactive Content Hub designed to keep users on our article pages longer. This hub will be educational, engaging, and uniquely positioned to stand out from the competition.

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Process

1. Kick Off with Product Manager

• Meet with product managers and define scope of project
• Ask questions
• Define user personas and their goals/needs
• Look at any customer requests/feedback

2. Research

• Competitive Analysis - Get information, screenshots, and logins for similar features
  • discuss advantages and disadvantages with the product managers
• Interview Users (internal and external)
• Compare and contrast answers from various users

Inspiration

3. Sketches/Wireframe

• Structure content and think about the full "customer journey"
• Design the series of steps the end user will take when using the product
• Present initial ideas to product managers and potential users

Site Flow

Wireframes

4. Mockups

• High Fidelity mockup
• Apply style guide
• Create pixel perfect screens in Sketch
• Export mocks to Ceros

High Fidelity Mockups

Desktop Optimization

5. Testing

• Present design to users
• Use questionnaires, surveys, or more interviews to identify spots of difficulty or confusion
• Implement new changes from feedback

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Conclusion

The Content Hub provides a new and innovative way of advertising. Users are effectively enticed to engage with the content, leading to more bookings and brand awareness.

Data Points:

• Increased average time spent on article by 17 seconds
• New opportunity to sell to clients
• Increased rebuys by 25%