JCB came to us having identified a need for a new digital experience to connect the brand with a younger audience, their parents, and collectors.

Out of this was born the idea for the replacement of the former JCB Fans website with a more modern approach under the name JCB Explore.

The website would need to be a hub for JCB’s younger audience to come together and become more connected to the brand through children’s activity-based content, such as colouring-in sheets, as well as the parents and collectors alike, through the production of insightful articles.

Alongside driving the brand message, the JCB Explore website needed to serve a purpose of promoting JCB’s merchandise to parents, such as kids toys and clothing, which would be sold via a third-party website, JCB Shop, as well as a collection of retailers.

Following the website launch, JCB wanted to increase awareness of the JCB Explore brand and reach more mainstream awareness.

During the development of the JCB Explore digital marketing strategy, it became apparent that the website, whilst focused on children and family, had further potential. Thus, development of a series of user personas was undertaken to establish the different audiences that the website could cater for, including kids, parents, collectors, and those working in childcare.

Following the creation of user personas, this opened up a number of wider opportunities for the website that were previously not utilised, including the ability to reach collectors who would be more interested in the higher-end merchandise, as well as those working in professional settings who may be looking to expand the collection of toys and activities for children to increase constructive play.

Following the launch of the revamped JCB Explore website, it was clear that, initially, there were two main objectives:

1. Address the lack of brand keyword traffic
2. Tackle head keywords and product category-related keywords

In the first instance, to assist in establishing the website and driving an initial set of users, the team focused on increasing the website’s visibility among branded keywords. For example, those already looking for JCB Merchandise, who may have previously been driven elsewhere.

Following the establishment of branded keywords, focus turned to tackling product and category-related keywords, with one example being “digger toys”. Whilst these keywords were dominated by e-commerce giants and national retailers, through optimisation of the user experience, technical improvements, link building, and content production, the average rank across non-branded keywords began an upward climb.

Within 6 months, the JCB Explore website was comfortably competing in the SERPs against Amazon, eBay, Argos, and Smyths Toys.

The website has continued to flourish ever since, maintaining strong positions on head keywords and picking up on broader topics related to constructive play, presenting JCB Explore as a trustworthy brand and helping reach a wider audience of children and parents alike.