Daniel Thwaites : Industry Leading Digital Presence From Shire Hotels

Shire Hotels launched their new website in January 2015 with the objective of enhancing the guest experience and creating an industry leading digital presence. The new website is fully responsive and adaptive; linking to their six individual hotel sites and delivering guests the best experience possible on any device. It includes innovations that haven't yet been seen before in the UK hotel industry and in some cases, will be an international first, such as price aggregators comparing OTA (Online Travel Agents) and displaying them in a well-designed widget on each page, retaining their visitors and making it easy for a shopper to see where the best price is.
The host of new features on the website are devoted to improve the guest journey of both business and leisure guests. The clear- cut navigation- with three clicks or less to the desired location means guests can find all the information they need, including comparative prices to book a room within seconds. The price comparison reduces the impact of booking abandonment and offers customer- centric solutions by offering guests the best rate available directly within their own website. For first time visitors to the website, the image led design welcomes guests to experience the small details by showcasing each hotel and all the facilities on offer.
The new website features an 'Engage with us' section which collates all uncensored reviews from Trip Advisor and activity from Social Media in one place, giving visitors a transparent insight in to previous guests' experience. Additional features will be added to the new website in the coming months which will include an interactive 'Events and Attractions' section, giving ideas and inspiration for families, friends and couples planning short breaks.

Ecommerce Marketing Manager, Sam Wilson commented; "When embarking on the project we aimed to create and implement new innovations not seen before in the Hotel industry making our site as transparent to users as possible. One example of this is the price comparison tool that features on our booking pages - allowing users to see that we offer the best rate directly in comparison to the top 4 OTA's. We are delighted with the look and feel of the site, and are excited to see our conversion rate from the booking engine doubling year on year since our launch."