Interview: Country Road's content strategy
Country Road’s digital journal LIVE WITH US will celebrate its one year anniversary this month.
In just 12 months, the platform has recorded a revenue run rate of $1.1 million, with featured product conversions at over 4%.
Over 130 stories have been shared alongside collaborations with talents such as Sophie Lee, Sibella Court, Candice Lake and Tim Jarvis.
Country Road content executive Louisa de Kievit discusses the success of the site, which attracts 98,154 average views per month.
1. One of the most popular stories on Live With Us involved Sophie Lee. What are some of the most popular items purchased as a result of the blog/during session time?
What really resonated with readers with Sophie Lee’s story was her relaxed Australian style. A grey knit v-neck tunic was the most popular item, followed closely by a simple black and white stripe cotton t-shirt.
2. When are the most popular traffic times?
Definitely the weekends. We see a spike in traffic during Saturday mornings and Sunday afternoons – which makes sense as that’s when our readers have a little more time to have a really thorough read of the most recent stories.
3. Are there any interesting trends in how consumers browse and interact on the platform from a commercial point of view?
What we’re finding is that people are staying on our website longer, are more engaged with content and they tend to switch back and forth between journal stories and shopping. Most importantly, we are finding increasingly that traffic to the stories are driven by the product page, not just the other way around.
4. Aside from sales, what other commercial benefits does the platform attract? Is there any way to capture data on consumer behaviour?
The best part of the online journal is showing our customer new ways to wear product, to educate them on its versatility and quality. The biggest and most promising data is that those who interact with the journal go on to spend more than those who do not. With the journal it’s easy to see what captures people’s attention – to discover what their interests are and what’s not working so we can continue to surprise and delight them.
5. What's next for the platform? Are there any upgrades or new projects?
We have many exciting ideas for Live With Us and currently working on how we best execute them. We are also focusing on how we can merge digital with the in store experience and to be really the leaders of this in the local market.