Website, blog and booking engine

Voted #1 Hotel in the World by Conde Nast Traveler, it was essential that Singita's online presence be elegant, user-friendly and informative. The previous site, while beautiful, had various shortcomings which were addressed with a more streamlined and task-oriented layout. For example, an analysis of the search stats indicated that the most popular keyword was "map", hence the decision to place the map top-right throughout the site, right above the search box.

An online booking engine was also developed which allows potential guests to check availability and make reservations in real time.

As part of a strategic decision to leverage social networking tools and engage more actively with guests, a blog was developed to share news, interesting stories, wildlife reports and lodge information with readers. The social media landscape is completed by an active Twitter profile for the Group, as well as a Facebook fan page.

We have an ongoing relationship with Singita, and are proud to manage their email communication with guests, in addition to maintaining the site and enhancing the existing functionality with user-friendly tools and content.

Visit the Singita website

Website, online shop and email template

Charlotte Rhys is a retailer of exclusive home, bath and body products, as well as luxury gifts, jewellery and chocolates. As part of their overall business strategy to increase sales and support the expanded product range, we designed and built a fresh new website which allows for simple, effective content management and a complete online shopping system.

The result is an elegant website which is a faithful extension of the brand. It allows for easy browsing and includes a user-friendly checkout process based on international best practice.

In conjunction with the site launch, we created an editable e-newsletter template in order for them to manage their email marketing sends in-house. An active online marketing campaign pushes both acquisition and retention by driving new visitors to the website and by deepening relationships with existing customers.

Visit the Charlotte Rhys website

Boutique website

Tim and Nicki Scarborough's light-filled guest house near Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens is a secluded base for exploring Cape Town. Their previous website didn't communicate the elegance and homeliness of the accommodation, or the personality of the proprietors. They engaged us to revamp the site with a fresh design which would showcase the rooms, location and exquisite garden to the full. The content also received a facelift, with new photography and web-appropriate copy.

The result is a chic new website which reflects the style of the house, the beauty of the location and the hospitality of the hosts. Users are able to view pop-up galleries of the guest house, browse the various types of accommodation available and make reservation enquiries via a simple online form.

Visit the Klein Bosheuwel website

Regular email campaigns

Entrusted by South Africa's leading outdoor and adventure brand to create and manage an ongoing monthly email campaign, we continue to produce steady return on investment and grow brand equity for Cape Union Mart. By actively monitoring the results of each and every email campaign, as well as comparing them over time, we are able to determine user engagement and identify key areas for improvement.

We also proactively drive the online marketing strategy by reporting quarterly on market conditions and industry trends, while making recommendations for improving the Cape Union Mart customer's online experience.

View a Cape Union Mart mailer online

Regular email campaigns

Poetry has a network of stores all over South Africa with a variety of carefully sourced, designed and selected products from across the world. Key to the brand expression is a focus on the smallest details, a passion for old-world craftsmanship and a desire to see shopping elevated to an activity where customers donít just find novelties, but rather experience a journey of personal discovery.

With this in mind, we designed a beautiful email template which showed the quality and sophistication of the products in the store, while effectively communicating the essence of the brand. Muted colours, layering of elements, texturised backgrounds and the use of antique-looking fonts all added to the effect.

The template was then coded to the highest international standards and tested across multiple email clients and spam filters. The first campaign achieved excellent open and clickthrough rates, driving users to the website where they could make online purchases which directly impacted the bottom line.

View a Poetry mailer online

Regular email campaigns

Singita's email marketing strategy, targeted at agents as well as guests, is designed to keep stakeholders informed and engaged with the brand long after they may have left the lodge. In partnership with HKLM Cape Town, who designed the visual language for the brand, we created a template which allowed for a considerable amount of content presented in a simple and attractive way.

HKLM's design makes the most of Singita's spectacular location and wildlife photography, adding a richness and depth to the template while effectively communicating the elegance of the brand. Each email is coded to the hightest international standards, meeting W3C guidelines for quality and rigorously tested across more than 10 email clients, including all popular PC, Mac and web-based programs.

View a Singita mailer online