Shorthand Case Study

Honda built a high-performing content hub with Shorthand. Here's how

Switching from a restrictive CMS to Shorthand helped Honda publish faster and drive growth — including an 85% increase in dwell time and a 600% rise in subscriptions.

Sample imagery from Honda's brand and feature stories.

Goal

Evolve Engine Room into a scalable content hub with high-impact storytelling.
32% increase in ROI
85% increase in site dwell time

Problems

Engine Room was constrained by a rigid CMS and slow publishing workflows.

Content lacked impact and struggled to stand out.

Solution

Adopted Shorthand for digital publishing:

✓ Faster publishing and greater agility
✓ Immersive, visually rich storytelling
✓ Grew subscribers, dwell time, and ROI

Goal

Evolve Engine Room into a scalable content hub with high-impact storytelling.

Problems

Engine Room was constrained by a rigid CMS and slow publishing workflows.

Content lacked impact and struggled to stand out.

Solution

Adopted Shorthand for digital publishing:

✓ Faster publishing
✓ Immersive storytelling
✓ Higher ROI
32% increase in ROI
85% increase in site dwell time

Engine Room, Honda’s content hub for generating leads and introducing new products, was originally launched on an archaic content management system (CMS). The team was eager to implement new content ideas quickly, but the CMS made innovation difficult.

The CMS headaches and an upcoming motorcycle event provided the catalyst for the Honda team to relaunch Engine Room using Shorthand.

Nick Bennett, Honda UK’s Digital Content and Social Media Section Manager, sums up the challenge: “We had two months to move Engine Room from its online magazine format to an online content platform and deliver compelling content, keep the brand awareness, plus attract new subscribers to our database after GDPR reduced our numbers,” he recalls.

'The Big Surprise — Life with Honda ZR-V'

'The Big Surprise — Life with Honda ZR-V'

One year after this relaunch, Engine Room had boosted ROI, dwell time, click through rate, and subscriptions. Here’s how.

A bold relaunch on Shorthand

Nick and the team decided not to simply replicate the legacy marketing tactics and technologies used by competitors. “Doing something different allows you to stand out in a very crowded marketplace,” he says.

What attracted us to the tool was how easy it is to use.

After testing a wide range of publishing platforms, Honda UK put the wheels in motion to relaunch Engine Room on Shorthand. The content team was tasked with repurposing existing content in the new Shorthand format, while also building brand-new articles from scratch.

Just two months after signing up for a Shorthand subscription, the old site was switched off and the new Honda Engine Room site went live. Engine Room was relaunched without a speed bump.

Simplicity and support

Shorthand’s ease of use was a driving factor for Nick and his team from day one. “What attracted us to the tool was how easy it is to use. We wanted to be able to take locally produced content lying in front of us and have it on the web within 15 minutes,” he says.

“We worked very closely with Shorthand to better understand how the tool could work, and the team received comprehensive training.”

A bold relaunch on Shorthand

Nick and the team decided not to simply replicate the legacy marketing tactics and technologies used by competitors.

Doing something different allows you to stand out in a very crowded marketplace.

After testing a wide range of publishing platforms, Honda UK put the wheels in motion to relaunch Engine Room on Shorthand. The content team was tasked with repurposing existing content in the new Shorthand format, while also building brand-new articles from scratch.

Just two months after signing up for a Shorthand subscription, the old site was switched off and the new Honda Engine Room site went live. Engine Room was relaunched without a speed bump.

Simplicity and support

Shorthand’s ease of use was a driving factor for Nick and his team from day one. “What attracted us to the tool was how easy it is to use. We wanted to be able to take locally produced content lying in front of us and have it on the web within 15 minutes,” he says.

“We worked very closely with Shorthand to better understand how the tool could work, and the team received comprehensive training.”

A tiled selection of photos of dogs sitting in cars with red Honda bandannas around their necks.

'Meet the Honda Hounds' International Dog Day story

'Meet the Honda Hounds' International Dog Day story

A tiled selection of photos of dogs sitting in cars with red Honda bandannas around their necks.

'Meet the Honda Hounds' International Dog Day story

'Meet the Honda Hounds' International Dog Day story

Engine Room was live but the real test of the new content hub was its scrutiny at an upcoming live event.

Launching stories to the world

The Goodwood Festival of Speed is an annual event held in West Sussex, about an hour outside London. For Honda, it represented a major opportunity to reach more than 200,000 visitors interested in motorsport.

With the relaunch complete and Shorthand training underway, the content team captured key Honda highlights throughout the four-day event. They then turned those moments into Shorthand stories and published them immediately — all from the field.

'Women in Motorcycling'

'Women in Motorcycling'

“We wanted to make sure the event reached people not only in the UK, but globally,” Nick says. “Those stories from the Goodwood Festival of Speed delivered an immersive and interactive experience that makes the content relevant to a wide audience for years to come.”

An outstanding boost in ROI and performance

The transition to Shorthand delivered major benefits to the Honda team within months. The first annual data review was a cause for celebration, with return on investment — measured in terms of traffic and value to the business — up by 32%.

“ROI is everything,” Nick says. “You want to make sure you are delivering commercially to support the needs and requirements of the business.”

The team behind Shorthand is outstanding. They're knowledgeable, efficient and will do anything they can to help us succeed.

“We know that most people look at two or more articles. They may be coming through via a story that interests them, but the quality means they are more likely to stay longer and look at others,” says Nick. The new Honda Engine Room became an inspiring destination for social media audiences to learn about the brand and its products before visiting the main website.

The click-through rate to honda.co.uk increased by 47%. Finally, Honda also saw a 600% rise in subscriptions, having reset all its data in a post-GDPR world.

An outstanding boost in ROI and performance

The transition to Shorthand delivered major benefits to the Honda team within months. The first annual data review was a cause for celebration, with return on investment — measured in terms of traffic and value to the business — up by 32%.

“ROI is everything,” Nick says. “You want to make sure you are delivering commercially to support the needs and requirements of the business.”

Most people look at two or more articles. They may be coming through via a story that interests them, but the quality means they are more likely to stay longer and look at others.

The new Honda Engine Room became an inspiring destination for social media audiences to learn about the brand and its products before visiting the main website. The click-through rate to honda.co.uk increased by 47%. Finally, Honda also saw a 600% rise in subscriptions, having reset all its data in a post-GDPR world.

Expanding storytelling beyond the Engine Room with support from Shorthand

“We are never shy of stories in Honda. There are lots of interesting stories and many fascinating ways customers use our products,” Nick says.

He weighed up other tools before deciding on Shorthand. “There are a lot of websites and platforms that template and restrict you.

“Shorthand gives you a blank canvas and tools to drag and drop, allowing you to build a story that stands out and performs perfectly on mobile, desktop, and tablet. You don’t have to think about things like ‘Will it technically perform? Will it behave in the way it should?’ Instead you can simply focus on the storytelling.”

Shorthand gives you a blank canvas and tools to drag and drop, allowing you to build a story that stands out and performs perfectly.

There are now more than 250 multimedia-rich stories published on the Honda Engine Room site, but this is only the beginning. Nick and the team publish new stories to Engine Room regularly and are now exploring how it can support other campaigns.

“We are constantly looking to expand our use of Shorthand,” says Nick. “We’re easily able to embed other interactive tools into our stories, and the Shorthand team have introduced some great new storytelling features since we’ve been using the platform. The team behind Shorthand is outstanding. From the sales process, to onboarding and continued support ⁠⁠— they are knowledgeable, efficient and will do anything they can to help us succeed.”

Expanding storytelling beyond the Engine Room with support from Shorthand

“We are never shy of stories in Honda. There are lots of interesting stories and many fascinating ways customers use our products,” Nick says.

He weighed up other tools before deciding on Shorthand. “There are a lot of websites and platforms that template and restrict you.

Shorthand gives you a blank canvas and tools to drag and drop, allowing you to build a story that stands out and performs perfectly on mobile, desktop, and tablet.

“You don’t have to think about things like ‘Will it technically perform? Will it behave in the way it should?’ Instead you can simply focus on the storytelling.”

There are now more than 250 multimedia-rich stories published on the Honda Engine Room site, but this is only the beginning. Nick and the team publish new stories to Engine Room regularly and are now exploring how it can support other campaigns.

“We are constantly looking to expand our use of Shorthand,” says Nick.

“We’re easily able to embed other interactive tools into our stories, and the Shorthand team have introduced some great new storytelling features since we’ve been using the platform. The team behind Shorthand is outstanding. From the sales process, to onboarding and continued support ⁠⁠— they are knowledgeable, efficient and will do anything they can to help us succeed.”

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