H O M E A W A Y | nadiavlieger

ROLE

I worked as the Social Media Intern for HomeAway, Inc. during the summer of 2017, and continued on through my fall semester. During my 6 months at HomeAway, I gained a deep understanding of the world of corporate marketing, expanded my skills as a passionate social media expert, and was given the opportunity to showcase my creative and analytical skills through the various marketing campaigns with each travel season.

PROJECTS

I worked individually and in conjunction with the North America Social Media Marketing team, Traveler Marketing team, and Public Relations team to best understand each facet necessary to successfully tackle my numerous projects. I wanted to learn as much as possible, and was eager to soak up the most knowledge and experience with my fellow team members. The following are only some of the key projects I took on:

Facebook & Instagram Ad Testing: create and test Facebook and Instagram ad content in order to optimize fan acquisition
Instagram Stories: oversee the creation of Instagram Stories for the HomeAway Instagram account, and test differing strategies in order to discover the optimal strategy for the increased engagement of HomeAway followers
Copy Writing: improve social media content planning through the identification and understanding of 6 core market segments, and implement copywriting strategies through call-to-action CTA copy testing specific to each segment
Pinterest Content Creation: create weekly Pinterest content and track metrics of close-ups, clicks, and saves
Growth: increase social media presence, following, and engagement on Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest

FACEBOOK & INSTAGRAM AD TESTING

I identified the key qualities and requirements necessary for optimal reach when advertising on the Facebook platforms. Initially, I began by pinpointing the best images, and copy for acquiring in the most fans. After determining the top strategy, I tested whether or not the advertisements were most effective as Instagram Story ads, or as traditional post ads that appeared through the newsfeed feature. In summary, my findings concluded that it was optimal to create graphics which limited the amount of text, utilized the most unique property images within each ad, and incorporated a striking, yet simple call-to-action. All tests were based on the following metrics throughout the ad's lifespan:

Follower growth
Total clicks
Cost per follower
Cost per click

INSTAGRAM STORIES

I oversaw the entire process of conceptualizing, creating, posting, and analyzing the results of using Instagram Stories as a new platform for reaching potential and already existing HomeAway fans and travel fanatics alike. High-quality, unique property images combined with a high sensitivity to the seasonal trends throughout the summer and fall determined what content to feature on Instagram stories. Each story posted brought me closer to a more refined understanding of what our audiences preferred to view. For example, during the summer, water-focused, tropical properties were most loved, and as the weather turned cooler, our audiences favored cabins, ski lodges, and cozy interiors. Each story was linked to a property page, third-party articles mentioning HomeAway, or HomeAway blog content, and visits were tracked. For each story posted, I chose to track:

Impressions
Retention Rates (how long people watched the story with each subsequent tap)
Link "swipes"

COPY WRITING

One of my first tasks while at HomeAway was learning how to engage our audience, and pinpoint what kind of copy best appealed to each different audiences on each platform. Due to a younger demographic on Instagram, I was able to have a bit more fun incorporating pop-culture references and social events. For Facebook, the audience took a more mature stance, and I emphasized the defining qualities of the property or content that set it apart. The Pinterest fans were definitely the dreamers who preferred planning far away adventures, and, finally, our Twitter fans enjoyed simple, short, and to-the-point captions. The following four categories summarize the main groups of copy in which I engaged our fans through a Call-to-Action:

"Follow Us" CTA
"Like if..." CTA
"Share using #HomeAway" CTA
"Comment/Tag if..." CTA

As one of the top platforms used to expand HomeAway's reach, Pinterest proved to be a wonderful tool for me to continue utilizing my creativity by creating pins sourced from company content. I was able to create on average about 2 pins per week using Photoshop and Illustrator. Successful pins were those which incorporated simple, clear design and copy, remained relevant to the season, and appealed to our core traveler segments. Pin metrics tracked were:

Close-ups
Clicks
Saves

CHALLENGES & KEY LEARNINGS

From the get-go, I was given immense freedom and autonomy as an intern. Initially, my role within the Social Media team was very loosely defined. Although at first I was a bit ambivalent as to which direction I wanted to gear my focus, I was able to turn that uncertainty into an opportunity to explore and decide for myself where I could provide the most knowledge and creativity. Through my experience, I grew much more confident in my abilities as an individual in the workplace and even as a student. As someone who struggles to offer any "rough drafts" and feels the need to perfect and only provide the refined final phase of my work, whether it be simple brainstorms, thoughts, or art, I learned to stop trying to fine-tune my creative process. Expressing the earliest phases of my ideas is such a crucial step for me now as I have learned that, often times, my initial thoughts can be the catalyst for bigger, better solutions. Throughout my 6 months with HomeAway, I was able to contribute to the following growth:

Nadia

Vlieger

Test 1: Copy & Images

Test 2: ACL Contest Follow CTA

Test 3: Story vs. Post

Winner

Winner

Winner

Winner