Dennis LaMantiaPortfolio

2013

EXPERIENCE

2012

2011

2010

2009

2008

2007

2006

2005

2004

2003

2002

2001

CCIM Institute - Interactive Marketing Manager

CCIM Institute - International Operations Manager

Self Employed - Freelance Copywriter

JET Program - English Teacher in Japan

Maritz - Travel Director

State Department - Intern at US Embassy in Malawi

DePaul University - MBA (Marketing Management)

The College of St. Scholastica - B.A. (English)

“The ability to make big leaps of thought is a common denominator among the originators of breakthrough ideas. Usually this ability resides in people with very wide backgrounds, multidisciplinary minds, and a broad spectrum of experience.” -- Nicholas Negroponte

Increasing conversions

Marketing content

Developing a website strategy

Creating a social media presence

WORK PROJECTS

Using website analytics and A/B testing to increase conversions by 242%.

Building an audience through blogging and social media to increase attendance at annual conference.

Using stakeholder interviews, competitor analysis, website analytics, and user insights to guide a website redesign strategy.

Figuring out how to connect with young commercial real estate professionals on social media.

Membership revenue is a major part of any association's budget, and CCIM Institute is no exception. The problem was the membership landing page conversion rate was 9%.

Problem Objective Results

Improve navigation and page layout to increase conversion rate. A conversion in this case was going to the second step of the goal funnel.

By moving the conversion link to a more visible location and replacing a tabbed layout with a more concise one-page format, I increased goal conversion by 242%.

Using website analytics and A/B testing to increase conversions by 242%.

Increasing conversions

My contributions to increasing conversions by 242%

Developed a hypothesis based on business goals and user behavior

Created a variation in Google Optimizer to test the hypothesis

Modified website to run the experiment

Permanently implemented the successful variation

Marketing content

We were struggling to market our speakers’ commercial real estate expertise. Since potential attendees didn’t see a benefit to attending, our registration was low.

Building an audience through blogging and social media to increase attendance at annual conference.

Generate interest in the 2012 conference by blogging about speaker insights before the conference, and use onsite blogging and social media to create awareness for the 2013 conference.

2013 conference attendance is on pace to surpass 2012, partially due to the over 50,000 page views the 2012 conference blog received.

Problem Objective Results

Recommended blogging as a tactic to increase attendance

My contributions to building an audience

Interviewed speakers and wrote posts about session topics

Found a tool to display blog posts on main conference website

Worked with colleagues to promote blog posts across different channels

Developing a website strategy

Based on user feedback, we knew CCIM’s website wasn’t user friendly. Various systems that comprised the website weren’t visually or functionally integrated.

Problem Objective Results

Using stakeholder interviews, competitor analysis, website analytics, and user insights to guide a website redesign strategy.

Develop a website redesign strategy that improves usability, is consistently branded, and is mobile friendly.

Matched business goals with user insights to provide senior management with cost estimates, vendor recommendations, and a 6-month project timeline.

Persuaded senior management to focus on a mobile friendly site instead of an app

My contributions to developing a website redesign strategy

Conducted user interviews to identify issues

Wrote a 40-point redesign plan that addresses usability issues and business goals

Worked with IT to document supporting systems infrastructure

Used Moz to conduct a competitive analysis

I was tasked with creating a social media presence for our target audience -- 25 - 35 year old professionals. The plan had to include a variety of content -- images, text, video -- and be implemented without a budget.

Problem Objectives Results

Build a social media team with people who don’t report to me; increase traffic to CCIM.com; and consistently respond to customer service inquires though social media.

With a 2-person team, we built an audience of over 15,000 followers across LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, Google+, and YouTube. From 2012 to 2013, traffic to CCIM.com from these sources increased 49%.

Figuring out how to connect with young commercial real estate professionals on social media.

Create a social media presence

Wrote, recorded, and edited content to post on social media

My contributions to creating a social media presence

Stayed up-to-date on social media trends by following reputable blogs

Used user feedback to develop platform-specific tone

Expanded social media to trade shows and conferences

Contributing author to CIRE magazine, CCIM Institute’s bimonthly magazine.

“The writer argues that the facts should be understood a special way. Good writers interpret the facts, and all interpretations are arguments. Some writers have said that all writing argues that we should do something or believe something”

Richard Marius in A Writer’s Companion

TECH WRITER

Starter League - UX projects

Stanford Online - Observation lab

DePaul Kellstadt - Conjoint analysis

CLASS PROJECTS

UX ProjectsOur Starter League team built Search by Style, an online app that helps businesses locate commercial real estate. As UX lead, I created personas, information architecture, wireframes, and user flows.

UX ProjectsThese wireframes and user flows were used to develop Search by Style. Our group presentation video begins at approximately 1 hr 15 mins: http://bit.ly/17FDbrh

Observation LabI created this video for an assignment for the Stanford Online course "A Crash Course on Creativity." We had to visit six stores, make observations, and present insights and hidden opportunities. View the video at http://youtu.be/j8UDqrKpsu8.

Conjoint AnalysisFor a DePaul marketing analytics class, I created a conjoint analysis based on actual survey results about grocery shopping habits. The highlighted sections show “sweet spots” for checkout time and frequency of grocery store visits.