The Elms

Partnership

After an extensive refurbishment, The Elms approached us to completely remodel their online touch-points and give their guests the most intuitive and effortless experience possible. We were also engaged by the marketing team to increase exposure and inspire more direct bookings.

Challenge

The challenge throughout was how we bring The Elms to life online and create digital assets and technology that seamlessly connect prospective guests to the experience at the hotel. With the right message, at the right time, to the right demographic, we aimed to convert users through the best booking experience possible.

Approach

We worked closely with The Elms to define their digital experience, from initial engagement online to check-in onsite. Increasing direct traffic would come from a targeted and cost-effective digital marketing strategy, creating traffic for a highly optimised website. Increasing the value of each booking through the integration of our ecommerce platform, while reducing the operational costs of the booking team.

Stats

ROAs
27 :1
Web traffic
+ 80 %
Voucher sales
+ 20 %

Driving direct business

A digital refurbishment for a fresh start

Defining the personality was key to starting the process. Once we created the ‘provocatively relaxed’ character, we could start to define the experiential values which would run throughout all touchpoints, verbally and visually. We used this concept to create a digital experience based on discovery and delight - one that felt seamless when crossing over from digital to physical.

Once we had launched the website, we dived into the digital marketing strategy. Working alongside our in-house Digital Team, we created a joined-up series of campaigns which saw an uplift of 80% YoY in direct traffic to the website with a return on ad spend of 27:1 (350% increases YoY).

Website

Conversion based on discovery

Our focus was to create an online experience reflective of the hotel's physical ambience, using visual elements and animations for a lively feel. We aimed to unify various revenue streams into a cohesive online experience, enhancing features for a rich, exploratory journey. The goal was to transform the transactional nature of the site into one that encourages exploration, with shoppable, shareable areas and intelligent features like image hotspots. These actions saw an 11% increase in engagements.

Technology

A seamless experience

Part of the overhaul was overcoming the fragmented online booking journey caused by disparate systems for rooms, spa and dining, which led to operational issues and guest dissatisfaction. This fragmentation often resulted in guests booking through OTAs, impacting the hotel's direct guest relationships. Since the move to our Ecommerce Platform, The Elms has seen 40% of their bookings being multi-basket transactions. And the digital alignment has seen a 20% increase in gift voucher sales.

Don’t take our word for it

“Since launching with the ecommerce platform, we’ve improved our online conversion and increased our average order value. Working with Journey reduces my labour costs, increases my revenue and increases my direct bookings, therefore reducing commissions. Over a third of our orders are now multi-product, driving greater direct revenue. The platform has been a game-changer for us.”
Review by Mark Bevan Managing Director at The Elms
Villa Resorts Villa Resorts
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