The sponsors and DOER asked PixelMEDIA to consolidate the 6 separate websites into one site and to create a single branded user experience: Mass Save.

Success Factors

Mass Save’s strategic objective was straightforward: to encourage residents and businesses to be energy efficient through increased awareness and through direct energy-saving incentives offered by the Mass Save sponsors. PixelMEDIA identified three key project initiatives to achieve this goal:

Define audience segments and needs-based categories

Working with a team that included each sponsoring company, PixelMEDIA helps to define the target audiences and segment them into Residential, Business, and Professional (contractors, architects, etc.) categories.

With the categories in place, the team defined the needs and goals of each segment, as well as the business rules that would determine eligibility, availability, and call to action for each.  At the same time, PixelMEDIA looked at the six original websites to determine each one’s value proposition; the unique content; and the engagement model and call to action.

The resulting organization model was based on a progressive sequence that matched incentives with the needs of users at several levels: Lighting and Appliances, Heating and Cooling, and Building a House or Addition. Customers could take small, low-cost steps—such as installing compact fluorescent bulbs (CFLs) or replacing a refrigerator—or learn about “whole house” solutions that offered incentives on heat and hot water systems, air conditioning, or home insulation. In addition, customers could easily browse across categories to learn about other energy-saving opportunities and make plans for improvements throughout their homes and businesses.

Since the initial launch, two more categories have been added to accommodate the long-term goals of deeper energy savings and enhanced awareness about energy efficiency: Home Energy Assessments and the Learning Center.

Develop a tool to deliver localized incentives

Because incentives were specific to certain sponsors, PixelMEDIA needed to develop a mechanism that prevented customers from seeing incentives that were not offered in their service areas. A ZIP-code based incentive finder was designed to let customers identify their location, fuel type, and building type.

Once a customer entered a ZIP code, the incentive finder matched it against a database of the sponsors’ service areas. The fuel type and building type data refined the search to return gas or electric incentives and incentives designed for single or multi-family homes. In addition, the incentive finder filtered out out-of-state customers and customers of municipal power companies. The system was intelligent enough, however, to return results to municipal electric customers who heated their homes with gas.

Deploy an enterprise-level content management system

The consolidation of the 6 websites provided an opportunity to reduce production and administrative costs. PixelMEDIA implemented an enterprise-grade content management system (CMS) for Mass Save that streamlines the process of creating, approving, and publishing new content to the website by multiple sponsors and vendors. PixelMEDIA also provides support services for major revisions and user training. In addition to reducing production cost and complexity, the CMS enables a structured approach based on the branded look and feel of the website.

Results

The consolidation of six websites into one resulted in a unified, branded user experience and a single destination to support a range of statewide and regional energy efficiency campaigns. The masssave.com URL provides a simple, easy-to-remember call to action in television, radio, outdoor, and print advertising and provides a recognizable, trusted presence at events across the state.

In the time since the 2010 launch, the website has seen an increase of more than 500% in visitors, and more than 5 million page views—an increase of 570%.

In May, 2011, PixelMEDIA implemented a customized analytics framework that will coordinate site activity—including conversions and downloads—with the growing spectrum of marketing efforts. The tracking tools have enabled the Mass Save team to accurately track the steady increase in active participation on the site.

In the fall of 2011, the residential section was redesigned to add the Home Energy Assessments and Learning Center categories and relaunched in conjunction with a range of marketing efforts.

In October, 2011, Massachusetts was ranked as the country’s leading state in terms of energy efficiency investment and initiatives by the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE). The State Energy Efficiency Scorecard ranks the states based on best practices and leadership in energy efficiency policy and program implementation. Prior to the launch of the Mass Save program, marketing campaigns, and website, Massachusetts had been ranked third.

The new Mass Save brand continues to grow as a focal point for sponsors, state agencies, contractors, and energy customers, with an increasing emphasis on no-cost home energy assessments, financing, and contractor participation.

Success Factors

Banner advertising on websites that included AARP and WBUR (Boston) would drive traffic to landing pages that featured a series of video interviews with people who had been affected by cancer. The landing pages were designed according to best practices for generating interest and conversions:

A/B testing of banner ads

The Jackson Laboratory wanted to gather data for future campaigns, so PixelMEDIA suggested a round of A/B testing of the banner ads. A/B testing means creating different versions of an ad or landing page and running both during the same time period. For example, out of 20 users, 10 would see ad A and 10 would see ad B. The click-through rate would be tracked to see which ad generated more interest,

Continuity of relevant terms and images

An important goal of the testing was to determine which combination of words and pictures best established and maintained the continuity—or “scent of information”—between the banner ad and the landing page. Maintaining this continuity is critical to helping readers remain focused and confident that they are moving along the right path toward their goals.

A prominent primary call to action

Each landing page included a large call-to-action that included a brief description of the offer, which included an online subscription to The Jackson Laboratory’s magazine, The Search. The strategy was to focus on a single call-to-action (subscribe to the newsletter) but offer several options for doing so: directly from the landing page, from a subscription page, or from the GYH website. The options allowed people gather more information if they wanted to before subscribing.

Solution

One set of banner ads featured pictures of the people behind the personal stories. The other was a set of bold graphic treatments of the headline, without people. The ads would be competing with other ads on the busy websites, so quick message comprehension was important. The Jackson Laboratory team wanted to learn which direction would be more effective for future campaigns, so multiple design and copy treatments were rotated in ad placements and results tracked.

Results

Despite the presence of competing photographic imagery on the target websites, the ads with images of people attracted significantly more click-throughs and generated higher conversion rates. The people ads and the graphic ads used the same copy, but the association between headline and person proved to be the stronger approach. For subsequent phases of the campaign, the graphic-only ads were suspended in favor of the people-based ads.

Success Factors

Early in the project, it became clear that busy, high-profile target audiences would need to grasp the substance and benefits of PKC’s product offering quickly before making the commitment to learn more about PKC. To differentiate the company from competitors that offered less reliable content, PKC wanted to convey the image of a company staffed by experts and driven by domain expertise. PKC and PixelMEDIA determined that a multi-part visual approach would provide a more engaging experience for time-strapped audiences and offer immediate differentiation from the competition.

Product Iconography

The first task was to create a set of icons representing the three core components of the PKC solution: Profiler, Advisor, and Explorer. Each product offered a progressively more detailed presentation of medical data, so the PixelMEDIA design team developed a set of icons related by color and shape. These icons would be used as signposts on the web pages, and as the primary actors in a set of animations that described the business value of the PKC products.

Business Value Animations

As the icons were developed, PixelMEDIA content strategists and designers developed the scripts, storyboards, and final files for a series of animations that would illustrate key product concepts on the home page and high-level product pages. For the home page, the focus was on the basic value proposition. On the product pages, a more detailed visual explanation provided an overview of the component and its place in the solution set.

Location Photography

To link the technology to the expertise behind it, PixelMEDIA recommended a design approach that layered the animations over scenes from the PKC offices. Working with PKC’s own photographer, PixelMEDIA provided written and visual direction for the photography, which features employees from every level of the company on nearly every web page.

Solution

In addition to creating and directing the icons and animations, PixelMEDIA drafted a new message architecture and website copy; developed a new site architecture and page wireframes; coded the website and animations; and managed the project from start to finish. The ability to complete all phases of design and production in one location helped to meet an aggressive timeframe, and simplified the challenge of working remotely with a client in Vermont. In fact, the entire project and all reviews and meetings were conducted by phone or web.

Results

PCK can now go to market with its new product set, confident that the website will support its long-term marketing effort. Its sales team can now use the website as a virtual presentation, walking clients through the product set and using the graphics in their own materials and presentations. The website also serves as an internal communications and recruiting tool: its visual explanations and concise messaging helped the company communicate its new direction to current and future employees.

Success Factors

Empirix had a solid internal working group in place to drive the messaging and content of the new website, including the re-alignment of its extensive product offerings with its new solutions framework. In addition, Empirix was developing a new logo and brand identity elements that would be incorporated into the new website. PixelMEDIA identified 3 key elements needed for a successful outcome:

Message Architecture

PixelMEDIA experience designers worked with the Empirix team to focus the company’s value proposition and to articulate a set of proof points for audience segments that needed to design, test, and deploy large call centers and customer service operations. The message architecture stressed a broader solution-based approach built on a proven portfolio of products, and was used by the Empirix team as a guideline for copywriting for both online and traditional media.

Information Architecture

The experience designers at PixelMEDIA created a full inventory of the Empirix website and worked with Empirix to determine which content best supported the new positioning and where content would need to be edited or created. Using the inventory, PixelMEDIA created a new site architecture that put solutions at the forefront while providing a clear and logical organization of the Empirix product portfolio.

Content Design

The goal of the architecture was to present products in the context of a customer challenge and Empirix solution, and to help customers focus on the content that was relevant to their situations. A set of detailed wireframes was created for each level of the website to visualize how the content would be organized and presented on screen. PixelMEDIA also produced a set of Microsoft® Word® content templates and a style guide to help the Empirix team draft and edit page copy within recommended word and character counts.

Solution

Using the wireframes and the new Empirix design elements, PixelMEDIA designers created the Adobe® Photoshop® layouts that would be used to build the final HTML templates. A clean, 3-column grid provided put the new content front and center, while providing clear navigation and focus areas for related topics and calls-to-action. With the final designs and approved content from Empirix, PixelMEDIA’s development team coded and QA’d the new website and spent a full day with the Empirix developers to ensure they had the information needed for a successful launch.

Results

The new Empirix website went live in November, 2011. The redesigned website gives Empirix a powerful new focal point for its outbound marketing programs and news releases. In addition, the website now supports a sales process that is centered around solutions, and helps Empirix to deliver a higher-level value proposition to higher-value customers at the enterprise and solution-provider levels.

Success Factors

The sponsors and DOER asked PixelMEDIA to consolidate the 6 separate websites into single Mass Save website and to create a unique brand identity. The new brand would serve as a recognizable focal point for a wide range of online and traditional marketing activities, and having a single brand would reduce the cost and complexity of maintaining multiple marks and identity systems. PixelMEDIA identified 3 key elements needed for a successful outcome:

Stakeholder Input

PixelMEDIA conducted a one-day workshop with the sponsors to map Mass Save brand attributes against the emotional and rational drivers for the three main audience segments: residential customers, businesses, and industry professionals.

Message Architecture

Using the resulting brand attributes map, PixelMEDIA worked with the sponsors to developed a value proposition and a set of key messaged based on “Savings through energy efficiency,” “Ease of access,” “Trust and expertise,” and “Investing in the future.” The resulting message architecture continues to serve as the framework for writing the Mass Save website.

Mood Boards

The PixelMEDIA Creative Services team presented a set of “mood boards” to sponsors and stakeholders. A mood board is a set of colors, images, typefaces, and other design elements grouped to convey a feeling or mood—futuristic, earthy, businesslike, etc.—and to elicit a “gut” reaction. The Mass Save “neighborhood” that appears at the top of each page reflects the positive reactions to a warm, “traditional” approach that would speak to a diverse audience that included residential customers, businesses, and trade professionals.

Solution

Based on the approved mood boards and message architecture, PixelMEDIA produced a complete visual identity for Mass Save: logo, typography, colors, and supporting imagery. The approved logo continues the “building” theme with houses and multi-story buildings against a sunburst. The logo and brand elements provided the foundation for the design of the website and were distributed to the agencies that were creating campaigns and content for Mass Save. PixelMEDIA also produced a design and editorial style guide to ensure that the brand elements are properly applied in order to remain legally protected.

The resulting visual design and editorial tone reflect the spirit and mission of Mass Save as well as the needs of its audiences: easy access to incentives and information; clean, simple controls; and a commitment to helping customers understand the many energy-saving opportunities available through Mass Save.

Results

The consolidation of six websites into one resulted in a unified, branded user experience and a single destination to support a range of statewide and regional energy-efficiency campaigns. The Mass Save brand offers a simple, easy-to-remember identity in television, radio, outdoor, and print advertising and provides a recognizable, trusted presence at events across the state.

The new Mass Save brand continues to grow as a focal point for sponsors, state agencies, contractors, and energy customers, with an increasing emphasis on no-cost home energy assessments, financing, and contractor participation.

For more pictures, visit our Facebook page.

Bzzy is a mobile application that allows the user to choose from a selection of pre-defined or custom messages, that when engaged, are automatically sent as a reply to any text message received by the users cell phone. The Bzzy team worked tirelessly to release the app in the Android Marketplace for the start of Distracted Driver Awareness Month in April.

PixelMEDIA’s efforts piqued the interests of area police departments, who reached out to the company about showcasing Bzzy at safety fairs for young drivers. These opportunities to work in concert with local law enforcement have allowed the PixelMEDIA team to promote bzzy at a grass roots level, speaking with their target users directly about the dangers of distracted driving and explaining how easily an app like Bzzy can mitigate many of those risks.

CEO Erik Dodier accepted the award at the MITX event, taking the opportunity to briefly speak to the audience about PixelMEDIA’s efforts to raise awareness about the issue. “Distracted driving is a concern that impacts everyone; you as the driver and others on the road.  The BZZY app is aimed at reducing the urge to respond to incoming texts while driving, or anything else that requires your full attention.”

Free downloads of Bzzy are available on the Android Marketplace or via Bzzyapp.com.

Other nominees in the Mobile category included The Steamship Authority Mobile Site, by iMarc LLC for The Steamship Authority, TripAdviser Mobile, by TripAdviser, and The Brookings Institution iPad App by Velir for the Brookings Institution.

This is PixelMEDIA’s second straight year on the “Best Company” list, which is high praise considering the number of great companies competing for the honor. Business NH Magazine’s Best Companies to Work For competition recognizes businesses that go out of their way to create fun and beneficial workplaces for their employees. This year’s second-place finish in the Best Companies to Work For review exemplifies how developing a respectful, creative and supportive corporate culture can help a company stay focused and succeed in an uncertain economy.

View Full Article (.pdf – 465kb)

PixelMEDIA inc., New Hampshire’s largest interactive media agency has been named “Coolest Company for Young Professionals” in the mid-size company category. The award, sponsored by New Hampshire Business Magazine and the Stay Work Play Initiative, recognizes companies who cultivate work environments that attract and retain young employees (40 and under) by providing mentoring programs, professional development opportunities, and creating an overall workplace culture that contributes to the success of its employees.

CEO Erik Dodier livened up the ceremony at the McAuliffe-Shepard Discovery Center in Concord, NH by accepting the award wearing a disco wig and sunglasses- which he stated to be the only cool things he owned. Dodier pushed the young people in the audience to “move forward in business, by trying something new without fear of standing out” indicating that those risk takers are often rewarded with the most satisfaction.

PixelMEDIA, which has been operating in the Seacoast area for over 17 years, received the title as “Coolest Company for Young Professionals” for the many policies it has implemented to encourage its employees to grow professionally while maintaining a work life balance. Included in these efforts are individualized development plans, multiple reward programs, employee involvement in the annual planning process, and opportunities to give back to the community, as well as flex time and work from home policies. To promote fun in the workplace, PixelMEDIA has an X-Box, ping pong table, guitars, and bicycles available for employee use. Additionally, employees are encouraged to decorate their own work areas to reflect their personal interests.

“To me the beauty of working here is I can explore in multiple directions and expand my skill set according to where the company and our industry are going, not by climbing a corporate ladder from one pre-defined rung to the next. I’m encouraged to try my best, given the freedom to make the tough decisions, and compensated generously for the effort I contribute”, states Megan Fields, an Information Architect at PixelMEDIA.

The award was provided to one winner in each of three categories: Large companies (126 or more employees), Medium companies (51 to 125 employees) and Small companies (less than 50 employees). This is the second NH Business Magazine award for PixelMEDIA in 2011, as the company was recognized as Business of the Year in the Business Services category earlier this year.

About PixelMEDIA

Founded in 1994, PixelMEDIA offers a diverse range of professional services including web and mobile solutions, application design and development, user interface design, multimedia design, website hosting, and website management. PixelMEDIA provides the strategic, creative, and technical expertise needed to increase revenue opportunities and reduce costs. PixelMEDIA’s customers include industry leaders such as ECCO Shoes, Sam Adams, Bauer Hockey, Rubik’s Cube, SkillSoft, and Logica. For information, visit www.pixelmedia.com

Begun in 1996, the MITX Awards has grown to become the largest and most prestigious awards competition in the country for technology innovations, and celebrates the best creative and technological accomplishments emerging from New England.

“The MITX Interactive Awards draw in digital and creative work of an astoundingly high caliber. Each year the applications grow increasingly impressive, and 2011 brought some of the best work we’ve ever seen,” said Debi Kleiman, president of MITX. “This year’s finalists represent true thought-leaders, experts, and innovators; they are the best and brightest our community has to offer, and their work bridges the space between creative ideas and technology. MITX is proud to serve as the foundation for this region’s vibrant digital community.”

Bzzy is an SMS (Text Message) Auto-Responder that allows the user to choose from a selection of pre-defined or custom messages, that when engaged, are automatically sent as a reply to any text message received by the users cell phone. Primarily aimed at curbing the dangers of distracted driving, an epidemic that takes thousands of lives each year, Bzzy can also be also be utilized during those other times where responding to a text is simply an inconvenience. Be it at the movies, enjoying a dinner with family, focusing on work or school, even napping; there are so many scenarios where immediately responding to texts isn’t a top priority, but still expected of us. Bzzy is a tool that “Tells your friends to Buzz off. But in a nice way”.

“We are thrilled that MITX has chosen to recognize Bzzy in the mobile category. The purpose of Bzzy is aimed directly at preventing texting while driving. This nomination helps us to continue to raise awareness about the dangers of distracted driving” said PixelMEDIA CEO, Erik Dodier.

PixelMEDIA will be recognized with the other finalists in the category of Mobile at a ceremony traditionally attended by over 1,000 of the region’s top interactive marketing and technology professionals. Winners will be announced at the ceremony, held at the Sheraton Boston on December 5th. Tickets can be purchased at www.mitxawards.org/interactive.

The MITX Awards are made possible by our wonderful sponsors. The 2011 MITX Awards Platinum Sponsor is PricewaterhouseCoopers. Gold Sponsors are : Boston.com, DLA Piper. Silver Sponsors include adbeast, Atom Group, Flashtalking, HireMinds, Onward Search, ShareThis, Velir.

About PixelMEDIA

Founded in 1994, PixelMEDIA offers a diverse range of professional services including web and mobile solutions, application design and development, user interface design, multimedia design, website hosting, and website management. PixelMEDIA provides the strategic, creative, and technical expertise needed to increase revenue opportunities and reduce costs. PixelMEDIA’s customers include industry leaders such as ECCO Shoes, Sam Adams, Bauer Hockey, Rubik’s Cube, Keene State College, and Logica. For information, visit www.pixelmedia.com

About MITX

Established in 1996, MITX — the Massachusetts Innovation & Technology Exchange — is the leading industry organization focused on the web and mobile, bringing together the digital marketing, media and technology community to engage in what’s next and how it will impact the marketing and business worlds. Connecting more than 7,500 professionals in New England, MITX is a dynamic community of thought leaders and collaborators in search of insight, education and opportunity. Creator of FutureM, MITX is headquartered in Boston, MA. For more information, visit http://www.mitx.org/.