Launches
At 2U a launch is considered when all assets for a program, track, certificate, or concentration go live for students and prospects. Every launch requires the work of multiple teams such as Brand, Creative, Web Strategy & Operations, Demand Generation, SEO, CRO, Digital Media Strategy, Paid Search, Affiliates, Marketing Tech, Email, and many more.
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Launch Turnaround Times
| Launch Type | .edu Site Support | Lead Form | edX Site Support | UUID/URL SLA | WEBOPS SLA | MKTGOPS Review SLA | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Core Flex | Yes – PLP and TYP | Yes – Taxi | Yes – FLEX Page | Needed 13 Business days prior to review* | 10 Business Days prior to review* | 4 Business Days prior to launch | Involves: – Creative (for Vibram) – Marketing Tech (for new environment) edX Page should go live 1-2 business days prior to Launch Date. |
Enhanced Flex aka Traditional Degree Existing Site | Yes | Yes – Taxi | Yes – About Page | Needed 13 Business days prior to review* | 10 Business Days prior to review* | 4 Business Days prior to launch | edX Page should go live 1-2 business days prior to Launch Date. |
Enhanced Flex aka Traditional Degree New Site | Yes | Yes – Taxi | Yes | Needed 13 Business days prior to review* | 10-15 Business Days prior to review* | 4 Business Days prior to launch | Involves: – Creative (for Vibram) – Marketing Tech (for new environment) edX Page should go live 1-2 business days prior to Launch Date. |
*Turnaround times are determined with the assumption that all assets/information is in the ticket from the beginning. If assets/information is missing, turnaround time may be longer.
Notes/Exceptions for Launches
- About pages need to be launched 1-2 days prior, to avoid any delays that could be caused from deployment schedules
Launch Templates
To help us keep track of launch items and marketing timeframes we’ve created a Program Launch Template. This template displays the order of operations, contingencies, and team responsibilities It also attempts to account for every possible launch item. However, the list of launch items continues to grow as we add new partners and new processes.
Here’s a nifty sitemap template sample sitemap that can be a good basis for planning out a sitemap for launches.This sitemap template can be adapted to fit the specific launch (Ex. removing columns E-J if no URL changes are needed
During the site freeze, any edits or changes that need to be made to the site can be added here. Once the site is live, Web Ops will review the punch list the morning of launch and make any necessary edits. See punch list template.
Additional Resources
Degree Differences Matrix
Marketing Assets for Flex vs. Lean OPM – Detailed Version
Degree Flex Service Model Detail – Nov ’22.xlsx