Binghamton University

Challenge: Binghamton University, often call the “public Ivy” of the State University of New York system, is also a significant and highly-valued research and economic resource for that region, and the state as a whole. Our challenge was to work with the client to preserve this sense of academic achievement while bringing an updated aesthetic and functionality that conveys energy, excitement, and momentum to internal and external audiences.

Solution: After working with the Binghamton team to develop a project strategy that incorporated new communications and branding strategies, mStoner tested design concepts with high school students, current students, and faculty and staff of the university. The winning design was rolled out across a large template suite that allowed maximum flexibility for internal needs (including an option for on-the-fly CSS stylesheet adjustments). mStoner’s editorial team also produced a great deal of top-level page content for the site. We incorporated Bringhamton’s key messages on the homepage through a Flash-based piece that calls attention to specific parts of the university’s story, as well as key elements of life at Binghamton.

Result: After the launch of the site, Binghamton reported significant increases in all key metrics against their benchmark competitors. How significant, you ask?

• 7,899,941 Visits (+142% over benchmark data)
• 2,323,507 Absolute unique visitors
• 26,553,230 Pageviews (+177% over benchmark data)
• 3.6 Pages/visit (+14.74% above benchmark)
• 51.76% Bounce rate (+2% better than benchmark)
• 2:54 minutes, the average time on Binghamton’s site (+6.3% better than benchmark)
• New visits are down slightly, but apps are up by the thousands.

Not bad, not bad at all.