OUR APPROACH

Revamping Cardinal Newman’s Website

In today’s digital landscape, the importance of an accessible website cannot be overstated. A well-structured, intuitive website that provides an optimal user experience is key to increasing form fill-outs and conversions.

At a quick glance, Cardinal Newman’s website features two prominent buttons — Apply and Schedule a Visit — that encourage user action. Below the buttons are three linkouts to the school’s core tenets: Academics, Athletics, and Campus Life.

Heading over to the menu, you’ll see a simple breakdown to navigate throughout the website. Options include:

• About
• Admissions
• Academics
• Athletics
• Campus Life
• Ways to Give
• Join the Crusader Varsity Club
• Alumni

An accessible website is inclusive, catering to the needs of users with different abilities. Enhancing accessibility can mean better SEO, as search engines can better understand your content, thus potentially improving your site’s ranking.

Increased conversions and admissions inquiry form fill-outs are a direct result of improved user experience and expanded audience reach. Simplifying the form fill-out process, for instance, can reduce user frustration and hence improve conversion rates. Similarly, a well-optimized website that caters to different devices and user needs can significantly boost engagement and drive conversions.

Increased Web Traffic

Since partnering with ONE18 in 2020, Cardinal Newman has seen immense growth and stability in web traffic. Through coordinated SEO strategy (implementing meta tags/descriptions, search keywords, and content creation), web design, and paid ads, Cardinal Newman’s website saw over 65,000 users, 208,000 pageviews, and 95,000 sessions in 2022.

In 2023, performance stabilized with over 62,000 users, 100,000 sessions, and 254,000 pageviews.

Additionally, the site received 92,000 new users from January 2023 to mid-2024.

The Big Picture

From October 2022 to June 2024 — the entirety of Cardinal Newman’s tracked GA4 data (Google Analytics) — the high school received over 412,000 views and over 104,000 users. And given that sports play a big role in the school’s culture, Cardinal Newman’s Athletics page made its presence known as the #4 ranked page on the site — delivering 26,000 views from 14,000 users.

 

Reaching People Through Social Media

2023

Cardinal Newman had a successful 2023 with Facebook and Instagram. On Facebook, they reached over 253,000 people (up 202.9% from 2022) and over 34,700 people on Instagram (up 14% from 2022) through both organic and paid strategies. Altogether, they received over 34,000 content interactions (likes, shares, and comments) across both platforms.

2024

Social media success continued for Cardinal Newman in 2024. In the first half of 2024 alone, Cardinal Newman reached over 114,000 people on Facebook; on Instagram, they reached 53,000 people and received over 27,000 content interactions.

Outside of Reach, 2023 saw Cardinal Newman receive 550 Facebook likes and 279 Instagram followers. In the first half of 2024, Cardinal Newman has received 236 Facebook likes (on track to match/surpass last year’s number) and 355 Instagram followers (up 27.2% from 2023!).

Running Paid Ads to Increase Admissions

With the help of ONE18, Cardinal Newman High School leveraged the power of social media marketing by using Facebook and Instagram ads to enhance their admissions rates. By targeting their key demographics, they were able to reach potential students and their parents, effectively showcasing their academic accomplishments, extracurricular activities, and community engagement initiatives.

In Q3 2023, Cardinal Newman ads reached nearly 12,000 users on Facebook and were viewed nearly 60,000 times — receiving 604 link clicks in the process. For the year, Cardinal Newman received 29 leads.

Their ads highlighted campus life (with ads targeting science, cheer, and Mass & Play), providing an authentic look into the Cardinal Newman experience. These strategic efforts led to a significant increase in inquiries and applications, contributing to a boosted admission rate.

In the first half of 2024, Cardinal Newman’s ads were seen by 27,765 users, viewed a total of 119,477 times, and received 624 link clicks. So far, Cardinal Newman received 12 leads and counting in 2024.

Shaping the Future

In need of renovations, Cardinal Newman began the Shaping the Future Appeal — a campaign intended to raise money for the school’s upgrading efforts. As the first step of a multi-pronged effort to renovate the school, Cardinal Newman required a microsite for donors to visit. 

ONE18MEDIA tackled the task head-on. With the team’s efforts, the microsite showcased the campaign’s mission, the groundbreaking of the school’s North Academic Building, the appeal leadership team, and, most importantly, the amount of money raised.

With the microsite directing users to the donation page, Cardinal Newman successfully raised over $10.5 million — smashing their initial goal of $10,000,000!