Digital brand evolution—UoPX
As an in-house designer for the University of Phoenix, I strategically evolved marketing materials and products that elevated our brand, improved engagement, and increased conversions. This included bespoke and templatized landing pages, banners, and email, as well as products such as a new brand portal and the redesign of our landing page testing and optimization portal. Testing and refinement were integral parts of this process.
The challenge
Our digital footprint was dated, engagement was poor, and our conversions suffered. Our brand had recently gone through a major redesign but had not been translated to digital expressions. This is where my expertise came in.
We had a solid understanding of our users (older, non-traditional, and working learners)—what their needs were in addition to our business goals. I collaborated with our interdisciplinary team of researchers, content creators, directors, and engineers to continually design, test, and refine solutions.
ROLE
Lead Product Designer
Lead Visual Designer
MY DELIVERABLES
Brand development
Landing pages, banner ads, email
Templates
Guidelines
Landing page portal
Brand portal
Microsites
Product design
CLIENT
University of Phoenix (UoPX)
Founded in 1976, the university became one of the first online universities designed for working adults.
Evolving our digital footprint
Our new brand was vibrant and engaging, and our digital marketing was drab and outdated. I explored literally hundreds of layouts for landing pages, banners, and email. My visual approach was clean and bold, with strategic use of color and a clear call-to-action.
Landing page templates
One of my tasks was to design a library of templates with multiple variables for quickly building and testing. These had to be flexible enough for a variety of strategic elements:
- Various form experiences—single and multi-step
- School and program information
- Geo targeting—interactive maps and community events
- Assessments and promotions
- Social integration
Banner templates
My banner designs complemented targeted digital destinations. Since these had to compete with adjacent content, I used bold color prominently and collaborated closely with copywriters to keep messaging short and impactful.
Email + newsletter templates
My email and newsletter templates were strategically designed to be modular and flexible. Flexibility was crucial, since these were used for a variety of purposes.
Simplifying complexity to measure success
I redesigned the user interface of our proprietary software that customized, tested, and optimized landing pages. My designs improved the user experience for our team:
- Modular approach improved consistency and scalability
- Clearer visual hierarchy and layout
- More intuitive interactions and meaningful UI elements
Centralizing brand assets and guidelines
Our brand guidelines and assets were scattered on Google Drive, which caused a lot of issues with consistency and finding assets. I designed a brand portal to store, manage, and share assets with internal employees and external marketing affiliates. This had a significant impact by improving efficiency and the integrity of our brand in all channels.
I researched and optimized the user experience, created the site architecture, mentored two developers to assist with wireframes, and then designed the UI. My goal was to organize content to make it easy to find guidelines and download assets, including our extensive photo library with filtering, lightboxes, and a cart.
The outcome
I was an integral part of the success in elevating our brand presence, increasing conversions, and streamlining our testing process. By using a creative and data-driven approach to design, I helped evolve our digital experience for thousands of prospective students.
Improved engagement and increased conversions
There was a monumental shift in the quality and impact of our marketing materials. Visuals and content became more engaging and meaningful, which led to improved brand perception and increased conversions.
Cohesive user experience
I designed a consistent brand presence that provided a better user experience and quality marketing assets. The brand portal that I designed proved to be a huge asset for our employees and affiliates, with a centralized place for guidance and assets.
Streamlined our data-driven process
From designing a library of templates to redesigning AptiPortal (our software that customized, tested, and optimized landing pages), I helped improve efficiency and insights for our operations.