Australia is home to some of the world's most acclaimed contemporary circus performance companies, and NICA - the National Institute of Circus Arts - is where it all starts.
Based in Melbourne and flying under the flag of Swinburne University, NICA has set itself up as an authority on the awe-inspiring, setting the standard for the spectacular through a blend of accredited training and exceptional talent.
When NICA reached out to Core dna, it was in the midst of COVID-19. They took an extraordinarily challenging situation - classes stopped, shows shut down - and turned it into an opportunity to improve their offering and rebuild their website on a stronger foundation.
A website that slowed NICA's growth
Before Core dna, NICA's website was built on WordPress and hosted by a private company. The issues Karen Leskiw, Marketing and Communications Manager at NICA, was running into were consistent:
Limited marketing and CRM integrations. The platform could not talk properly to the systems NICA depended on.
Security. Issues were identified in 2018 after a data breach, and the vulnerabilities that followed put limits on what WordPress could be trusted with - forcing third-party platforms for booking and payments to keep compliance at 100%.
No editorial freedom. Limited editing capabilities, and no ability to create custom widgets.
What NICA needed from a new platform
Every one of those issues had to be answered by the new CMS. The critical features were native integration with Salesforce; an interface the marketing team could genuinely own; the ability to manage content with no development skills; ready-to-use templates for new pages; and the ability to build custom widgets for NICA's industry-specific needs.
After due diligence, NICA selected its partners: Deloitte for digital strategy and website wireframing, and Core dna as the content management system.
Core dna Solution
Goal one: a secure platform. Core dna's compliance and security team runs robust security and vulnerability programs, and was in contact with the Swinburne team from the start of the project to complete a full assessment before NICA's hosting moved across.
Goal two: Salesforce and third-party integrations. Unlike most CMSs, Core dna does not work through plugins - which would open another layer of vulnerability. Native integrations answered NICA's requirements instead; the platform is currently integrated with Salesforce and iClasspro.
Goal three: an interface everyone can use. Core dna is built for marketers and developers alike, with the flexibility to build any custom feature while keeping an interface that needs no technical skill to create, manage, modify and publish content. Ready-to-use templates cover new pages with no designer or developer involved.
Goal four: a filterable, bookable timetable. Working from Karen's brief, Core dna built the classes timetable feature. It is fully managed by Karen and her marketing team, and updated regularly to show classes and events at NICA.
Goal five: feeling in control and supported. NICA subscribed to Core dna managed services, which gives Karen constant contact with a dedicated account manager to discuss product needs or new projects with no red tape.
We now know that everything is possible with the Core dna platform so we don't limit ourselves and what we can do for the brand.
Results
The new website has been an incredible success. In Karen's words, it is “drastically better”.
People love it. The experience changed for both website users and the marketing team.
350% increase in traffic. With no additional marketing effort, traffic went from 20,000 visitors per month to 70,000.
No downtime and optimal load speed since launch, despite the spike in traffic.
Vulnerabilities and security issues resolved, and faith in the website restored.
What's Next?
Collaboration continues on future projects, starting with NICA's intranet.
