London Midland
A feature rich website for one of the UK's leading rail companies
The Client
London Midland carries over 50 million people a year on a network stretching from Liverpool to London and across the Midlands. With 1300 trains a day serving over 170 stations, it's one of the UK's principal train companies and forms part of the Go-Ahead Group, which itself is responsible for almost 30% of total UK rail passenger journeys.
The Challenge
They had a website that was used as an information resource but were looking for more. By 2008 they had decided to make the change and improve their online business.
Our brief was to create a site that offered users a wealth of information, dynamic content and the opportunity to plan their journey and buy tickets online.
The Solution
With all these great features and an abundance of useful content, it was important to make sure we didn't create a site that overwhelmed and confused visitors; it was about balance.
To achieve this, the key area was the design of the site. We created a neat and vibrant website that makes the site easy to navigate and lets the content take centre stage.
Some of the great technical features include:
- Easy online ticket purchasing and social media interactivity through an embedded Twitter feed and Facebook link.
- Advanced profile management for users giving them full control of their purchases and details
- Transport specific technical features such as arrivals and departures information and emergency and engineering works warning systems
- A bespoke CMS giving London Midland full control of the content of the site
The Results
The hard work from both sides is paying off; since the launch of the new site in April 2009 online revenue has increased 470%.
Year on year the number of visitors to the site has increased a minimum of 178% with time spent on site increasing a minimum of 165% - essential growth for driving sales.
David Whitley, Head of Marketing for London Midland said:
"We appointed Imaginet through a competitive tendering exercise for the Go-Ahead Group, and have been delighted at their commitment, dedication and enthusiasm in getting everything we want on time and on budget. There's a real buzz about the team, and they are always quick to come up with ideas and solutions to make our website stand out from the crowd".