Imagine being tasked with giving a hotel chain’s entire digital presence a makeover. Website, emails, SEO, social media – the lot. That was my mission at Apex Hotels. They wanted to ditch the dated and embrace the digital, and I was brought in to lead the charge. It was a proper digital adventure, complete with rubber ducks and lightning-fast websites.
Situation – The Digital Overhaul
Apex Hotels were facing a bit of a digital dilemma. Their website was showing its age, slow as a snail, and their email designs were, shall we say, a bit lacklustre. They needed a complete overhaul, a brand-new website built from scratch on a CMS that could handle bookings without breaking a sweat, and emails that actually engaged their customers. Plus, Google was starting to get serious about site speed, and Apex, with their image-heavy hotel showcases, were lagging behind.
Task – The Digital Transformation
“My task was to guide them through this digital transformation. We had an external web development team building the new website, and I was the bridge between them and Apex, ensuring everything was up to scratch. I was also responsible for choosing a new email marketing provider and designing templates that would make their emails sing. And, of course, we had to tackle their social media, making it more engaging and relevant.”
Actions – The Digital Toolkit
For the website, I was knee-deep in Photoshop, designing new screens and then translating them into HTML and CSS for the developers. We had weekly catch-ups, a proper digital scrum, to keep everyone on track and ensure we were hitting our targets.
Email marketing was a bit of a minefield. Choosing the right provider was crucial, as was migrating their email system without getting flagged as spammers. I designed modular email templates, like digital building blocks, so the marketing team could easily create new campaigns.
And then there was social media. We decided to experiment with Vine, a short-form video platform that was all the rage at the time. Apex had a quirky collection of rubber ducks, one for each hotel, and we decided to use them as our social media mascots. We created stop-motion videos, like rubber duck rugby matches during the Six Nations, that were a bit bonkers but strangely popular.
Result – The Digital Victory
The new website was a roaring success, fast as a whippet and easy to navigate. The emails were a breath of fresh air, and the marketing team could create campaigns without breaking a sweat. And our rubber duck videos? They were a hit! We even had other companies writing about them. It was a proper digital victory, a testament to what you can achieve with a bit of creativity and a lot of hard work.
Where Are They Now? – The Digital Evolution
Apex Hotels have continued to evolve their digital presence, which is great to see. Their website is now even more modern and user-friendly, and they’re still ranking well in search results. It’s a reminder that digital is a constantly moving target, but with the right team and a bit of vision, you can stay ahead of the game.
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