This project involved a totally new custom Wordpress theme but it was not about reinvented the wheel.

In the video you can see a before and after comparison of the old/new website. The new brand identity modernises the aesthetic while greater attention-to-detail in section spacing offers a more premium experience.

Through research conducted in Google Analytics data, we identified numerous pages that received few page views, they were not serving as entry points to the website, nor were they ranking organically for any keywords of note. In contrast, pages like the swimming pool and restaurant sections were among the most frequently visited on the site.

This helped inform the new sitemap and as part of the new website planning, special attention was given to identifying pages. Primarily located within the 'on-site' section, our head of studio devised a simplified user experience and by using popups we minimised the need for users to navigate between multiple pages to find information. For SEO critical pages dedicated landing pages were built, ensuring organic visibility continued to perform well.

A highly considered aspect of the Ladram Bay website is its menu, providing users with a previews of various accommodation types, offers, facilities and events prior to users clicking through to that page.

The old website's menu directed users to accommodation by name (eg: Diamond/ Platinum), which for new customers might be confusing. By simplifying accommodation categories we have optimised the user experience for users who are less familiar with Ladram's accommodation choices.

The dynamic nature of the menu allows the Ladram Bay team to effortlessly add or remove accommodation types and new units without requiring a developer's intervention.

During this project, we collaborated closely with iPebble, a specialist RMS (Reservation Management System) provider responsible for handling the backend booking system. Meanwhile, Tribe Digital led the development of the frontend system, which directs users to a dedicated subdomain where they can manage payments and access Ladram's inventory.

The desktop site includes additional media images that are not essential for mobile users, this helps simplify the booking process and improve loading speed.

Building on menu UX, providing a clean experience for mobile users was key and the revised website features properties specific iconography outlining the features each accommodation type contains. This is important for mobile UX where space is constrained and (versus desktop ) attention spans are lower.