Great Western Railway

Major digital transformation for leading UK train operator

Background

Working in partnership with the team at Great Western Railway (GWR) since 2013, we’ve set the agenda for digital change and delivered a programme of initiatives to re-invent the customer experience, driving a significant increase in revenue from all digital channels.

When we first started working with GWR, the online customer experience was fragmented, and legacy infrastructure was limited in its scope for growth and connectivity. Customers were frustrated – they struggled to get information about disruptions and found it difficult to book tickets online. The business was losing out on digital revenue as a result.

To help GWR become a truly digital-first organisation, it was vital to help foster an internal culture where data and customer insight would have a direct impact on the way business decisions were made.

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Solution

We defined a 3-5 year digital strategy centred on improving the experience in 3 key areas:

Buying tickets
Offering advice during the disruption
Inspiring customers to explore the region by train

We then created a roadmap of projects which would deliver against this strategy and established KPI frameworks and governance processes which informed how the business would manage and optimise its digital divisions over the next 5 years.

Since 2015 we’ve been delivering on our roadmap initiatives, including:

Designing and building a new website and booking flow: we delivered GWR.com, giving customers frictionless ticket purchasing on all devices, clear real-time travel information, and content which inspires users to explore the West

Upgrading the My Account area: we’ve made it easier for customers to manage their bookings, buy Season Tickets, quick-book their favourite journeys, and apply for refunds

Initiating a continuous optimisation programme: through regular KPI reporting, customer feedback measurement, and clickstream analysis, we are constantly iterating and improving the site’s content and usability

Tactical updates made to the website: repeat purchase functionality in the My Account area; a shift to Paypal, as more customers are purchasing in this way; on-site SEO, which is a new channel that has contributed to an increase in revenue; and changes to the call to action buttons that have had a positive effect on users' buying journey.

24%

channel shift to digital

17%

increase in average order value

56%

increase in online sales

Results

At its peak, the results seen on GWR.com have been truly impressive, enabling the train operator to achieve their digital freedom.

With increases to average booking conversions, online sales, and the average transaction value, it’s clear to see how vital digital is to GWR’s ongoing strategy.

Here's just a snapshot of the great results:

24% channel shift to digital
9.3% increase in average booking conversion rate
17% increase in average transaction value
56% increase in online sales

Following the success with GWR, we are seen as a key digital partner of First Group and have delivered website design and build projects for both South Western Railway and TransPennine Express.